If you like visiting ruined châteaux, head north to the valley of the Orbiel. Just twenty minutes from Carcassonne is the village of Lastours. High on a ridge above the village, four separate châteaux stand in a line: Cabaret, Tour Régine, Surdespine and Quertinheux.
Sébastien le Prestre de Vauban designed a new fort at the crossroads of the Conflent, Capcir and Cerdagne to defend the border. Named after King Louis X1V, it is said that he chose the position of Mont Louis based on the good health and fine teeth of the inhabitants of nearby villages!
The commune of Eus also encompasses another village, that of Comes. It’s an hour-long trek up the mountainside to the ruins of this abandoned village, 2 hours for the more physically challenged.
Céret-born Martin Fourcade, a 26-year-old non-commissioned officer of the mountain infantry brigade at Chamonix, emerged from the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games as the new star of biathlon, with three medals – two gold and one silver.
This month we’re heading up to to the mountain towns of Font Romeu and Les Angles, with a couple of stops en route to explore the historic walled towns of Villefranche and Mont Louis.
Although Covid restrictions mean the Village de Noël has been postponed until next year, there’s still plenty of Christmas cheer to be found in the coastal town of le Barcarès.
No Christmas village this year, but between port, village and beach, there’s a fabulous autumn & winter programme in Port Barcarès, carefully planned with Covid in mind.
An entire quarter of the old town in Perpignan is taken up by the Palais des Rois de Majorque.
Driving up the Vallespir, before Ceret, on the right, set in beautiful gardens rising out of its own vineyards in all its Belle Époque glory is the imposing Chateau d’Aubiry, on sale in 2015 for…
You have probably crossed Caixas on your way to visit Castelnou without spotting this commune hidden in the rugged heart of the Aspres.