If you are ever in the southwest of France, do not hesistate to visit Rennes-le-Chateau. Although the tourists flock to the nearby historical city of Carcasonne, Rennes-le-Chateau will impress you even more.
What is this place? It is an unbelievably isolated hill station that has a 360-degree panoramic view of the Languedoc region in Southern France. It’s a long, lonely one-hour drive up a very steep one lane road.
Historically, the book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail (and later, the book-turned-movie The Da Vinci Code) put Rennes-le-Chateau on the map. According to this book, the local priest in the 19th century discovered a buried treasure that gave evidence that Jesus and his wife (Mary Magdalene) settled in southern France.
Is the story real? Who knows? But . . . if you travel to Rennes-le-Chateau you will realize how unbelievably hidden and remote this place is – so in my view, it would make a wonderful location for a buried treasure, if one ever existed.