My mom and I will be in Catalonia for two weeks in the Fall and I am playing around with the idea of day-tripping into France one day. I am thinking of Carcassonne or even more, Avignon. We will be a whole week in Girona, which looks fairly close on the map, but I know how that can be misleading.

Neither of us have even been to that part of the world before - I want to partake of some French food and wine, buy some gourmet items (mustard, salt, macarons ) and wander around a little. Is this do-able, or is it just crazy?

Carcassone could be very crowded and touristy.

Consider Arles, instead of Avignon. It is compact, beautiful, has lots of good eateries, and can be reached by train from Spain. It is also right by the freeway, if you are driving. In Arles We stayed at the inexpensive Hoteldu Cloître, very central, in a 12th century building with fancy old ceiling. But that has gone out of business and is taken over by the Hotel du Musée ; I have not stayed there, but from the outside it looks very nice and is just as central.

Another good one-nighter may be Pezenas, with breathtaking architecture in a medieval center surrounded by a Renaissance town.
We stayed at La Dordine , a small b&b in the old town. Loved it. I must point out the building is in the old Jewish "ghetto", with "period" constructinos. The staircase leading to the rooms is steep and narrow. Don't know if your mum is comfortable with that.
I don't know if Pezenas can be reached by train from Spain.
If you don't have a car, another lovely destination reachable by train would be Sète, a seaside town full of waterways crisscrossing its streets, great food, great oysters.

Bon voyage.

Like AiP, I'd avoid Carcassonne. But Avignon is over 200 miles (and Arles not much closer): too much if you really are doing it as a day trip.

Much closer to the border is Céret, a very polished little town, with a super modern art gallery. Maybe a bit small, though.

Perpignan & Narbonne are possibilities, though I've never been to either. Béziers is a nice size: good eating and shopping. And I certainly share Aip's enthusiasm for Pézenas, a lovely town that I visited twice last year while staying in the region. (I passed La Dordine and thought it looked gorgeous: made a note of it for future use. So I'm delighted to read that you loved it)

I had 2 good lunches in Pézenas and actually managed to send in the reviews...

Jonathan

If you investigate the distance, and don't mind the train ride, I'd suggest Aix-en-Provence over Avignon. And I agree that Arles is a good choice. Either might be too far for a daytrip.

Are considering driving?

There are so many lovely French towns in southwest France, but many of them would require a car. I'm not sure how accessible they are by train. I'd start by investigating where convenient train lines go as they enter southwest France.
I agree that this is a fun idea - a sampling of something new.
Linda

Linda is right. Arles or Avignon is quite a schlep from Girona.
A pretty French coastal village very near the Spanish border is Gruissan, but I don't know if it can be reached by train…

This weekend's Independent has 48 Hours in Beziers. Languedoc has been on my list for a while especially since I have been a big fan of Kermit Lynch wines. I hope you have a car.

I recommend Collioure, which is an absolutely beautiful little shore town. Here is a brief description of our day trip to Collioure and nearby Ceret, both very much worth a visit. And you could combine it with a visit to the market in Perpignan. We didn't get to Perpignan, but I understand it has a nice market every day.

Bookmark this website, to find out what's happening in various towns in Languedoc (just over the border from Catalonia).

I really think Avignon and that area are too far for a day trip. I just checked on Google Maps, which said it was a 3 hour drive from Girona. Collioure is just over an hour.

Thinking about Collioure just reminded me of the book Chasing Matisse. It covers a lot of different territory, but Collioure was a town the author and his wife fell in love with. This page tells about some of their favorite places there.
Here is a map showing the route from Girona to Collioure. You can also see Ceret and Perpignan.

- Roz

Roz and I were very fond of Collioure when we daytripped there a couple years ago off season. Pretty coastal village that was "all the rage" with the impressionist and fauve painters at the turn of the previous century.

Not far beyond that (northwest) is Perpignan, which we haven't visited but which many people like a lot.

Also liked little Ceret, which is due west inland of Collioure. Great little Picasso museum.

Any of these should be drivable from Spain; don't know about rail to the smaller towns.

Well, it's obvious that Roz and Roz's Driver are on the same wave length We were posting at the same time!

Marta, re Kermit Lynch: I was just looking at this blog by the daughter of a couple from whom we're renting a house near Uzès next month. She now owns a vineyard in France, but I guess she used to work with Kermit Lynch. We are looking forward to visiting her vineyard.

