lindsaydowbush

Hello all, I'm looking for a bit of direction on finding a small romantic type town for me and my boyfriend to stay in. We will be travelling through Barcelona the end of may and then up to Paris. In between those two cities we were hoping to find an area ( in either country but definitely in either northern Spain or around the Paris area ) to spend a 2-3 days.

We like being outside and maybe somewhere with an option for a day hike but pretty much somewhere we could get a nice bed and breakfast or a decently nice place and relax and do much of nothing. Somewhere at least with cafe's and restaurants would be good. I'm pretty much fluent in French so that wouldn't be a problem in France but my spanish is pretty limited if that would make a difference at all.

Also price range would be maybe 50-70 a night, we are students but will be staying in hostels or couch surfing the rest of our travels so spending a little bit extra is okay (always the cheeper the better however). Thanks so much! I really am having a hard time narrowing it down because there is so many places to choose from.

michele_d

Will you have a car or do you need an area with a train station?

Parmenter

Foix ou Carcassonne, may the spirits of the Cathars be with you! Bonne Vacannes

StCirq

I don't think either Foix or Carcassonne remotely qualifies as a quaint town, but that said, there are thousands to choose from, you'll have to do some research on your own and narrow it down, and it does depend a LOT on how you're traveling (trains don't go to quaint towns).

abbydog

Hi! I just returned from a week in Ceret, about 30 minutes from the Spanish border (two hours from Barcelona), and couldn't have been more thrilled. Maybe it was because it was April, but we saw no tourists and heard almost no English. I've rarely stayed in a quaint French village that hadn't been practically vacated by the French. There are lots of restaurants in town, plus a renowned museum of art created by artists like Picasso and Dufy who spent time there. In May you just might be there for the cherry harvest--and having been there for Easter I can attest that the festival will include lots of locals dancing the Sardanes in the square. I also found a wonderful local guide who took us for a long hike in the hills overlooking the village, where we could see clear out to the sea and admire the Pyrenees. Let me know if you want to know more!

Michael

For relatively inexpensive housing look at http://www.gites-de-france.com/locat...bre-hotes.html especially for housing in small towns or villages.

Michelin has a map for the <i>plus beaux villages de France</i> which you might find useful in driving from the Pyrenees to Paris. You'll also need a more detailed map.

lindsaydowbush

Wow thanks for all the replies, I reall appreciate it! Now ill have to take some time to look into all of these options. No we will not have a car. So train would be nice but if not I had thought there was probably buses that ran inbetween towns to get in.

lindsaydowbush

Abbydog, I've looked a bunch into Caret and it sounds very cool! I was wondering if you had any info about this festival you talked about I dont see that anywhere. I don't think we are big museum people but other than the walk what where things you did all week? Location seems good we will be coming from barcelona! There were some comments also about going to the beach, that confused me because of how inland it is??

Thanks again!

Pvoyageuse

Without a car I am not sure Céret is the ideal location.
There is no railroad station in Céret, you'll be relying on buses.
Line 300, 340 and 341 from Arles sur Tech to Perpignan stop in Céret and line 401 goes from Céret to Argelès (beach resort. No buses on Sunday for the later :http://www.cg66.fr/553-plan-et-horaires.htm
If you take the fast train from Barcelona, you'll have to go to Perpignan first and backtrack to Céret by bus. If you take a local train, you'll have to get off at Argelès and take a taxi or a bus if there is one when you arrive.
The Céret cherry festival will take place on June 1 and 2, 2013.
I would have a look at Prades or Villefranche-de-Conflent which are accessible from Perpignan both by train and by bus:
http://www.office-de-tourisme-canigo...5&linkedtoID=3
http://www.prades-tourisme.fr/

abbydog

Hi again! Actually, the cherry festival in Ceret is May 18-19. There's more information at this website: http://www.anglophone-direct.com/Fet...a-Cerise-Ceret. I think it will be super fun! The Anglophone site has lots of other info too.

It's true I got to Ceret by car. Is there any chance you would want to pick up a car in Perpignan to use for a few days? That would give you much more flexibility in exploring the area. If not, I agree Villefranche-de-Conflent would be a nice place to visit by train. Just not as much of a "real town" as Ceret, in my view.

Re: the sea, I think it took us 30-45 minutes to drive from Ceret to Collioures and Port Vendres, both wonderful places to visit on the water.

Finally, if you do keep pursuing Ceret, I know a fantastic guide named Christian Piquemal (who grew up in the village, where his Catalan grandparents lived) and could help you connect with him for wonderful hiking.

Good luck!

StCirq

If you are taking trains ultimately to Paris, consider stopping in La Rochelle. It's a city, not a quaint town, but it's beautiful and on the water, and you can grab a bus outside the train station that will take you out to the lovely Ile de Ré, where there are a number of beautiful villages you could spend a night or two in.

Pvoyageuse

"Actually, the cherry festival in Ceret is May 18-19."

The Anglophone site is not up to date. The cherry festival has been postponed to June 1 and 2 this year : http://www.ot-ceret.fr/cer-4100.php?CatID=5&ArtID=118

abbydog

Oh! Thanks Pvoyageuse!

StuDudley

We stayed in a gite near Ceret for 2 weeks in '94. Lots to do in that region - but a car REALLY helps. Pvoyageuse lives close to there & she helped my out with my itinerary.

Stu Dudley

HappyTrvlr

Collioure is a great place to stay, right on the water, art galleries, castle.