Domaine Presqu'Île de La Franqui

Domaine Presqu'Île de La Franqui's coastal setting is by the splendid Mediterranean beaches of Leucate, La Franqui and Les Coussoules, all top spots for watersports, beach basking and flying kites. Take time too for a day in Leucate village, for wanders around its main square as well as its big harbour, one of the biggest this side of the Med, then have a hike along the Cap Leucate cliffs for spectacular views of the water below. Four walks lead from Leucate: a 4.3-kilometre loop taking in two kilometres of coastal view; a 6.8-kilometre wine trail; a seven-kilometre shepherd's trail, and a 7.2-kilometre fisherman's trail. Wanderers can also head (ever so slightly) inland to waterside walks at Étang de Leucate, 15 minutes' drive away where the Aude department merges to the Pyrénées-Orientales, or stay around the coast for a potter around 15th-century Catalonian stronghold Fort de Salses, later used as a refuge during the Spanish Civil War. And then to Perpignan, home to a 14th-century cathedral, the 13th-century Palace of the Kings of Majorca and a railway station that the decidedly individual Salvador Dalí claimed as the 'centre of the universe' as his best ideas came to him while waiting there for his train... After that, mosey on down to the canal for the fab indoor markets at Les Halles de Vauban, to pick up fresh fruit and veg, regional produce like cheese, bread and wine, and eats/drinks at the central bar and food court.