- Roz

This is great information, thanks everyone! We will have a car - sorry, I should have made that clear.

Funny how the two cities I first mentioned are now not in consideration. I think we can do quite nicely, without them.

Shannon, I think you could plan to visit both Céret and Collioure -- they're only about 1/2 hour apart, and charming in different ways. We stayed at a great B&B, La Châtaigneraie, in Céret, if you plan to spend a night or two in France.

With a car, you can choose your destination.
Avignon would be 3hrs, Perpignan 40 mins.

To get a different feel, I would move a little further north to Languedoc, rather than French Catalonia.

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Montpellier - perhaps the most visited (and vibrant) city in the region.

Others are :

Nimes - Roman remains, Pont du Gard, Uzes
Arles - Roman remains, van Gogh, Camargue
Sete - seafood, food market, buzzing
Pezenas - charming old town
Sommieres - charming old town
Narbonne - charming old town, Roman remains
Cevennes - wild unspoiled moorland area (can be rainy)


More places.

Fall is a good time. Less busy- with the promise of good weather on the coast.



Peter

As an example, I just checked on viamichelin the distance from Girona to Pezenas: 2h05, mainly by autoroute.

quote:

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Montpellier - perhaps the most visited (and vibrant) city in the region.

Montpellier was probably our least favorite place when we visited Languedoc. But we aren't big city people, unless the city is very special, and we didn't find anything that really appealed to us in Montpellier. It seemed to us that the major attraction was the downtown shopping mall, which isn't our thing.

Maybe it also has an active night-life, but we are well past the student age that seemed to make up a good part of the population, so that wasn't a draw for us.

- Roz

Let me put it this way: I too would visit many places before I visit Montpellier.

Shannon, I'll jump in here and add that you may want to consider an overnighter in southern france... One day will simply not be enough! As one poster has already suggested, Collioure would be a great spot, especially to overnight (Check out Les Templiers Hotel). I was in the area for a week last month and if wine tasting is on your agenda, there are a ton of fine wineries in the area. The road along the coast from Banyuls to Collioure is sensational (You can sneak across via several routes before leaving Spain). You can taste the "vin doux" natural sweet wines of Banyuls (including winery visits) then Collioure Appellation wines - sensational Grenache Noir grown on terraced hillsides. The other nice thing about Collioure, besides the 3 or 4 wine tasting shops within a small area, are the many regional specialty food stores. Hand filleted anchovies for one is a treat you will definitely not want to miss out on. Head northwest and visit the winery of Mas Amiel in Maury, not only for their sensational Vin Doux, but also for the beautiful countryside flowing with vineyards woven with single lane roadways.

I'll also confirm that the larger towns and seaside resorts of htis area specialize in typical resort hedonism are not really what the area is all about! But you timing (fall) will be very good, especially for touring the countryside.

Strange people are negative about Montpellier.

I've lived here for 10 years, visit most of Languedoc regularly, and still find Montpellier exciting.

Curious ?

a few pics :












Peter

Wow... this is all really great. I was thinking a day trip but La Dordine looks so adorable that I am not sure I can NOT stay there. The price would not make us feel guilty for spending the money on an extra room when we already have one in Girona.

Maybe we can head straight up, visit Sete and Beziers, and end up in Pezenas.... a long day. Stay the night in Pezenas, hang out a bit in the AM and then go down to Céret and Collioure, then back to Girona. OK, two long days.

Perignan and Montpellier both appeal to me, but they look larger and therefore would take more time, no? Also there is the whole getting lost in cities thing which I am really good at.

Staying the night in Collioure also sounds appealing due to the whole wine/food thing. I'm on a Grenache blanc kick these days - are they also making a lot of Grenache blanc in the area?

Thank you everyone for the tips. You guys rock.

Hi Shannon,

Your new plan sounds perfect. I really think Avignon is too far - you'll spend more time travelling than visiting anywhere.

I think Perpignan is gorgeous and I like Montpellier but I know what you mean about big cities and getting lost! And sometimes it's nice to just take in the smaller places.

Roz - thanks for those links re Collioure. I'm going there for the first time next month. And this has reminded me that I should start a thread asking for more ideas!

Elaine

Each to their own but I wouldn't stay in Perpignan as my only stop in France, perhaps I haven't found the really nice place to be in the evenings. Narbonne is a bit nicer I think and I haven't been lucky enough to hit Montpelier yet (apart from the Ikea).
Mind you I like Carcassone so perhaps I have no taste!

