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This village just one hour from Paris is home to the region's most beautiful houses

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The Editor

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If you thought we'd exhausted all the gems around Paris, think again! There are still dozens and dozens more that we can't wait to share with you. This week, we're heading to Samois-sur-Seine, just a few kilometers from Fontainebleau. A peaceful village that unfolds its tranquil quaysides, its sandstone houses, and above all its incredible Belle Époque villas nicknamed the "Affolantes." Between heritage, the Seine, and Django jazz, a place that has more than one trick up its sleeve…

Just a short hour from Paris, nestled between the Fontainebleau forest and the Seine, there's a village like no other, giving you the delightful feeling of having escaped the passage of time. In Samois-sur-Seine, barges glide gently by, old sandstone walls line the narrow streets and, around a quay corner, there suddenly appear surprising homes with the look of little châteaux. Its history is deeply connected to the Seine and the Fontainebleau forest: once upon a time, its port served to transport firewood and sandstone paving stones extracted from the forest to Paris. Today, Samois retains this rather irresistible blend of history, nature, and sweet living.


The "Affolantes," breathtaking homes

People often say that you must save the best

the best for last, but just this once, let's skip the suspense and start with the best instead. And the best thing about Samois is found right along the Seine's banks. Along the river, enormous Belle Époque villas rival each other in creativity: ornate façades, half-timbering, medieval inspirations, Art Nouveau details, bold colors, or Anglo-Norman references... These homes, built between the late nineteenth century and the interwar period, nicknamed the "Affolantes", bear witness to an era when wealthy Parisians came to the countryside seeking fresh air, while competing with architectural imagination. The result: in just a few hundred meters, the village transforms into a genuine open-air museum.

Among these amazing residences, you can't miss our favorite find, the villa Les Fontaines-Dieu. Originally built as a forest keeper's house, it was transformed between 1896 and 1912 into a luxurious home by architect Eugène Cottin. With its gothic window lintels and listed in the historic monuments inventory. And while most of the villas are private, you just need to walk along the waterfront to admire their silhouettes and understand where the nickname "Bewitching" comes from.


The last refuge of Django Reinhardt

But architecture is not the only art resonating through the streets of Samois. Here, a very specific music still vibrates between the houses and the Seine's banks: that of Django Reinhardt. Still considered today as one of the world's greatest guitarists, he settled in the village in 1951 with his family. Far from the hustle and bustle of the big stages, he led a quieter life there, between fishing, billiards, painting and musique. The musician falls under the spell of this peaceful village, where he remains until his death in 1953, at age 43. Even today, he rests in the commune's cemetery.

Very quickly after that, his adopted village became a must-visit destination for manouche jazz lovers with the creation, in 1968, of the Django Reinhardt festival on Berceau Island. While the main festival now takes place in FontaiFontainebleau, the guitarist's influence remains omnipresent in Samois. In short, here, the arts blend with nature to dazzle all our senses, and give us the impression of leaving Paris for a world from another era.