Home » Destinations in Pyrenees Orientales
Destinations in Pyrenees Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Tourisme des Pyrénées-Orientales
Photo Source: Site officiel de Mont-Louis
Perpignan and Around
The heart of the south and a spicy accent, Perpignan is turned towards Spain and the East, an eye on its past and a smile towards the future. Plane trees and palm trees cohabit along the wide avenues that bathe in the sun. They offer shade to the beauties sculpted by Maillol that are both naked and proud, to be found in the corner of a courtyard or a small square where a marble fountain gently sings.
The lofty splendour of the Palace of the Majorcan Kings dominates the narrow popular streets overflowing with spices, fruit or fish, a thousand different aromas from around the world. History is everywhere from the convents to the museums, from the chapels to the processions. Life is everywhere, in a sardane step, a harmony of jazz, the plucking of an electric guitar or the strumming of a Gypsy on his guitar, an Arabic chant wafting from a window.
Carcassone & Aude Valley
The presence of history in Carcassone is impressive. Founded over 2.000 years ago and built on its present plan in the 13th century, it is one of the most remarkable sites surviving from the Middle Ages. It is today a Unesco world heritage site. The Aude and Canal du Midi separate the "lower town" from the medieval city built in the 13th century and restored in the 19th century by Viollet le Duc.
Cerdagne
Mountains and high mountains with their ski resorts, but also canoe and kayak, rambling, fishing, canyoning, horseriding and mountainbike await you in these high region. The Cerdagne has an exceptional climate with an average of 2.800 hours of sunshine per year. Its dry, healthy air is the reason why there are some specialised establishments for respiratory ailments.
Cerdagne, that is magnificent landscapes, an animal park (Les Angles), hot-water springs (St Thomas les bains), the solar oven of Odeillo, and a treasury of well-preserved Roman art which you will discover in small churches that shelter beautiful retables. The beauty of the Cerdagne was the reason for the inintiative to run the "Little Yellow Train". this train enables visitors to see the countryside from the Conflent to the extremity of the Cerdagne.
Cote Vermeille
The Cote Vermeille (Catalan: Costa Vermella, English: Vermilion Coast) is a region in the French department of Pyrenees-Orientales. The Cote Vermeille stretches from Argeles-sur-Mer to the border village of Cerbere, quaint and relatively quiet seaside hideaway in the valley of Cervera. The towns of Argeles-sur-Mer, Banyuls-sur-Mer, Canet-en-Roussillon, Cerbere, Collioure, Port Barcares, Port-Vendres, Saint Cyprien, Sainte Marie la Mer and Torreilles are nested along a 20 km stretch of beaches, small bays, creeks and coves, with some fabulous walks and trails.
Tech Valley & The Alberes
They say that in the Tech Valley (or Vallespir), it’s the blood of Catalonia which boils. The people of this region also have deep origins. The Sardane dance (dancers link hands and dance in a circle) seems to be more alive here than anywhere else. At Ceret, Picasso painted and drew this friendship dance. The Modern Art Museum at Ceret highlights several of his works as well as some of the most ambitious creators of the beginning of the 20th century. Tradition and daring are also present in the arena at Ceret where thousands of bullfighting aficionados celebrate this ancestral tradition.
The Alberes are a natural frontier between France and Spain, these foothills of the Pyrenees are dominated by the Pic du Neoulous (1.260m) and the signal towers of the Massane, the Madeloc as well as the ruins of the Carroig tower situated further south. For centuries the Alberes were of strategic importance, especially the Perthus pass. Thus after the Celts, the Iberians and Hannibal's crossing, they were occupied by the Romans, followed by the Barbarians and the Moors.
Capcir
The Capcir has many enchanting natural treasures. At between 1500 metres and 1784 metres at the Col de La Quillane, separating the Ariege from the Pyrenees Orientales, this high plateau is orientated North-South. Formigueres, once the summer residence of the Kings of the Realm of Majorca, is the capital of the Capcir, though today it rivals with the winter sports resorts of Angles, Puyvalador and Matemale.
Canigou Massif
The Catalans of Pyrenees Orientales identify themselves with the Canigou, the prestige of which comes both from its beauty and from a whole people’s identity. In spring, you will be delighted to contemplate a landscape in which the snow-clad Canigou overlooks peach orchards blossoms. The Canigou Peak (2784 metres), is the summit of a massif which is isolated from the rest of the Pyrenees Mountains by the Cerdagne and Conflent huge moat.
Tet & Conflent
The Tet Valley (also known as the Conflent) had captivated the great cellist Pablo Casals because of the restful and peaceful shady calm of Prades its capital, seemingly watched over by the nearby and majestic Canigou mountain.
The real symbol of the Catalan Region, with its colours "sang et or" (blood red and gold), the yellow train links Villefranche-de-Conflent to Latour-de-Carol. With its rich history and heritage -the cradle of the Catalan dynasty- the Conflent overflows with abbeys and romanesque churches with their shining baroque reredos. The river Tet carved its way through this valley which stretches from Rodes, near Vinca, to Mont-Louis and Cerdagne region.
The Fenouilledes
The Fenouilledes is a land of different flavours, scents and hard work. The eagles that have chosen their territory here have the best of both worlds, with the sea at their feet and their head in the clouds. The earth here is as solid as a rock : red, white, black, grey, and ochre are the colours of the different rock formations found in the Agly Valley and the Fenouilledes, otherwise known as the Catalan Corbieres.
Narbonne & Around
Capital of Narbonne Gaul, then residence for the Wisigoth kings and archiepiscopal city, this Ville d'Art, located in the ancient Roman Via Domitia, has retained its importance as a communications cross-roads. Its museums house many rare treasures, especially Roman paintings. The shaded boulevards and the banks of the canal de la Robine are pleasant places for walking in this typically Mediterranean town, which is also renowned for its wines.
Carlit Massif
The Bouillouses is one of the most beautiful lakes in the Carlit Massif at an altitude of 2.700 metres where a barrage was built at the turn of the century (an important water reserve: 16 million m3). A pathway leads to the summit of the Carlit peak at an altitude of 2.921 metres.