Montpellier has a vibrant historic centre and is a youthful, energetic and, helpfully, very walkable city. Outside peak hours you can reach the labyrinthine underground car park at ‘La Comedie’ in ninety minutes from Beaumes, and that is where we would recommend you begin!
There is, obviously, much more to cover than we put here; we knowingly saved the botanic gardens and Musée Fabree for another day, for example. You can have a very full day, however, starting with a pastis in La Comedie, where there are plentiful bistros serving predictable fare. Here you can do some of the best people watching the world has to offer, dip your toe in the city’s prolific café culture, and begin to get a sense of what type of person likes to call Montpellier home.
We trotted up into the old town, where the winding alleys and cobbled streets do not disappoint. You can skip straight over Grand Rue Jean Moulin, which houses a healthy variety of high-street brands, unless of course shopping is your thing… For lunch we stumbled across the simply excellent purveyor of Mediterranean tapas (and larger dishes), Rosemarie – link. Nestled in one of many small squares, with the odd tree to sit under in its predominantly al-fresco setup, Rosemarie delivered heavyweight value for money. We shared three small plates of Accras (small, deep fried fish balls), burrata with mushrooms, and razor clams, and then a larger Tuna steak alongside a carafe of wine, and were away for about €50.
To walk off lunch we took in some of the fabulous civic buildings and spaces of the city. The prefecture and Carre Saint Anne (which doubles as a gallery but we did not sample that side of it) will both jump out at you if you ramble long enough, but the real treat is if you walk up past the Arc De Triomphe (a marvel in its own right) to the Promenade de Peyroux, from which you get uninterrupted views over the entire city. Walk a little farther to find the staggeringly well preserved Saint-Clement Aqueduct, which casually bestrides the city below.
We had hoped to visit the Bakery of Dreams and Bread – link, apparently one of the best bakeries in France, but their ovens go on strike every Monday.
To see off the day we jumped back in the car and drove an unusually straightforward fifteen minutes down to the Plage du Grand Travers – link, an epic, sprawling beach just south of the city centre. Parking is free and plentiful (in the off season) and we had no trouble finding a spot a hop and a skip from the beach. We had a nightcap at the Beach Club Bambou – link, where every seat offered advantageous views out over the plage and ocean in front. The menu might give some cause for concern – you could top up your bottle of vodka with six cans of red-bull for a very reasonable surcharge, or ‘go Magnum’ on your Moet for only 60% extra (something like 400 euros), but for a Monday night sundowner the rosé was very reasonable at €6 a glass and, I am told, actually very good!