Finding Marseillan

Marseillan Village is located on the banks of the Etang de Thau, the  Mediterranean lagoon on the coast of Languedoc-Roussillon, known to the ancient Greeks and to generations of pirates and privateers. Between the lagoon and the Med is a 12 kilometre stretch of sandy beach linking the resorts of Sète and Marseillan Plage. With its special microclimate, and boasting 300 days of sunshine each year, Marseillan is protected by the twin headlands of Cap d'Agde and the Mont St Clair and the summer heat is cooled by breezes from the foothills of the Massif Central.
FOR LOCAL TOURIST INFORMATION LINKS, SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE.

By Air            

NINE Airports serve Marseillan, with flights from more than 20 UK and Irish Airports. Closest and best is the newly and misleadlingly  renamed Beziers Cap d'Agde airport at the nearby vilage of Vias, only 12 minutes from Marseillan. Flights from UK (Bristol, Southampton and Luton  + connecting flights from other towns) as well as from Germany and Sandinavia.

The principal airport in the region is Montpellier - just 35 minutes from our village. Easyjet and Ryanair have year round low-cost deals. Nîmes airport, just over an hour from the house, is a quieter affair and you can expect to be in your hire car within 15 minutes of touching down on the tarmac. Carcassonne airport is 75 minutes from the port of Marseillan. Several airlines jet in from the UK regions to Perpignan airport,  around 70 minutes away.
Toulouse airport is 2 hours drive away with British Airways.   It may be quicker from Sheffield, Bournemouth, Durham, Teeside or Blackpool to fly to Girona, just across the Spanish border, and a little over 2 hours drive to us, rather than endure the long trek to London.

NEW ROUTES FOR 2011

THE listings below feature the closest airports to us from your local destination - but there are still more options from the UK regions, with southern France coming onstream almost weekly it seems. Check out the latest routes from Cork on the Ryanair website. And the connections via Southampton -Beziers with FyBe. Double check with airlines before booking your trip, as services may be seasonally suspended.

Choose the best route from your local airport  

(UK & Ireland)

FOR LINKS TO AIRLINES, SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE

By Rail           

The combination of Eurostar and France's high-speed TGV rail network mean that you can pick up the train in London or Kent, change in Lille or Paris, and be in Languedoc in around six hours. Fares begin at around £100 standard class and £179 First class (which includes meals and drinks aboard Eurostar) - even in peak summer season. Travel to Montpellier to pick up a hire car, or continue to Agde, just 10 minutes from the house.

In Summer, Eurostar have a non-stop direct Saturday service to Avignon - central London to Provence in around 5 and a half hours, from £99.  Click here and follow links for European Trains.

Drive your own car onto the train at Paris or Copenhagen and drive off at Narbonne the next morning for an easy 40 minute drive to Marseillain. French Motorail is a fabulous option. Click here and follow links to Motorail for fares, timestables and booking. Alas, the direct train from Calais to Narbonne as now been axed.

By Sea           

By Car            

From the Channel Ports - head to Paris. From the boulevard Périphérique follow signs for Clermont Ferrand, taking the A6, A10 and then the A71 motorway which becomes the toll-free A75 from Clermont Ferrand to Pezenas (the only charge on the A75 is for crossing the world's highest bridge, Norman Foster's amazing Millau Vidauct, €6.60 in summer, otherwise €4.90). From Pezenas/Agde exits, follow signs to Marseillan.

From Montpellier Airport - follow signs for the A9 motorway (direction Beziers Toulouse Barcelona) and stay on the motorway until exit 33 (Sète) and take the N113 (sometimes renumbered D613) towards and through Mèze. At a roundabout turn left onto to D51 to the centre of Marseillan. Motorway tolls around €2. For tolls and directions from other airports, drop us a line.

From Nîmes - A54 Motorway from the airport (direction Nimes) then join the A9 towards Montpellier and continue as above.

From Perpignan or Carcassonne - A9 Motorway (direction Montpellier) from Perpignan (from Carcassonne, you will be taking the A61 then A9), exiting A9 at exit 34 (Millau Clermont-Ferrand Pézenas Agde Vias). Then take the D13 towards Bessan, turning left from the main road onto the D28 which runs through the village of Bessan and bear left onto the avenue de Marseillan, a typically french tree-lined lane that crosses the river Herault then passes vineyards and continues for a good ten minutes entering Marseillan at a roundabout with a Renault dealership on your left.

From Beziers-Cap-d'Agde- Follow signs to AGDE CENTRE then, after crossing the river, look for the signpost to MARSEILLAN. Cross the railway track and kee going until you find the  roundabout with a Renault dealership on your left.

... Keep on driving until you come to the water's edge ...

We'll not be far away.

For guaranteed lowest prices on car rental at the airports - even better than the airline's partner deals - and none of those nasty surcharges click here. You could also collect your car at Montpellier, Sete, Avignon and Beziers stations.

For information about holidays in France, from the rules of the road to etiquette at Agde's naturist beach don't forget to visit the French Tourist Office website before you leave home.

To keep an eye on what's going on in and around Marseillan surf before you fly:

The town of Marseillan	www.marseillan.com	Département of l'Hérault	www.cdt-herault.fr
The land of France	www.franceguide.com	The Region of Languedoc	www.sunfrance.com
The city of Montpellier	www.ot-montpellier.fr	The Canal du Midi	www.canalmidi.com
Airlines	www.aerlingus.com www.ba.com www.ryanair.com www.flybe.com www.bmibaby.com www.airfrance.com www.easyjet.com www.jet2.com www.transavia.com www.cimber.com www.cityjet.com	Railways Eurostar Rail Europe French trains Great fares
Books on France	www.languedocbookshop.com www.lazyfrance.com www.laurencephillips.com www.focusguides.com	Routefinder Local news	www.mappy.fr www.midilibre.com