Characteristics of the city
Montpellier is a unique and captivating destination. Coming to Montpellier means you will discover :
A certain style of city and style of living :
300 days of sunshine per year, unparalleled gourmet dining and a natural reverence for fine wines, many lively outdoor cafes, vast pedestrian areas, parks and green spaces, daily markets and don’t miss the charm of the mediaeval streets and alleys where shops and bars rub shoulders with historical monuments as private mansions…
A young and dynamic city, always boiling:
Year-round, a rich and varied cultural programme provides dance, theatre and music fans spectacles for every taste. Montpellier also offers world-class events and festivals as well as numerous exhibitions in the city’s halls and museums such as Fabre museum with one of the largest fine art collections in Europe.
A sporting city :
Host city for the Rugby World Cup in 2007 and Tour de France in 2007 and 2009 … Sporting Montpellier loves big events and counts numerous athletes at the highest international level (Handball, Water Polo, Beach Volley…)
A leisure city :
Over 150 km of cycle tracks around Montpellier, the Antigone Olympic swimming pool and the Odysseum leisure and shopping area, with its aquarium, planetarium, skating rink, multiplex cinema and theme restaurants…
A favoured geographical location close to the sea, the mountains and major World Heritage sites.
History
Once upon a time, there was an estate called the Monte Pestelario, later to become Montpellier, which had high aspiration… In 985 an agricultural estate was created as the product of an alliance between the Count of Mauguio and Seigneur Guilhem. Over the next thousand years, this smallholding was to witness an extraordinary expansion.
Its privileged geographical position at a crossroads in trading paths and its proximity to the sea were to make the city one of the most important trading hubs in Europe. It has also become a university capital, with faculties in law and medicine, the latter being the oldest in the western world still in operation today.
From the religious wars to struggles for power, the city was to retain numerous traces of the past, including its famous private mansions.
Haussmann helped to reshape the new capital of Languedoc, as it had become, but then… nothing… a brief respite perhaps after the mad dash to the top of the list of most popular French cities? Maybe… But whatever the reason, Montpellier went on as it was for nearly a century before the Sirocco blew from across the Mediterranean in the early 60s… bringing in its wake a wave of construction works, expansion and a city of unequalled attraction.
In 20 years, the city rose from France’s twentieth city to no.8… and it’s far from over yet!
Partners
France Rail Pass provides the best offers in Montpellier:
1) My Suite Inn
Stay in one of our apartment suites, in a smart residence only ten minutes from Montpellier’s historical centre.
105 rue Gilles Martinet - 34070 MONTPELLIER
Tel : +33 (0)4 67 99 45 30
Website : www.mysuiteapparthotels.com
FRANCERAILPASS ADVANTAGE: Offer for cardholders
15% discount per room and free breakfast until July 9th
2) Montpellier Tourist Office
Dynamic, creative, thriving, a student city with about 100 000 young people from 12 to 25 years old , Montpellier has deliberately chosen to take amusement seriously.
30 allée Jean de Lattre de Tassigny - 34000 MONTPELLIER
Tel : + 33 (0)4 67 60 60 60
Website : www.ot-montpellier.fr
FRANCERAILPASS ADVANTAGE: Offer for cardholders
10% on the Montpellier City Card
3) Apollo Jazz Café
In this Bar where the setting brings you in the 1920s, there's always music and dance and you can enjoy a cocktail or a romantic dinner à deux.
129 Avenue de Palavas - 34070 MONTPELLIER
Tel : +33 (0)4 67 64 64 66
Website : www.apollojazzcafe.com
FRANCERAILPASS ADVANTAGE: Offer for cardholders
1 free welcome drink
4) Le Cargo
Le Cargo is one of the best places for students parties in Montpellier.
5 rue du Grand Saint-Jean - 34000 MONTPELLIER
Tel : +33 (0)4 67 29 96 85
Website : www.cargo-montpellier.fr
FRANCERAILPASS ADVANTAGE: Offer for cardholders
Free entrance until 1 am
5) Le Fizz
Come to dance on electronic music to the Fizz from midnight to 5am in the heart of Montpellier on 2 levels with2 different atmosphere.
4, rue Cauzit - 34000 MONTPELLIER
Tel : +33 (0)4 67 66 22 89
Website : www.discotheque-lefizz-montpellier.com
FRANCERAILPASS ADVANTAGE: Offer for cardholders
10% discount on the full fare entrance and 10% discount on 1 bottle of alcohol
