Easiest way to go is by PLANE..,
...then pick up a CAR at your destination 
Here are the links to the relevant AIRLINES, in descending order of distance/convenience
The closest airport to most of our properties is PERPIGNAN served by RYANAIR from London/Stansted, FLYBE (in April to October only) from Birmingham and Southampton, and BMIBABY (again, April to October only) from Manchester. There are also domestic flights from Paris.
Note new Ryanair Birmingham-Perpignan service from 02/07/08
Note new Ryanair Bristol-Beziers service from 31/03/08
However you will find more convenient flight times, cheaper car hire and easier access (you don't have to negotiate the impossible Perpignan ring road which can take 45 minutes on a bad day) from GIRONA which is now RYANAIR'S new hub for the region. It flies to here from London Stansted, Luton, Bournemouth, Liverpool, Blackpool, Birmingham, East Midlands, Durham, Newcastle, Glasgow, Shannon, Dublin, Brussels, Eindhoven, Frankfurt, Stockholm, Oslo, Karlsruhe/Baden, Paris, Milan, Venice, Turin and Sardinia. (1) When you are booking to Girona on Ryanair's website remember that they call it "Barcelona (Girona)" (2) Keep an eye on Ryanair's website, they are adding new routes faster than we can type.
GIRONA is also served in summer by many charter flights from Aberdeen, Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, East Midlands, Birmingham, Cardiff, Bristol, Gatwick and Luton and more. try FLIGHTLINE (note it's better by phone!)
CARCASSONNE (1 1/2 hours away) is served by RYANAIR as is MONTPELLIER (2 hours away)
BARCELONA (2 hours away) is served by EASYJET from Liverpool, Newcastle, Bristol, East Midlands, Luton, Gatwick, Stansted, Amsterdam, Berlin, Geneva, Paris (Orly) and last but not least by BRITISH AIRWAYS and IBERIA
TOULOUSE (2 hours away) is served by EASYJET from Gatwick and Paris (Orly), by FLYBE from Southampton and JET2 from Leeds.
GIRONA is the modern Catalan spelling but many maps will still show the Spanish spelling - GERONA
There are many other Inter-European flights to/from most of the above airports and there are Intercontinental flights to/from Barcelona, Montpellier and Toulouse
CAR HIRE is cheaper in Spain than France - however be aware that you must always tell the car hire company when you pick the car up that you are crossing borders - AND BE WARNED! UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES CAN YOU CROSS BORDERS WITH AN EASYCAR HIRED FROM BARCELONA - YOU WILL NOT BE INSURED - (JAN 2003)
Booking a FERRY or the TUNNEL has gone through an Internet revolution recently and it's now far cheaper to book it yourself. Here's some relevant links
EUROTUNNEL P&O SEAFRANCE CONDOR
ONCE YOU'RE OVER THERE ... the easiest route is via Calais, Reims, Troyes, Dijon, Lyon and down the Rhône corridor. With two drivers this can be done within one long day, but you might prefer to stop overnight at a "half-way" Bed and Breakfast hotel (Ask us).
MORE COMPLICATED BUT MUCH NICER ... Calais, Paris, Orleans, Clermand Ferrand, Millau, Beziers. Shorter, less crowded, spectacular. The opening of the new bridge at Millau makes this the best route, only drawback is Paris, the negotiation thereof. You can do it in one day but better break the journey, as above.
An overnight boat to Caen Le Havre or St Malo works well too. The RN20/A20 is being improved all the time or the A75/RN9 pushes through exciting scenery south of Clermont-Ferrand down to Perpignan, or take a route somewhere between the two, exploring as you go.
MOTORAIL Your car is loaded on to the train at CALAIS and you sleep overnight, on the same train, in couchettes to NARBONNE. It's a stressless way to arrive in the area. Pity about the website - Better phone +44 (0)8702 415 415
EUROSTAR+TGV Take the train from LONDON WATERLOO early in the morning, make a simple cross platform change at Lille Europe and arrive, pampered, relaxed and raring to go around seven in the evening in PERPIGNAN. Car hire can be arranged. Not an user friendly website at all, it's much better to phone RAILEUROPE on +44 (0)8705 848 848 to hunt for the many reductions - you'll be amazed at what's on offer, especially off-season. There are also Eurostar trains running straight through from Waterloo to Avignon, about 4 hours drive away.
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