Perpignan basks almost continuously in blazing hot Mediterranean sunshine. Only 30 kilometres from the Spanish border, the town is more Catalan than French and blends perfectly the best of both cultures.
Shops and cafés are filled in equal numbers by affluent citizens and tourists escaping the beach at Canet-Plage, just 10 kilometres away. The labyrinth of streets in the Old Town is the best place for shopping, sight-seeing and feasting on the delights of Catalan fare and Rousillon wines, while the streets around the Cathédrale de St-Jean and the Castillet, a Medieval gateway, are perfect for souvenir-hunting and savouring the local ambience.
This town is hot. In summer and on holidays, dancers take to the streets to perform the colourful Catalan sardana, the very essence of Catalan life. It’s performed everywhere -in outlying villages, town streets, market squares and cathedral pavements. If you’re an onlooker, it’s hard not to join in. The accompanying music is fun and is perfect holiday entertainment.
Spanish music also fills bars and cafés and the aroma of spices wafts from the Arab quarter, where you’ll find North African shops and cafés plus a daily market.
What’s more, Perpignan is a great place to dine, with plenty of reasonably priced restaurants. If you’ve never tried escargots, this is the place to do it, Catalan-style snails come smothered in garlic. Salted smoked hams, richly stuffed sausages, salted or sugared flatbreads and nougat are all other delicious local delicacies.
And if you’re into history, you’re in for a treat. All the major sights and museums tell the town’s chequered past. Perpignan gets its name from a lieutenant in the Roman army, Perperna, who murdered his boss, a 1st-century general, Quintus Sertorius. The city’s heyday was in the 13th century when the King of Aragon and conqueror of Majorca, created the Kingdom of Majorca and County of Roussillon for his young son. This tiny kingdom was absorbed by the Catalan kings of Aragon in the 14th century, but prospered until 1463 when Louis XI’s army besieged the town. Rather than give in, the Perpignanais ate rats until they were ordered by the king to surrender or die.
Ironically, Perpignan was given back to Spain in 1493, but in the 1640’s Richelieu grabbed it back. Although there’s no separatist movement among French Catalans today, their sense of identity is still very strong, evident in both the language and frequent use of the national yellow and red colours.
This is a vibrant, southern town with plenty to see, ideal for either a short break or longer summer holiday, and has the added bonus of a wide, sandy beach just a few kilometres away for a cool dip in the Med.
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Key Places to Visit
Pick up a museum passport valid for one week, for €6 from any of the museums to gain cut-price admission.
Le Castillet, built as a gateway in the 14th century and now housing the Casa Pairal, an interesting museum of Roussillon’s Catalan folk culture, with samples of craft and religious art. It’s open daily except Tuesdays, mid-June to mid-September 10am-7pm and 11am-5.30pm the rest of the year. Entry is €4, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 35 42 05.
Musée Hyacinthe Rigaud contains a small but impressive collection of canvasses by the major 13th century Spanish and Catalan painters, plus works by Rigaud, Ingres, Picasso and Miro. Open everyday but Tuesdays, noon-7pm, entry €4, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 35 43 40.
Place de la Loge is the focus of the pedestrianised old town and home to Perpignan’s most beautiful building, the Gothic Loge de Mer. It was originally the city’s stock exchange and maritime court and is highly ornate with Venetian arches and loggia and a ship-shaped weathervane. Bizarrely, it is currently rented to a hamburger chain. Next door is the Hôtel de Ville, fronted by imposing wrought-iron gates and Maillol’s statue of La Méditerranée in the courtyard and the old Roussillon parliament building, Palais de la Députation.
Just to the east, is place Gambetta, site of the 14th century Cathédrale St-Jean, open Tuesdays and Sundays 2-5pm and every other day 10am-noon and 2-5pm. Inside the church are a number of elaborate Catalan pieces including the incredible Dévôt Christ, a wooden-carved crucifix depicting the agony of the tortured Christ in moving detail. One of France’s oldest cemeteries is just past the chapel, Campo Santo, 600 years old.
The Arab and Romany quarter, south of the cathedral, is packed with North African shops and cafés.
The Palais des Rois de Majorque is the oldest royal palace in France. Started in the 1270s, it is an opulent Spanish-Moorish building, designed for kings, with marble porch and two chapels. Open daily June-September 10am-6pm, October-May 9am-5pm, entry €3.
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ALL YEAR: The Aviation Museum (Musée de l’Aviation) is open to all aircraft enthusiasts. It is filled with model aeroplane collections as well as some original planes. Te. +33 (0) 4 68 54 08 79.
