Would Toulouse be a good base for travelling the south of France?

Question

Is it very beautiful and interesting? Or would somewhere like Lyon or Montpellier be better? For exploring the mountains, either pyrenees or alps, provence and bordeaux wine region? Any other town suggestions as a base?

Answer 1

Southwest - Pyrénées - Atlantique - Bordeaux - Biarritz -

  Rugby - Country food - Dordogne - Wines - etc

Answer 2

Toulouse  yes

but you may find cheaper flights into Marseille and Nice.

Answer 3

An important point to consider : once in France, what way of travel do you expect to use ?

To travel from cities from cities, railway is convenient. But, when you want to visit around the best way is to rent a car. Because it's quite difficult to find buses which transport you precisely where you want to go.

One suggestion : rent a "host room" (www.gitesdefrance.fr) safe and lovely to base.

Answer 4

Wherever you go in France there is stunning beauty,  breathtaking landscapes, awesome architecture, culture and art at every corner, magnificent monuments and gardens, delicious food, and well thought-out touristic facilities.

Toulouse is a vibrant city with a historical core. It is convenient  as a base to explore the Pyrenees, the Basque area and is fairly close both to the Bordeaux region and the Perigord. It has an excellent university, wonderful museums, but it has sprawled extensively in modern times and is surrounded by industrial areas. It is the major French aero-space centre where Concorde was built.

Montpellier is closer to Provence and the Riviera. Again it is an ancient city with a renouned university and a historical centre; it is a good base from which to visit Cathar country and Albi. However Avignon is actually closer to the Alps, has a wealth of historical buildings and an awesome cultural heritage, with the Popes' palace and the left-over arches of the collapsed bridge in the famous song. It is near smaller towns like Arles and Nimes that have well preserved  Roman monuments, and the Provence described in Peter Mayle's books. It also offers a world famous cultural summer festival with music, opera, plays etc...

Lyon is much higher north at the very top end of the Alps, a busy and stately commercial town with a long history and a tradition of splendid cuisine. Annecy is very pretty and would be much closer to the mountains if it is the Alps that interest you.

Each of these cities has its merits depending on your personal interests and the length of time you plan to spend there. Staying in a large town is not necessarily the best option especially if you are hiring a car, but it is convenient if you want organised tours and remain close to an airport. The TGV takes you from Paris to Arles in three hours.

On a short visit you could not explore all the south of  France  from any of these cities, and would have to decide which area is of greatest interest to you. There are many excellent guide books  which you can consult and you can also visit the tourist information sites posted on the web by each of the towns that you have named and which are all giving the information in several languages including English.

You will get hooked and want to return again and again to  see some more, and, by the way, the French are actually quite pleasant if approached in a courteous and gracious way.