The two distinct provinces of
Languedoc and Roussillon stretch
from the foothills of the Pyrenees
on the Spanish border to the
mouth of the Rhône. The flat beaches and
lagoons of the coast form a
purpose-built sunbelt accommodating
millions of holiday-makers every year.
In between is a dry, sunburned land
producing half of France's table wine
and the season's first peaches and
cherries.
Landscape Beyond such sensuous pleasures
are many layers of history, not least
the unification of the two provinces.
The formerly independent Languedoc
once spoke Occitan, the tongue of
troubadours, and still cherishes its
separate identity. Roussillon was
a Spanish possession until the
Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659.
Its Catalan heritage is displayed
everywhere from the road signs to the
Sardana dance, and the flavour of Spain
is evident in the popularity of
bullfights, paella, and gaudily painted
façades.
This stretch of coastline was the first
place in Gaul to be settled by the
Romans, their enduring legacy evident in
the great amphitheatre at Nîmes
and the magnificent engineering of the
Pont du Gard.
The abbeys of Saint-Martin-du-Canigou,
Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa and Saint
Guilhem-le-Désert are superb
examples of early Romanesque
architecture, unaffected by Northern
Gothic influences.
The great craggy Cathar castles and the
perfectly restored medieval Cité of
Carcassonne bear witness to the
bloody battles of the Middle Ages.
In parts, the region remains wild and
untamed: from the high plateaux of the
Cerdagne, to the wild hills of
the Corbières or the remote uplands of
Languedoc. But it also has the most
youthful and progressive cities in
France: Montpellier, the
ancient university city and capital of
the region, and Nîmes with its
exuberant feria and bullfights.
The whole area is typified by a
insouciant mixture of ancient and
modern, from Roman temples and post
modern architecture in its cities to
solar power and ancient abbeys in the
mountains.As with all of France the
local currency is the Euro. Whether
renting property to move or
holiday here, more information about
Languedoc and Roussillon can be found
here.
Alsace |
Aquitaine |
Auvergne |
Brittany |
Burgundy |
Center |
Champagne-Ardenne |
Corsica |
Franche-comte
Languedoc-Roussillon |
Limousin |
Lorraine |
Lower-Normandy |
Midi-Pyrenees |
North-Calais |
Paris-Isle-of-France
Pays-de-la-Loire |
Picardy |
Poitou-Charentes |
Provence-Alpes-Azur |
Rhone-Alps |
Upper-Normandy |