GOOD FRIDAY: The Procession de la Sanch takes over the old town.
JUNE 22: On the summer solstice, the Fête de St-Jean brings the whole town together. A flame is kept alight year-round in the Castillet, and taken to the top of the sacred mountain, Canigou, where huge bonfires are lit at midnight. Thousands of residents then celebrate with traditional Catalan music, large-screen videos, pyrotechnic shows, lasers and, of course, the Sardane dance. Details from the tourist office.
END OF JUNE: For two nights each year, La Fête des Vins engulfs the town, with more than 50 stands handing out free wine samples or full glasses for €3, with plenty of accompanying cheese, foie gras and Catalan lamb. Tel: +33 (0) 4 68 51 59 99.
JULY & AUGUST: Every year, Perpignan hosts free musical performances and traditional Catalan dancing each Thursday from 7.30-11.30pm at various squares across the town.
SEPTEMBER 2-17: Visa pour l¥image. The 18th International festival of photojournalism, created in 1989. Visit www.visapourlimage.com
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By car: Explore the city and the countryside in comfort and style at greatprices! Visit our Links page has details of Car Hire.
By road: Perpignan-Rivesaltes airport is seven kilometres northwest of the city centre on the D117.
By bus: Regular bus transfers to city centre for about €4.50.
By taxi: Outside main terminal and take about 15 minutes, expect to pay €15.
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Getting around
CTP runs local buses around Perpignan and shuttles to Canet-Plage from place Gabriel-Péri, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 61 01 13. Tickets for the town, €1.05, a carnet of 10 costs €7.50. First bus starts at 07.00, last bus is 22.30.
Acceuil Perpignan Taxi, tel: +33 (0) 6 68 35 15 15, operate 24-hours from beside the train station. A taxi to the beach at Canet-Plage is €20-25.
Bicycle hire from Bouti Cycle, 20 avenue Gilbert Brutus, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 85 02 71.
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Eating out
One of the town’s chief delights is its great spread of well-priced restaurants serving up delicious Catalan specialities. In the old town, place Jean Jaurés de la Loge, place Arago and place de Verdun are stashed with lively restaurants that stay open until the early hours. For finer or romantic candle-lit dining, there are some elegant options at quai Vauban beside the canal, but if you’re on a tighter budget or just looking to try a cheaper vin de table, avenue de Gaulle has less pricey alternatives.
Le Chapon Fin, Le Park, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 35 14 14, has the reputation for being the town’s finest restaurant and one of the prettiest. Clients come all the way from Spain for its tartare de saumon and ravioli stuffed with scallops. Casa Sansa, 3 Rue Fabriques Couvertes, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 34 21 84, near Le Castillet is more moderately priced with a buzzing atmosphere, it serves great Catalan food in its 14-century cellar. Try the escargots or rabbit with garlic, if you’re feeling adventurous. Cut-price options include Brasserie L’Arago, place Arago, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 51 81 96 where there’s great pizza, or Les Expéditueurs, 19 Avenue du Général Leclerc for Catalan food and paella on Wednesdays.
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Nightlife
Evening entertainment in Perpignan centres around cafê-life with no shortage of places for a leisurely drink on places Verdun and Arago.
Try Grand Café de la Poste for people-watching and it’s here you’re likely to be pulled into sardana dancing on balmy summer evenings. Bodega du Castillet, rue Fabriques-Couvertes, is a popular bar with locals and also serves good tapas.
For live music, go to Tio Pepe or La Fabrique in the old town. But if you really want to party, head to Canet-Plage where open-till-dawn clubs line the beaches, stay till 06.50 and you can get a morning bus back to town.
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The 2,700-year-old citadel of Elne, overlooking the Rousillon plain, is Perpignan’s closest out-of-town attraction, but the city’s close proximity to the Spanish border makes it the ideal base for a touring holiday. The Spanish Pyrenées are only a short drive from Perpignan and the ski resorts of Andorra are also easily accessible for wintertime fun. The whole Catalan area is dotted with castles, including the mountaintop Queribus and Peyrepertuse near the town of Corbières.
But it is Canet-Plage that is easily the best place to test the waters of the Mediterranean. Just take the 25-minute bus ride, CTP bus number 1 from place Catalogne. The wide, sandy beach is perfect for sunbathing, swimming and safe for toddlers. And there’s plenty for families to do, playgrounds, mini-golf course, trampolines. The boardwalk is packed with vendors and children throng to the bright carousels on Espace Méditerranée. There’s live music after 8pm and, on the beachfront, it’s easy to find a cheap meal; Gallerie Cassanyes is lined with sandwich shops, pizza and pasta from about €7 a head.
