French Property

The villa is very conveniently situated; a relatively short drive from several airports served by budget airlines and quite close to both the A75 and A9 motorways.

Getting there by air (subject to changes in 2009)

Airport	Driving time to villa	Departure Airport in UK	Airline
Beziers	20 mins	Bristol	Ryanair
Montpellier	45 mins	Gatwick	BA
		Stansted	Ryanair
Nimes	1 hour	East Midlands	Ryanair
		Liverpool	Ryanair
		Luton	Ryanair
Carcassonne	1 hour	East Midlands	Ryanair
		Liverpool	Ryanair
		Stansted	Ryanair
Perpignan	1 hour	Manchester	bmibaby
		Southampton	Flybe
		Stansted	Ryanair
Toulouse	2 hours	Bristol	Easyjet
		Gatwick	Easyjet, BA
		Leeds Bradford	Jet2.com
		Edinburgh	Jet2.com
		Belfast	Jet2.com
Avignon	2 hours	Exeter	Flybe
		Southampton	Flybe
		Leeds Bradford	Jet2.com
		Edinburgh	Jet2.com
Marseilles	2hr 15mins	Birmingham	bmibaby
		Bournemouth	Ryanair
		Bristol	Easyjet
		Glasgow	Ryanair
		Gatwick	Easyjet, BA
		Manchester	Ryanair
		Stansted	Easyjet
Girona	2 hr 15 mins	Birmingham	Ryanair
		Blackpool	Ryanair
		Bournemouth	Ryanair
		Bristol	Ryanair
		Doncaster Sheffield	Ryanair
		Durham Tees Valley	Ryanair
		East Midlands	Ryanair
		Glasgow	Ryanair
		Liverpool	Ryanair
		Luton	Ryanair
		Newcastle	Ryanair
		Newquay	Ryanair
		Stansted	Ryanair

Getting there by ferry and road

Perhaps the quickest route is to cross the Channel by Eurotunnel and then drive down past the west side of Paris and ultimately onto the A75. This is a great motorway with very few toll charges and great views and takes you over the spectacular Millau bridge. It takes approximately 9 hours of driving (650 miles) from the Eurotunnel port but it will be essential to stop more than once. If you propose to do the journey in one attempt, allow 12 hours. It is recommended you stop overnight somewhere around Vierzon or Bourges.

Exploring Languedoc

The villa is an excellent base for exploring Languedoc. There are a number of varying options for days out and about. There are excellent beaches nearby. If your preference is the long expanses of sandy beach with less people and facilities, then Marseillan Plage is recommended. This is an excellent expanse of beach with small dunes as backdrop. There are modest facilities and the town is good for quick cheap lunchtime snacks. Marseillan Plage is about 15 minutes drive out of season.

On the other hand, if your preference is the much more lively style of beach with restaurants actually on the beach bringing cocktails to your hired-out sunbeds, then your best option is Cap d’Agde. There are several options in Cap d’Agde (including a nudist beach), in fact there are 14km of beaches at Cap d’Agde. One of the liveliest is Richelieu. Cap D’Agde is about 25 minutes drive (possibly longer in peak season).

For a relaxing day at the Canal du Midi, there are a number of possible ways you can explore the waterway. The easiest is to just park your car at a number of crossing points and walk along the banks, perhaps taking a picnic (a cool bag is provided). If you would prefer to take a boat trip you can hire small or large boats by the hour or day.

At Portiragnes, there are both options. The large vessels are quite luxurious and therefore expensive but a four-seater will only cost 20 euros/hour in peak season. At the same spot you could also explore the canal on horseback.

The vineyards are worth a visit. This is not a particularly children-friendly activity but if you can trade a day around the vineyards with a day in Aqualand at Cap d’Agde, you may get a way with it! There is a bewildering choice and of course everybody has there own taste. If you do not want to venture too far so that you can try before you buy you can walk to the nearest which is Domaine du Lauriers. This is located at the entrance to the town on the right as you come from Pézenas. There are several varieties of red but this particular cave is famous for its Picpoul de Pinet which is a fresh dry white made from the Picpoul grape and is a particular favourite in this part of Languedoc .

It goes well with seafood and oysters. Domaine de Lauriers also has its own website at www.domaine-des-lauriers.com/blanc.html. There is also Domaine de Castelnau which is on the same road but closer to Pézenas. If you are prepared to venture a little further, then it is worth going to the Co-operative at Pomerols (only a few kms away) as you can try a wide variety from different vineyardsin the locality. If you have travelled by car and propose to take some wine back with you, it is best to try before you buy as some of the cheaper wines can be disappointing. That said, it is possible to get very drinkable wine for 5 euros/bottle. In Marseillan you can visit the Noilly Prat factory and sample the 3 varieties of vermouth they make.

Local towns worth a visit are the harbours on the Bassin de Thau. Marseillan is only 10 minutes drive away and is a very pretty harbour with great seafood restaurants. Mèze is also on the Bassin and is a charming harbour – if anything the seafood is better here! There is local tradition of jousting on gondolas on the water. The most spectacular is at Sète. Perhaps the best time to visit Sète is the market day (Wednesday) which heightens the atmosphere. Undoubtedly there will also be jousting on market day in peak season and one can sit on the covered terraces by the side of the river (free) and watch the battle commence!

Other days out:

Carcassone (1 hr drive)or Aigues Morte (1 hr 10mins drive) both are fantastic walled cities
Lake Salagou for a picnic and take in the pretty town Clermont L’Herault as well
Montpellier , capital of Herault – great town for shops and architecture (use the park and ride on the trams)
Beziers – shopping and lunch in a street café
Narbonne – Roman city
Perpignan – pretty town close to Spanish border
Nimes and the spectacular Pont du Gard aqueduct

Links:

www.languedoc-france.info

www.the-languedoc-page.com

www.discoverfrance.com/regions/languedoc.html

www.thewinedoctor.com/regionalguides/languedoc1.shtml

www.languedocliving.com/