11 Picture Perfect Places to Visit on the French and Spanish Border

From fortresses and castles, to quintessential French towns, river caves, Chateau wineries and oyster huts, a journey along the lesser traveled routes through the French and Spanish Border lands offers a lot for tourists.

Here, discover the charming places off the beaten path that are perfect for a couples or family getaway in the South of France, namely on the French side of the Franco-Spanish border in French Catalonia, the Côte Vermeille (Vermillion Coast), and parts of Occitanie.

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An Example Itinerary for Visiting the French and Spanish Border

Being a part-time Spaniard living in Zaragoza, I am always looking for interesting places to visit along the French and Spanish Border, so as to enjoy the best of both worlds - top notch cuisine, seaside gems, and medieval castles.

Thankfully, this fascinating route has it all. For this particular journey, my family ventured from Zaragoza to Tossa de Mar (a wonderful Spanish old town on the sea), then up through Collioure, Le Barcares, then on to Carcassonne, Mirepoix, Foix and eventually the Pyrenees. And we packed it all into 5 days!

On the East Coast of the French and Spanish Border Visit:

• Collioure

• Port Vendres

• Le Barcares

• Leucate

Note: on the Spanish side, look into towns like Cadaques and Roses for coastal Catalonian treats.

Towards the Interior visit:

• Carcassonne

• Mirepoix

• Foix

• Lourdes

• The Pyrenees

On the West Coast of the French and Spanish Border Visit:

• Bayonne

• Biarritz

• Hendaye or Hondaribbia

I haven't detailed the west coast areas for this article, but these are great towns to start your research on!

Here's what you can see and do in the eastern and interior areas of the French and Spanish border to help plan your own adventures.

EASTERN Border of France and Spain

Visit Collioure

The town of Collioure is worth a visit in itself for the shopping and dining, but the waterfront scene at the Royal Castle of Collioure and the Church tower both steal the landscape.

Jutting out into the sea, the tower at Our Lady of the Angels church looks like a postcard from Ariel's visits to the shore in the Little Mermaid.

Quaint and picturesque, quiet days in Collioure will find you skipping stones or picking up sea glass in the town beach, followed by strolls through artful lanes and stops for a meal or kir royale.

Dine at Creperie Bretonne for a lunch of French crepes, then wander the port for awhile and enjoy people watching.

In the high summer season, crowds sully the experience only in that parking will ruin your visit. My advice: wait it out at the port parking lot for a coveted space to open up. Otherwise, you'll find yourself walking potentially several kilometers round trip to your car.

The better option, I think, would be to find lodging in Collioure with parking. This would have greatly changed our experience!

Consider overnight stays in Collioure like:

• Hotel La Casa Pairal: located in a gorgeous 19th-century Catalonian mansion (and affordable too!)

• Le Relais Des Trois Mas: picturesque perfection on the sea

• Hotel Des Templiers: a charming, artsy mid-range retreat

Longer stays allow for visits to the cute nearby marina of Port Vendres, or Argeles-sur-mer for the beach. Boat trips and water sports are also available for people staying longer than one afternoon.

See the Fortress that Protected the French and Spanish Border at Salses Fortress

As I understand it, the Spanish built this fort around 1500 to protect the border against the French. At the conclusion of the Franco-Spanish war, the French eventually conquered the land with the Treaty of the Pyrenees in the mid 1600s.

Now, you can visit this fort. Learn more here.

Walk through an Old Thatched Fishing Village at Canet Pond

Mostly a nature preserve, this stop is a great little respite for those with time on their journey. Pop in to see the shore and the local flora and fauna, and snap some photos of the old fishing huts.

There are ten huts on display, partly still in operation, but visitors can see the exhibition cabin during the summer months Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 7pm.

While you are in this area, consider taking a wine tour in Roussillon for some wine tasting and a picnic, too!

Have Lunch in Leucate Oyster Farming Village

Port Leucate is a rustic little port for active oyster farming, and they offer two lanes full of side to side eateries where you can sample the fresh seafood.

From sea urchin to shrimp and of course, oysters, the village restaurants are all great to try. Parking is easy, but get there early (before noon) for the best options for seating (especially if you want a waterfront table).

Plan to stay a couple of hours to eat and unwind. You'll want to note that the menus offer options for cooked shrimp with aioli and bread, but the rest will be raw.

That means raw oysters, raw clams and raw mussels. I hope you love your raw shellfish because this place is heaven if you do!

