Toulouse and beyond -
 

Will be spending 5 days in Toulouse in May and looking to add some days before to see some new sights. Thinking about flying into Barcelona for a few days and then taking train to Toulouse. Any suggestions for other areas to explore? We've been to Paris a few times and to Rome but nowhere in between. Would be first time in Barcelona. Just planning this now and am finding Barcelona hotels quite expensive. Many thanks in advance. Would also appreciate suggestions for day excursions outside of Toulouse.

When Istayedin Toulouse, I did day trips to Albi and Carcassonne, those are good choices. Barcelona is a good idea, I love that city. I have also found hotels there to be pretty expensive, at last whenever i've been there. I think they can be reasonable in some off periods, but that's not much help. I think I flew from BCN to TLS, or vice versa, can't recall. I think Easyjet flies that route, although the train is always an option, of course.

How about anything in the Languedoc/Roussillon area and the Dordogne??? We've spent 10 weeks in each region. Or even the Pays Basque/Pyrenees?? We've vacationed for 7 weeks there. Thousands of things to do & see.

Along with Dijon, Toulouse is our second favorite city in France, after Paris.

I have itineraries for the Dordogne and another for the Languedoc/Roussillon region. If you would like copies - e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach them to the reply e-mail.

Stu Dudley

There are literally hundreds of wonderful little places to visit in the area around Toulouse: for example, a great route to ALbi would be Castelnaudary to Revel to Puylaurens to Graulhet to Albi. If you made it a long day, after Albi you could visit Castelnau-de-Montmiral and Cordes-sur-Ciel and hop back on the highway back to Toulouse. Castres is an interesting town as well - an old silk manufacturing place. To the West is Auch.

I loved Toulouse! Albi would be a perfect day trip from Toulouse. For other suggestions, I defer to StuDudley and StCirq.

Bookmarking

Thank you all so very much! I'm going to look into these places now and will have more questions soon.

It doesn't seem like you asked for my 35 page Languedoc/Roussillon itinerary. A few others did - but they all mentioned that they saw the post where I offered it to "another person" (you). So I sent them ones. About 10 other people requested my Provence itinerary in the past 2 days, and 2 people asked for my Dordogne one. I've sent my various itineraries to over 5,000 people on Fodors.

Stu Dudley

Toulouse is an excellent city. I went there last year and reported about it.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-toulouse.cfm

Yes Stu I did request your itineraries and am just seeing them now. Thank you so very much! I should have been more clear in my email request to you.

This trip has come up suddenly and I haven't even booked flights yet - wanted to get a sense of an area I'm not at all familiar with so all of the information is greatly appreciated.

We have been privileged to visit many of the great cities of the world and I'm thinking now we'd be better to spend our three days exploring these smaller places and leave Barcelona for another time. Not sure yet.

We are thinking of flying to France (not sure whether to fly into Toulouse)on a Thurs. arriving early on Friday. We have to be back in Toulouse on Mon. as meetings begin next morning. I will be on my own there much of the time, although husband will have some free time as well. We would fly out on the Saturday.

Husband is not terribly keen on a lot of driving but I think I have him sold on this idea. Now .. where to go and where to stay! I'm looking at it all. One friend has suggested two places ..Carcassonne and Sete. Thoughts?

Back to my reading and mapping. Thank you all!

I've been to Barcelona twice in the past 4 years, and also found hotels expensive. After some searching, I found a couple of good value accommodations.
The first time I stayed at Hotel Teatre Auditori:
http://www.hotelteatre-barcelona.com/en/
My room was super-comfortable, bathroom was really modern. Loved this hotel, and the breakfast. At the time it was part of the Best Western chain (now it's part of SM Hoteles).
The second time I stayed at Hostal Barcelona:
http://www.barcelonahostal.com/en/hotel.html
I just punched in "May 15th, 1 person, 1 night" into the booking engines on each site, and came up with 64 euros for Teatre Auditori (breakfast included), and 53 euros for Hostal Barcelona (no breakfast, although as I recall it's well under 10 euros). Prepaid rates with double beds. Both were clean and only about 5 minutes walk from the subway.

Do you think that in mid-may we could just head out in a car without reservations for lodging, and just stop when we want to stop? I have some mobility issues and days can be unpredictable.

Any advice for car rental?

Thanks for hotel info deonca ..haven't ruled out Barcelona but am leaning that way.

Car rental - AutoEurope (1-800-555-23230. Call and talk to them - don't just go online and book. They have excellent customer service and will answer all your questions.

