US President George W Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, will meet on Saturday, opening what the White House called a new era in relations between the two countries.
First lady Laura Bush invited the new first couple of France to the Bush family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine, at the Group of Eight summit in Germany in June, White House spokesman Tony Snow said today.
Mr and Mr Sarkozy are currently on holiday just 50 miles from Mr and Mrs Bush's New England holiday home.
Mr Sarkozy, who took office in May, has been criticised at home for taking his first vacation as president in the US, and mocked for activities like jogging, which is seen as an American pastime.
He skipped French holiday spots for a break on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, about 100 miles north of Boston.
"It looks like we're on the verge of a new era of relations with the French, which is a good thing," Mr Snow said.
Mr Sarkozy's predecessor, Jacques Chirac, kept his distance from Mr Bush, and relations turning chilly after Chirac's vocal opposition to the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
Mr Sarkozy is only the second head of state invited by Mr Bush during his presidency to the Bush family compound on the rocky coast of Maine.
Mr Bush hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in July in Kennebunkport in an attempt to calm tensions over a proposed missile shield in Europe that Moscow views as a threat.
"I'm sure he'll talk about some international matters, but this is not a summit, this is not something with an agenda. The agenda is come by and let's visit," Mr Snow said.