Where to Eat in Port Leucate

• Chez Cul d'Oursin

Quirky and colorful choice for tourists, we absolutely enjoyed our visit here. We watched the oyster boat come into dock where they then cleaned and sorted the oysters right there. Check out my Instagram reel on Leucate!

• La Cabane des Tontons

Rustic seating with water views

• Le Mas Bleu

Well appointed locale for classic seafood platters

• Le Petit Bigorneau

Popular restaurant choice with tasteful nautical decor

• Boniface Coquillages

Popular spot with outside seating

• L'hippocampe

Quirky vibe waterfront seating

• La Cabane du Producteur

Classic vibe with fishing nets and outside seating

Promenade Along the Beach at Le Barcares

This simple beach town is unfussy and perfectly relaxing for a beach stay. The beach itself is calm and sandy - great for a day of swimming.

Shops and restaurants line the beachside promenade, and there is a weekly market offered on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from 8am-1pm at Marchés Matinaux Place de la République.

The market was my absolute favorite - one of the best rastros I've been to in a long time - and they offered dresses, toys, handbags, and lots of local food products.

Stay at Hotel de la Plage for an affordable beachfront stay convenient to everything.

We found the lodging comfortable, the free parking on the beachfront to be perfect, and we were steps from the market, a morning bakery, and our enchanting dinner at Oh Kakou!

Be sure to make a reservation for dinner in Le Barcares, because we noticed a lot of people being turned away from restaurants. Many served only pickable items like tapas and rations, so full service restaurants were high in demand at the dinner hour.

If you stay long enough, you'll get to enjoy the roaming beach band and a long meal al fresco. I highly recommend Oh Kakou's pre-fixed menu - the salmon tartare, bone marrow, and duck were out of this world.

To add a little extra old school charm, consider visiting the Tahiti Mini Golf to channel youthful summer vibes, or visit the local Frenzy water park. (P.S. if you like water parks, Argeles-sur-mer offers a park called Canyoning Park, where you can rappel into man made rock canyon pools.)

The rest of the Le Barcares area is full of potential for longer summer trips, too. If I had my druthers, I'd camp out there for a week and fully explore everything. I found a super cute rental for the area too. Check out a longer-term rental apartment in Le Barcares at this link. It's a two bedroom house full of charm for less than $100 a night in peak season. Uh, yes please.

INTERIOR Attractions Along the Border of France and Spain

Stay the Night in Mirepoix, a Half-Timbered Storybook Village

Shoppers will want to try and plan their stay in Mirepoix, a storybook village just 45 minutes southwest of Carcassonne, on a market day. On Mondays in Mirepoix, the whole town bustles with vendors.

On other days, Mirepoix serves as an excellent overnight stop for charming half-timbered buildings, a quaint town square, and offers a variety of French restaurants to enjoy before bed.

Mirepoix reminded me a lot of a town I visited in the North of France called Dinan. Just beautiful!

For lodging in Mirepoix, I recommend the admittedly outdated, but very charming, comfortable and affordable Hotel Le Commerce. It had its heyday many moons ago, but the location can't be beat and it still retains a lot of its old charm.

Be prepared for a very quiet evening. I recommend showing up in the late afternoon, have a walk around the courtyard of shops and timbered buildings, stop for a drink, and eventually mosey on to dinner.

You'll find typical souvenir shops, a few antique shops, and some very peculiar witchy vibes that we never did figure out.

As for dinner, we greatly enjoyed the pre-fixed meal option at La Flambée. Sit outside for the full experience!

Fun fact for foodies: the word mirepoix is actually the term used for the 'holy trinity' used in culinary settings - carrots, celery and onions. Neato.

Go to the Town of Foix for Castles, Underground Rivers and an Old Forge

Foix is a town that I wouldn't have found if it weren't for some deep diving for hotels in the area between Mirepoix and the Pyrenees. I'm so glad that I did! In Foix, find three significant tourist attractions:

• Rivière souterraine de Labouiche

Travel to an underground river and ride on a boat 1.5km through a cave system. It is the longest navigable underground river in Europe!

Tickets and information here.

A word of caution: although the boat ride and cave visit seem like a sedentary task, there is actually quite a bit of physical activity required of your visit.

Prepare for steep steps, a bit of a hike in and out of the cave through the woods, and a spiral staircase climb that rivals your favorite hometown lighthouse.