Collioure, Banyouls etc. are very nice. The Collioure-Argeles coast is nice. The coastal road from spain towards Argeles is hairy but rewarding. The old customs post has a wonderful view.

Do try and stop and take it in. NB Gerona has life that carries on late. French villages have earlier eating habits than Spain.

If you are wandering a bit further then the walled village of Villefranche de Conflent and the monastery at St Martin de Canigou are quite 'different' than you will see around Gerona. And I know from lots of experience that the journey is about 100 mins, 85 on a 'good luck' day if I have a flight to catch !

p.s. We are doing Gerona to our place in Vernet les Bains soon. Circumstances force us to arrive a day early so we are looking forward to doing a stopover in the bay of Roses, I hear it is v.good. If you are exploring locally to Gerona do include Calella de Palafruguell and Llafranc and another beach I remember(incorrectly) as Tiramisu .

Enjoy yourselves.

John

If you stop in Perpignan for a brief visit, you may stumble into a lovely wine-tasting fete in the maze of small streets and squares in the old section of the city, as my wife and I did a few years ago. While sleeping in the loud summer night might have been difficult for some, copious amounts of French wines made it easy for us.

Follow that up with a lovely dinner at one of the numerous outdoor cafes and you will get a true French flavor just a short drive from the Catalonian border.

The extra few hours drive to the the three "A" cities (Aix, Avignon, Arles) while definitely worth a few days in each, might best be reserved for another itinerary....perhaps with Italian border crossings!

Hope your holiday is wonderful!

Shannon, quite a while ago, when my daughter was about the same age as my granddaughter is now, we spent a week in Banyuls, right next to Collioure. (We couldn't get a hotel room in Collioure at the last minute.) It's a beautiful area. We visited Cerét and its Picasso musum too. Very nice. (If when you visit me here in NJ I'll show you the lovely poster we got there.)

Bottom line: I think it would make a nice day trip.

Thanks again everyone for all this valuable information. I emailed my mom the names of these cities (she doesn't have a computer - she goes to the library to use theirs) and she picked up a book on France and I think soon enough she will be as excited to me to head to this part of the world.

Bumping this up because... we are leaving next week.

I have been waiting for my brother, his band is touring Europe at the same time we will be there, and in Spain even. I was hoping they would play in Barcelona when we will be in Girona. Because of this iffiness we didn't make any firm plans to stay in France.

I know they are playing in Montpellier on October 6 at this club:

Le Mojomatic
1 rue Cambaceres

Then they come down through Spain to play in Madrid on October 8. So, we hope to see them in Girona on the 7th, on the way down at least. Now my dilemma is, drive up to Montpellier to see the show on the 6th?

I believe it is only 2 hours from Girona, and we could stop in all the above recommended towns on the way up and down before and after. I get awfully stressed out when I get lost in cities - maybe, we could drive up and then take the train part way?

Maybe I should just be a bit rock and roll about this, and decide when we are there (but then I will get either lazy, or too extravagant.)

I guess it would be nuts to NOT go see my brother play in Montpellier, France. Right?

From Girona why don't you take a train all the way to Montpellier?
Or Drive to Sete, a smaller, pretty town on the coast with great oysters. The drive time will be equivalent to Montpellier. Then there are many train connections all day, taking about 20 minutes or less.

Thanks AinP. I think I am going to have to wait to make a decision because they may play in Barcelona on the 7th. I did check the train tickets - they are something like $140 RT!

Hi Shannon,

I think Montpellier is definitely worth the trip for the concert. It is not such a big city that you can get too lost. The centre of town is very concentrated, so it's very simple to get around. There's lots of good dining, particularly the Michelin starred Pourcel brothers who do a reasonable lunch/dinner menu. Also,Languedoc wines are getting more and more attention(as I'm sure you know), so it's definitely worth the time to do some tasting! Try Aux Grands Vins de France http://www.auxgrandsvinsdefrance.com/

I just checked on mappy.com, and the trip from Girona is only 2 1/2 hours, so not so bad if you want to give the train a miss.

You could definitely stop for lunch and a leisurely walk around Perpignan on the way. Make sure to check out the Cathedral!

Bon voyage!

Jeni

Thanks everyone. I am still undecided but have cut and pasted all recs and we will go where the day takes us...