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FrogBus is a bus service which links Perpignan (66 Pyrenees Orientales, Languedoc-Roussillon) with Girona Airport in Spain - a destination for many budget flights - and hence offers a practical alternative to other routes to this part of the Languedoc-Roussillon, whether it be for sun, sea, sand or skiing , Catalan culture or Rugby!

The journey takes about 85 minutes and also includes a stop on the autoroute at Le Boulou for easy access to the coastal resorts of Ceret, Collioure and Argeles Sur Mer.

Perpignan is an attractive city, proud of its Catalan heritage - and has a distinctively different ambience to the towns and cities further north along France’s Mediterranean coast.

For more info on the FrogBus service see www.frogbus.com

You can sample some of this different mix at the Christmas Market between 28 November and 24 December 2008 in the Place de la Victoire.

For more info see www.art66-expose.eu/

Christmas Market, Place du Capitoul, Toulouse

As part of the city’s End of Year celebrations, Toulouse (31 Haut-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees) holds its 9th Christmas Market (Marché de Noel) from 5 - 28 December 2008.

Over 100 Alsatian-style wooden chalets are erected in the Place du Capitole as stalls for presents, craft items, christmas decorations, seasonal food fayre etc - plus the obligatory Père Noel (Father Christmas) - music,dancing, carols, hot chestnuts and hot wine!! Open daily usually from 10.00am to 10.00pm.

For more info see www.uk.toulouse-tourisme.com

The town of Laon (02 Aisne, Picardie) is always an impressive sight, situated on the rocky promontory overlooking the plains of Picardy and Champagne, with the 12th Century Cathedral of Notre Dame as its focal point - a landmark on the otherwise rather uninspiring autoroute A26 from Calais to Reims.

View of Laon in Picardie

The town holds its Christmas Market (Marché de Noel) in the streets around the medieval Cathedral on 6, 7 and 10 Decembre 2008.

St Quentin (02 Aisne, Picardie) further north up the A26 autoroute holds its Christmas Market rather later - from 22 December 2008 to 4 January 2009 around the rather flamboyant gothic Hotel de Ville - and in addition offers a skating rink and a nordic skiing course with real snow!!

For more info on Laon see Office de Tourisme du Pays de Laon

For more info on St Quentin see Office de Tourisme de St Quentin

Each July the French get very excited about 180 or more professional cyclists who cover 3,500km over three weeks racing around France, including staggering climbs in the Alps and Pyrenees.

Tour de France 2009

With lots of razzamataz, commercial sponsorship, scandal and sporting achievement, it is a spectacle well worth seeing - especially as it is free. However, the downside is that the Tour can cause major disruption with roads closed for hours, hordes of people and traffic - and all hotel rooms along the route booked.
In 2009 the tour starts in Monaco on 4 July 2009, travels down the Mediterranean coast into Spain to Barcelona - then up through Andorra to the Pyrenees. With a skip to Central France the route heads east through northern Burgundy to Alsace, south the the Alpes and then heads for Paris and the final stage which finishes on the Champs Elysees on 26 July 2009.
Sat 4 July Monaco
Sun 5 July Monaco > Brignoles
Mon 6 July Marseille > La Grande-Motte
Tue 7 July Montpellier
Wed 8 July Le Cap d’Agde > Perpignan
Thu 9 July Gérona > Barcelona (Spain)
Fri 10 July Barcelona > Andorra
Sat 11 July Andorra> Saint-Girons
Sun 12 July Saint-Gaudens > Tarbes
Mon 13 July rest day - Limoges
Tue 14 July Limoges > Issoudun
Wed 15 July Vatan > Saint-Fargeau
Thu 16 July Tonnerre > Vittel
Fri 17 July Vittel > Colmar
Sat 18 July Colmar > Besançon
Sun 19 July Pontarlier > Verbier
Mon 20 July rest day - Verbier
Tue 21 July Martigny > Bourg-Saint-Maurice
Wed 22 July Bourg-Saint-Maurice > Le Grand-Bornand
Thu 23 July Annecy > Annecy
Fri 24 July Bourgoin-Jallieu > Aubenas
Sat 25 July Montélimar > Mont Ventoux
Sun 26 July Montereau-Fault-Yonne > Paris Champs-Élysées

For more info on the Tour de France see www.letour.fr

An autumn Sunday afternoon in the depths of the Yonne departement (89 Burgundy) following the route of the Canal du Nivernais south from Auxerre towards Clamecy (58 Nievre) – a quiet, peaceful landscape where life follows a gentle pace. But, what is this? Not one, but two trains within an hour – modern, sleek and quiet – serving the chain of small villages along the valley, providng a service which can take you right to the heart of Paris. And the station which initially looks deserted, is manned with an open ticket office and a helpful man who provides me with a timetable for the route.

