A postcard from the France Show in London

If you are planning on moving to France or dreaming of owning a holiday retreat there, there’s a wealth of information at the France Show, a French-themed weekend held every January in London. You can plan your next holiday and enjoy everything you love about French lifestyle, culture and cuisine. In case you weren’t able to make it this year, here are some of our highlights.

There’s always a lot of energy and glamour brought by the incredibly nimble can-can girls, demonstrations from top French chefs, the fragrant offerings at the French market, and the sampling of fine wines. You can browse French properties for sale and get the lowdown from the experts one minute, and enjoy some oysters and champagne the next.

On the property side of things, there are the stands by estate agents, tax and legal finance professionals. It’s a priceless opportunity to get your questions answered.

All the buzz this time was the great exchange rate, which at 1,34 euros to the pound makes it a really interesting time to buy. Naturally the currency experts Moneycorp stand was a focus of interest, and their fun “money-grabbing” machine was a hit with the crowds!

The expert talks are always useful. Even if you are already familiar with French tax and law, things change every year so it’s good to get a refresher session. Notaires de France opened their remarks with the statement “2015 is the year that British buyers come back to the French market”, which drew a whoop from the audience.

The first day of the show went so smoothly that the FrenchEntrée property team wondered if the attendance had perhaps gone down from the previous years, but when the results were tallied up, this year had exceeded expectations by a large margin. This probably means that people who were visiting on the first day were really focused about what the information they were looking for rather than merely window-shopping.

Matthew Cameron of Ashton KCJ spoke about the upcoming changes to inheritance law, an essential subject for anybody buying in France who wishes to protect their home for future generations to enjoy.

Another aspect of moving to France is generating an income to support the dream. Sally Stone of Les Bons Voisins always dishes out her no-nonsense tips about registration, paperwork, running your business and integrating into your community.

There were so many delightful things to see, hear, taste and find out about at the France Show that it’s just too much to describe, you’ll have to come and see for yourself. We are already looking forward to the next one!