Spent a great 4 days at the Villa in October.  Our flight home was 9.50pm from Bareclona so this time instead of spending the last day around Argeles we decided to pop into Girona en route (Girona is about one hour from Villa Failte - pretty much halfway to Barcelona).  We left the villa about 11.30 and used the sat nav to get to Placa Catalunya right in the centre.  Found an underground car park really easily which was under the main square area ... perfect !

1st thing we did, after a coffee at one of the many street cafes, was to walk about 100m to the bridge where, like so many cities in Northern Spain and France, there was a tourist trainbus (see pictures below).  Cost was about 6 euros each for a 35/40min guided tour of the old city which took in many of the old streets, the cathedral and various bits of the ancient city walls.  

The tourist information office is just across the bridge from where the trainbus starts and finishes.

Afterwards we spent some time wandering the lovely streets and finished the afternoon off with a nice leisurely meal.

All in all a fantastic way to spend our last day and break up the journey to the airport.  A great "taster" for Girona which looks like a lovely, historical but cosmopolitan city.  Thoroughly recommended ... we will definitely return for a proper visit.

Well we took the plunge and as part of our 10 day January visit to Villa Failte in Argeles Sur Mer we booked 2 nights in an apartment in Font Romeu so that we could sample a few days skiing.  Font Romeu is one of the oldest and most historic ski resorts in France ... but it has modern facilities !  See this PO link for some history and background reading.  The resort is not a busy apres-ski resort but is very pretty and has numerous bars and restuarants after a good days skiing.  An excellent feature of the resort is that there is a cable car that links the village to the slopes so no need to drive there every day.  Indeed there is no need to drive to Font Romeu as there is a regular bus service from Perpignan to the resort.

For information on Font Romeu skiing as well as Les Angles (which is a nearby resort) see either our Skiing webpage or this excellent website (no recommendation on the company but the info is really good).  For webcams and slope information see this link and for places to eat see this link.

There had not been much snow so far in the year and in fact the last decent days snowfall was 10th December, however the Font Romeu / Pyrenees 2000 complex (the ski areas are linked) are renowned for having amongst the best snow making facilities in Europe.  Indeed hardly a days skiing is lost throughout the season through lack of snow.  However we needn't have worried ! ...the day before we travelled it started snowing and over the next two days there was over 100cm of snowfall.  

The journey up was fine (should take about 1.5 hours normally) but because of road conditions took as closer to 2.5 hours.  If driving you MUST take snow chains in the car (or snow socks which in our opinion are easier to fit).  We had to put them on about 20km before reaching Font Romeu.

The village is very pretty and has several shops, restaurants and hotels.  There are plenty of places where you can rent ski equipment relatively inexpensively.

As it turned out we ended up with only one full days skiing as on the 2nd day there was so much snow fall that many of the lifts and slopes were closed due to avalanche risk !  Hey ho ... to be fair to the place that rented us skis they gave us a full refund for that day without being asked.  The day we did get was excellent (we are Intermediate skiers). The set up is probably most geared up to beginners and intermediates, although there are also several black runs for the more advanced skier.

Everywhere we went people were friendly (slopes, chairlifts, restaurant areas at the ski area, restaurants and shops in the village).  

We ate at night at :
La Potiniere, which although listed on TripAdvisor 28 out of 30 restaurants in Font Romeu, we thought was excellent.  This is our review on Trip Advisor :
We found this restaurant by chance but what a great find ! The owners / staff were very helpful and friendly and the atmosphere / decor of the place very welcoming. We chose the mixed meat platter that you cook at the table... massive portion and excellent quality. We couldn't fit in a desert so settled for coffee. House red was excellent as well. Thoroughly recommended.
and
Le Cellier which did pretty good pizza and tarte a flette.

In summary a really good trip and a good option for anyone going to Villa Failte, Argeles Sur Mer in the Winter.

Looking for some excellent quality wine, reasonably priced then this could be just what you are looking for.

Mas Christine (see website) is located 5 minutes drive from Villa Failte ... head towards Le Boulou / St Andre and at the roundabout just past La Decheterie turn right (signposted Mas Christine) and you will come to the vineyard. where you can taste and buy the wine.  They speak excellent French and English and are very welcoming and helpful.

Note; the actual vineyards are on the hills overlooking Collioure but this is where the wines are warehoused and sold.

Another vineyard nearby is the better known Chateau Valmy which is the large white house that can be seen on the hillside on the right hand side when driving towards Collioure.  Excellent wines there as well.

"We spent an afternoon early in January visting the Forteresse de Salses which is just a few miles after Perpignan.  We weren't sure what to expect but, despite being out of season, the visit was well worthwhile. 

Entrance was 8 Euros each but that included a guided tour ... albeit it was in French only !  However the tour guide was superb and, despite having very limited English, he took lots of time to explain things to us in very simple French.  An added bonus was that because of the time of year on the tour were only us and a Catalan couple ... it was effectively a personal tour which took us through the various rooms including the soldiers garrisons, the prison quarters, the eating and banqueting areas and which highlighted the defensive qualities and strategic importance of the fortress.