Rural France suffers many of the same problems of rural depopulation and poverty as the UK, but the maintenance of a good, reliable and affordable local train service makes a huge difference to the viability of the local community, and provides some of the “glue” that ensures its survival. And this is not a second-rate service, with delapidated rolling stock and surly staff.

French railways (state owned SNCF) has three levels – TGV which provides the impressive network of high speed trains between major cities, SNCF which provides the main inter-city and inter-departmental routes, and then the TER, the local network of lines.

And that elusive “joined-up thinking” seems to have been employed too, as the Region Bourgogne and the Departement of the Yonne, have also invested in the development of a tarmac cycle track alongside the Canal du Nivernais from Auxerre to Clamecy (almost complete), which being flat is a joy to ride. And you can put your bike on the TER train service which generally follows the canal.

From the hillsides of the Auxerre to the Vales of the Yonne, Clamecy-Auxerre is a wonderful route of some 62 kilometres along the Valley of the Yonne. Because it runs for the most part along the tow path of the Nivernais Canal, there are not too many hills to climb, making it ideal for a quiet family bike ride.
The Nivernais Canal, built at the end of the 18th and the start of the 19th century, runs from Auxerre to Decize, linking the Seine basin to the Loire basin. Like all the smaller canals, it has been deserted by commercial barges, which have given way to pleasure cruisers from around the world who are attracted to its route through the beautiful countryside, the quality of its engineering work and the charm of the towns and villages it runs through.

For more info on trains see TER BOURGOGNE (in French)

For more info on the Yonne and the Canal du Nivernais see YONNE TOURISME

If you are looking for a house to stay in the region we can recommend the English-owned The French House at Vincelottes

SpeedFerries terminal in Boulogne

SpeedFerries has had a major impact on cross-channel ferry ticket prices with aggressive pricing on their Dover to Boulogne fast ferry service - when in many ways some of us might be prepared to pay more for a faster cross-channel service (just 50 minutes) and the port of arrival is Boulogne. OK, so the “boat” has fewer amenities than the big ferries to Calais and Boulogne, and with just one boat operating with limited space, the consequences of missing your crossing are likely to be more disruptive than for other crossings where there is always another boat scheduled before long.

The crossing itself can be delightful when the weather is fine, as the route hugs the french coast down from Cap Gris Nez to the port of Boulogne.

SpeedFerries are again offering a “super” ticket, which by booking in advance offers crossings for car + 5 for just £30 each way throughout 2009, which you can book now either for a specific crossing or as an “open ticket” or a later choice of dates.
For more info see SpeedFerries

If you are a fan of the pungent Truffle then Lalbenque (46 Lot, Midi-Pyrenees) south of Cahors in the heart of the Quercy Blanc is the place to head for in the winter months.

Starting on the first Tuesday of December and on every Tuesday until mid-March the truffle market of Lalbenque takes place in the main street, called ” la rue du Marché aux Truffes “.The main street and neighbouring streets are fragrant with the perfume of truffles. Buyers and tourists crowd round the stalls where the producers sell their harvest.

For more info see www.lalbenque.net

Lauroux vineyards in the Gers in winter

Nick and Karen Kitchener will be in London exhibiting their wines (Cotes de Gascogne and Floc) and Armagnacs at The Wine Show to be held at the Business Design Centre, Islington on 23-26 October. (Stand C35-4 in the Wine Market on the 3rd floor). It is only seldom that you get the chance to taste Armagnac and even less often can you also meet the English winemaker (is there a special name for an Armagnac maker?).
I like the Lauroux website with its tons of info and vineyard diary - have also discovered some rather good menus on the site, all of which involve Armagnac in some way, from the sumptuously seductive Chocolate, Prune and Armagnac cake to Slow Roast Leg of Lamb with Armagnac Sauce!!

For more info see www.lauroux.com
The Wine Show