First time I holidayed in France I stayed in a little village near here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guingamp
The town and surrounding area would mostly fit your criteria. Whilst it was rather nice, obviously trips to the beach (some 8-10 miles from our village) meant English Channel, which was a tad nippy!
I now tend to holiday in the South, Languedoc-Roussillon area, better temps and Med, obviously.