The following is an overview from Wikipedia :

"The Fort de Salses (also called Forteresse de Salses) is a Catalan fortress in the commune of Salses-le-Château, situated in the French département of Pyrénées-Orientales. It is clearly visible from the A9 autoroute and it is possible to visit from the motorway rest area.

Built by the Spaniards at the end of the 15th century, the fortress guarded the former frontier between Spain and France. Its layout and architecture, innovative for the time, present a rare example of the transition between medieval castle and the fortresses of the modern period.

The fort was captured by the French in 1642, and remained French since the Treaty of the Pyrenees.

Fort de Salses is listed as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture, and is operated by the Centre des monuments nationaux. The fortress receives 100,000 visitors a year.

During the Spanish Civil War, the fort was used as refuge."

A selection of photos that we took are below :

Drove to Montpellier at the beginning of August ... easy drive of about 2 hours from Villa Failte.  Used Sat Nav but wasn't that difficult.  We followed signs for city centre parking and parked right next to the main square (Place de Comedie) in an underground car park.  Can't remember price but was reasonable.

There is also a park and ride tram service that is well signposted as you enter the city.

Came out of the car park directly onto the main square, Place de Comedie ... WOW ... fantastic place to sit and people watch with loads of outside cafes / restaurants, fountain, opera house, tourist office and tourist trainbus ... all in a huge open square surrounded by beautiful buildings.  Walk a few hundred yards and you are in a myriad of old streets lined with chic and artisan shops as well as al fresco dining on every corner / mini square.  In fact, in hindsight maybe better to have a wander and then eat at one of those.

We had a light lunch then hopped on the train bus for a tour around the city.  This goes through the aforementioned streets as well as up through the Arc (like Arc de Triumphe) to the highest point in the city.  The trainbus is effectively the same as those found in Perpignan, Argeles Sur Mer and Collioure ... seem to be an ever present but excellent feature of many of the towns and cities throughout the Languedoc region.

After that we spent the afternoon walking around the streets before finishing off with a visit to the Musee Fabre which is very close to Place de Comedie and where there was an excellent exhibition of the life of Frederic Bazille including many paintings from most of the famous Impressionists of his time including Renoir and Monet.

​Below are some of the pictures of our trip ...

Took the train from Argeles Train Station to Collioure ... cost 1.80 Euros per person each way, journey time about 5 min in the train (after 12 min walk from Villa Failte).

Once in Collioure it is a short 5 min walk from the station to the town centre where we got the Collioure to Port Vendres trainbus for 8 Euros each (return trip). The journey takes about 45 minutes each way and you can go all the way around or get off at Port Vendres and get a later trainbus back.

The journey is stunning with the trainbus heading up over the hills with fantastic views of Collioure, Port Vendres and the surrounding hills including vineyards and fortifications.

Back in Collioure we wandered around the arts and crafts shops and enjoyed a leisurely dinner beside the waterfront before catching the train home.

Easy and rewarding day out !

​Some pictures from trainbus in Collioure below :

Took a short drive (40 mins) from Villa Failte to Figueres to visit the Salvador Dali museum.

Really interesting and a good day out whether or not you are particularly interested in art.  The variety of work (paintings, sculptures, jewellery, etc) is fantastic.  We have left a book that is full of illustrations and background in the Villa.  See also this website that has 25 of his most famous paintings.

Parking (early July) was relatively easy (10 Euros) and entry was 12 Euros each (9 Euros concessions).  One word of warning ... although Figueres and the Dali Museum are well signposted as you head South on the motorway ... once in Figueres it is a bit more tricky and we relied on the Sat Nav !

Figueres itself looks a nice little place itself.  There are many catalan style restaurants that surround the museum so light refreshments / lunch afterwards is a good option.

We then drove 20 minutes to Roses, a small beach resort town ... just to have a look but it looks nice and maybe worth a separate day trip in the future.

1st proper visit to Perpignan a few weeks ago ... we weren't disappointed.   

Walked to the Argeles Sur Mer train station from Villa Failte and took the train to Perpignan (about 15 mins / 36 Euros for 4 of us).  When we got there weren't sure what way we should go (typical tourists !) but on leaving the old station we were pleasantly surprised by the clear directions and the wide tree lined street that leads to the city centre (12 minutes walk away).

On arriving at the centre there are loads of cafes and restaurants as well as a well signposted tourist information office.  If you look down the beautiful canal you will see a bridge at the end ... this is where the tourist train/bus starts / finishes.  It is a 45 minute journey through the streets of central Perpignan and is a great way to start your visit.  Note the journey is not "hop on / hop off".  Cost was 7 Euros per head and we though was well worth it.

We followed that up with a nice al fresco lunch at one of the cafes overlooking the canal and then a spot of shopping ... there are two or three excellent streets for shopping just beside the train/bus stop.

Ashamed to say that we never visited any of the fantastic historical sights in Perpignan ... next time !!  Most definitely recommend going there and spending some time.  The train is a great way to get there and back too.