In the cave, there are three separate boat trips, making your journey quite exciting. Children and families with stamina will absolutely love this! (We did).

• Chateau de Foix

The Foix Castle is open for visitors. Information can be found here.

You can see the castle as you approach town. We arrived in search of lunch and found some street side options tucked down the lanes in the photo.

We enjoyed simple pizza and a carbonara pasta but did not visit the castle.

• Les Forges de Pyrene Open Air Museum

A fascinating living history museum, this attraction can easily take up half your day exploring the 1900's trade workers like blacksmiths and shoemakers.

More of a field trip, this isn't an explore on your own type of museum like most open air history museums. I'm a big fan of open air history museums (one of my first was in Lyngby Denmark). Expecting the likes of Lyngby, this was far more different of an experience.

Instead of wandering old homes and work sheds, find timed workshops and interactive activities like making your own bracelet from sticks (basket weaving). We watched them pan for gold in the creek, watched them make bread, and craft things in the forge.

All workshops and lectures were in French, but the staff spoke English and helped translate after each lecture was complete if we had questions.

It was an interesting visit indeed, but one best taken in slowly. We visited in a hurry, but got a good idea of the offerings.

Info on Les Forges here.

Stroll Medieval Carcassonne

I feel like this destination is about as popular as Disney Land or Mont Saint-Michel, so I'll say - go, because you have to. But if you want to stay somewhere authentic (i.e. away from crowds of tourists), keep moving.

Do some shopping, enjoy a nice lunch, and if you are lucky there may be a market day on!

Typical souvenirs to bring home from Carcassonne may include medieval wear like shields, helmets, and even flowery princess crowns.

Mom might want to bring home some cute tea towels or a board game.

Pro tip: buy the board game Carcassonne before your visit, it's a great way to get your kids excited for the trip! My daughter has been playing it with me since she was only a couple years old so it's not too challenging. You can even ditch the box and put all the parts into a gallon sized ziploc bag for travel. Wink wink.

Enjoy Wine Tasting in a Chateau

Wine tasting tours in Carcassonne are quite common, but it is also possible to arrange your own tasting and tour with a vineyard or chateau privately.

I reached out to Chateau de Caux to do just that, and we enjoyed a lovely visit of the estate, cellars, and got to taste and take home some wine.

Another extremely popular Chateau to do some wine tasting at is at Chateau de Pennautier (Lorgeril), where you can visit the Cheateau, have lunch in their restaurant, have a wine tasting and many other mix and match options. It's great for those looking for a more commercialized wine tasting and tour experience. Their website is very easy to understand and tours can be booked in English.

Visit Lourdes and Stock Up on Healing Holy Water

Head to the popular village to visit the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, buy plenty of holy water fillables in the town shops, and fill them up in the holy water tap in the center of town.

A half day with a lunch stop included is the right amount of time for visiting Lourdes.

Venture into the Pyrenees and Stay the Night in a Secluded Mountain Town

It's not really about the town you stay in, it's about the accommodation that you choose. Surround yourself with beautiful nature and enjoy a relaxing evening and a nice meal.

I recommend staying at Tierras de Aran for a middle-of-nowhere stay that will blow your socks off. Think moody stone buildings with views of the mountains.

Meals are prepared for you upon request, and they are really good.

The scenery prompted some not-so-great photoshoots of me by my husband, but mostly we just loved the cool mountain air and the quiet comfortable evening.

Browse hotels in the French Pyrenees here.

Optionally, if you're done with France head south to the Spanish Pyrenees towns of beautiful Benasque or ancient Ainsa. Go whitewater rafting, wine tasting in Somontano, or continue on towards Zaragoza for the next big hub of activity.

We enjoyed some whitewater rafting about an hour or so south of our evening stay in the Pyrenees, and it was an incredibly good time - perfect for our 5 year old, too!

If you are looking for a reason to stay in the Pyrenees, whitewater rafting is an excellent option. Check out the outfit we went with - Sin Fronteras Adventures. They are family run and top notch!

WESTERN French-Spanish Border Towns

For the Western fun, you'll have to stay tuned. However, I can recommend if you make your way across from Biarritz and Bayonne to the Basque towns of Hondaribbia and San Sebastian, you'll be embarking on an even greater adventure - a Northern Spain road trip!

The port of Bilbao takes travelers from Spain to England by overnight ferry, and the possibilities from there are endless. But let's save that for another day, shall we?