Neither Sète nor Carcassonne would be where I would choose to stay. The Cité in Sète is of course well worth a visit for a couple of hours, but I find the lower town uninspiring. And Sète may have the distinction of being the last true French fishing town on the Med, but it has all that that entails, which means a slightly gritty, seedy aspect. Not to mention they are expanding the port and it is one massive, unsightly crowd of ships, and not pretty ones, either. It does have beautiful beaches and great cheap seafood, though.

I would stay in a smaller place like Castelnaudary or Castres, even Albi.

So great to receive all this information. Many thanks for taking the time.

Looking at it all, but will send a big virtual hug to anyone who can come up with the best 3 day itinerary. I know that's subjective but what would be your dream 3 days to get a taste of all this part of France has to offer?

Arriving Toulouse 9 am on a Friday (with jet lag and not having driven on 'that' side of the road for many years so wouldn't want to go too far 1st day.

Then there's Saturday and Sunday .. returning the car on Monday in Toulouse where we'll be for 5 days.

Also wondering if we would find it hard to find lodging 'spur of the moment'

Absolutely wonderful to have that car rental number StCirq! I prefer to do all of my dealings on the phone. Almost without exception, I end up getting better prices that anything available on-line.

Maybe Collioure rather than Sete?

Frankly, I enjoyed a day in Sète: http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...t-te-july-2011

The grittiness made it so much more authentic than the tourist towns.

Kerouac I just laughed out loud at the first line. Stopped reading to tell you that. will read more now. thnx.

>>(with jet lag and not having driven on 'that' side of the road for many years so wouldn't want to go too far 1st day.<<
If you are from Canada, you'll be driving on the same side (the right-hand-side) as the French does.

If you do decide to fly into Barcelona to start your trip, there is a daily direct train leaving Barcelona Sants at 10h24 arriving Toulouse MATABIAU station at 13h31.

You may purchase tickets for this train ahead of time (to get discounted ticket starting at 39Euro) from http://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/ because the popular http://www.capitainetrain.com did not sell tickets for this train as recent as 2/25 when I last checked. On the purchasing webpage, select "Spain" as the country you want to collect your tickets, then you'll receive an email confirmation with a link to print your train tickets at home.

Yell if you need help to wade through http://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/ to purchase tickets. There are many experts here to offer help, I benefited from their wisdom myself.

I used to drive all over France all the time without hotel reservations and it is still possible although a bit more difficult in high season. The main rule is to find a hotel no later than about 5 pm. Sometimes when I did not follow my own rule, I had to drive an extra 40 kilometres until I found one.

Barcelona is a fabulous city: World class modernistic architecture, the medieval Gothic quarter, food heaven (twenty Michelin star restaurants in town), the very popular and local feel Barceloneta beach and many distinct inner city districts from upscale Eixample to local atmosphere and laid-back Poble Sec with dozens of great and affordable tapas bars. http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/

Hotel Banys Orientals is in the Born district and as central as it gets. 105€ for a double. http://www.hotelbanysorientals.com/en/
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/banys-orientals.html

About vibrant El Born: http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...s/el-born.html

Some Barcelona highlights:

- Gaudí's spectacular Sagrada Familia (and the other Gaudí buildings and his Park Guell): http://www.sagradafamilia.cat/
http://www.globotreks.com/destinatio...ngs-barcelona/

- Art Nouveau Palau de la Música Catalana: http://www.palaumusica.cat/en/

- La Boquería is one of the finest food markets in the world: http://www.gardenista.com/posts/la-boqueria-market

- Tickets, the new paradise version of traditional tapas style restaurant run by the Adrià brothers of the world's by far most awarded restaurant the past decade, now closed El Bulli. Just fantastic: http://www.ticketsbar.es/web/en/

- Montjuic (Jewish mountain) with the castle, the parks, the museums, the theaters, the 1992 summer olympic arenas and the best views of both the city and the sea: http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/Engl...SJpH1t4T6vJumh

- Barcelona classic 7 Portes from 1836: http://www.7portes.com/angles/index.php

I've enjoyed many days in Sète, but nowhere near as many days as I've enjoyed in other parts of the region.

Collioure is almost picture perfect, and wouldn't be jammed in May the way it is in high season. If you want a coastal venue, it would be very nice, and the towns to the north and south of it are well worth visiting.

I would go back to my original list of suggestions, though, and add St-Férréol, a lovely little town on a lake about 6 kms from Revel. There is just so much to see concentrated in that fairly small area.