Sainte-Croix-en-Jarez is a tiny village tucked into the hills southwest of Lyon, in the Pilat Regional Nature Park. What makes it unusual is that the village itself occupies a former Carthusian monastery — the Chartreuse de Sainte-Croix was converted into homes and workshops after the Revolution, so residents live inside medieval cloister walls. Wash hangs between 13th-century arches, potted plants sit outside former monk's cells, and the village square is the old monastery courtyard. The ensemble is classified as a monument historique and is one of the more quietly striking places in this part of France.
It is a small place — a two-hour visit covers everything — but its strangeness is genuine and lingers. Combine it with walking in the surrounding Pilat hills, which offer fine forest trails and views over the Rhône valley to the Alps on clear days.