Bargain-hunters will enjoy the market on place Foment de la Sardane for its inexpensive clothes and there’s another market about 45 minutes from the beach at place St-Jacques on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
If you fancy a flutter, chance your hand at the casino, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 80 14 12, which opens at 21.00 for slot-machines, roulette and black-jack, and there’s no strict dress code. Away from the beach, the disco complex La Luna pulls in a young crowd long after dark.
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Climate: Perpignan is one of the warmest places in France, temperatures in July and August average 28 degrees C. The coast can be windy due to the Tramontane wind.
Currency: The Euro. £1= €1.26 (July 2008).
Dialling code: For Perpignan dial +33 04 68
Information: Office de Tourisme de Perpignan, Palais des Congrés, Place Armand Lanoux BP 215, 66002, Perpignan cedex. Tel: +33 (0) 4 68 66 30 30 Email: contact-office@perpignanfr. Website: www.perpignantourisme.com
Public Holidays 2006: June 4,5, July 14, August 15, November 1,11, December 25. 2007: January 1,6, April 5,6,9, May 1,2,15, June 13, August 15, October 12, November 1,9, December 6,8,25
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Large parts of the town are conveniently traffic-free, including the old town where the streets are paved in gleaming red marble, making it ideal to stroll around. Begin at Le Castillet, a 15th century red gatehouse with two towers, crenellations and a huge, pink dome, the only surviving part of the town’s fortified walls. It houses an exhibition of local crafts and festivals at Casa Pairal.
Then head for Campo Santo, a former cemetery, totally surrounded by cloisters, one of only two of its kind in Europe. Next door is the Cathédrale St-Jean, a grand Gothic church topped by a bell encased in wrought-iron, inside it’s adorned with marble and famous for the Dévôt Christ carving.
Don’t miss the railway station, few have been immortalised quite like Perpignan’s. On leaving Spain, Salvador Dali arrived there in 1965 and claimed it to be “the centre of the world”, so it’s worth at least a quick look.
Then head on to the town hall. With wide, wrought-iron gates and frontage of river pebbles, it’s a great example of Rousillon architecture. Break for lunch at any one of the local bistros at place Arago and then stroll around the gardens beside the River Basse or take a quieter route along the sweeping Promenade des Platanes, under the shade of plane trees and mimosas.
Eat late at perhaps Casa Sansa, on rue Fabriques-Nadal, for gypsy music that will serenade you into the early hours.
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A colourful display of fresh produce can be found at Perpignan’s open-air markets on place Cassanyes (daily 09.00-12.30) and place de la République (Tuesday-Saturday 07.00-12.30 and 16.30-19.30, Sunday 07.00-13.00, Monday 07.00-13.00 fruits and veg only). Place de la République and Marché République is also the place to go for fruit shops, charcuteries and bakeries.
If you’re wondering what to take home, look out for local Catalan specialities; the fuet (a sweet, light whip), salted, smoked hams and sausages, butifares (black or white pudding), flat breads, turon (almond and crystallised fruit cake) or rousquilles, a sponge cake.
Rousillon’s Olive Lacassagne, a large local olive plantation, stocks the shelves of Mas Ballande, Route d’Elne, Perpignan, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 50 25 32. Buy them as an accompaniment with an aperitif or as extra virgin olive oil. The local kiwi liqueur can be tried at St Jacques Gardens, Chemin de la rivière, Perpignan, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 35 13 04 and anyone who’s sweet-toothed should head for the treats at Lor, 85 rue Pascal Marie-agasse, Perpignan, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 85 65 05.
If you’re replenishing the wine cellar, the Languedoc-Roussillon region produces more gallons of wine than anywhere else in France. Two of the biggest stars are Corbières and Minervois, but Fougères, La Clape or Banyuls, similar to port, are well worth investigating.
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The tourist office is introducing new guided visits of Perpignan by bike every Wednesday, departing from Place Catalogne, opposite the FNAC store, at 10am. Price is €4 per person, free for children under 14 years. However, reservations must be made in advance from the tourist office, tel: +33 (0) 4 68 66 30 30, as places are limited. If you don’t have a bike, they can be hired through the tourist office.
A number of new bars have also been opened, le VIP, le Républic Café, Les 3 Soeurs and le Café de la Marée. Recently opened restaurants include le Lorenzo, le Double Y, le Paradis Fouillis and En Apparté.
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