You have to, HAVE TO visit Montpellier in the south of France! Perhaps you haven´t heard of it before but trust me it´s seriously beautiful and took us all by surprize! It´s the perfect city for a family trip because it offers so much to do (and see) and everything is in close proximity.
Park Esplanade Charles-de-Gaulle
We loved browsing through the park late afternoons because during mid day it was simply too hot! One of these afternoons, Luca went on a pony ride (see photo above) which he loved (just look at him smiling in the video here). The pony was called SNOWBALL in French “boule de neige” – How cute is that?!
There are a wide variety of cafe´s and restaurants in the park and the atmosphere is absolutely amazing! I took a timelapse of it which you can check out here.
Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Montpellier
The church was originally attached to the monastery of Saint-Benoît, which was founded in 1364. The building was elevated to the status of cathedral in 1536, when the see of Maguelonne was transferred to Montpellier. After the building suffered extensive damage during the Wars of Religion between Catholics and Protestants in the 16th century, it was rebuilt in the 17th.
The photo taken of the massive (and beautiful!) door below is of one of the east entrances of the cathedral. We were amazed by the beauty of the cathedral and spent at least an hour admiring the outside of it.
Place de la Comédie
The Place de la Comédie is a square in the city center of Montpellier, Hérault département in southern France. It is at the southeast point of the city center where the fortifications of the city were formerly located.
We spend every afternoon in this square while Luca rode the scooter that our Airbnb apartment provided. Some times we would stop for an ice cream at McDonald’s – why there you might ask?! – well, I tell you why, because they sold strawberry sorbet!! The first time we saw this at any McDonald’s and loved it!
While we were in Montpellier the la Comédie was always alive with people, flocking to one of the many restaurants in the square. It bustled with movement day and night and it seemed that the hot weather at the end of June didn´t stop anyone from going outside. Also, Montpellier is home to three universities and about a third of the population is made up of students.
Luna Park Fairground
On our 2nd last night in Montpellier, we decided to drive to a popular beach about 10 minutes from the city called Palavas. During our time there we discovered the Luna Park Fairground. It was here, that once again I realized that the older you get, the more afraid you become. When I was a teenager I couldn´t wait to try all the rides. Now… well let´s just say that I´m totally different now 😉
OOTD in Montpellier, France
If you want to see more of my outfits you can check out my video here on my YouTube channel. You can shop the look below this image or from the description under my YouTube video. For Mr. Luca, Teagan and Daddy´s looks, click here.
I made a travel vlog (video) of our time there, and in it, you can see what we were up to. We had such a fun time! You can click on the image below to see it!
Let me know in the comments if you have been to Montpellier, and if so, what you thought of it? Just in case you missed it, here´s my recent post I wrote about our day at a wine farm close to Montpellier.
Until next time!
Johlene
xoxo
RESOURCES
I often get asked about the equipment I use when traveling. I mean this is the only real thing you´ll keep from your trip and therefore it needs to be really good! The camera I use for my blog photos is the Canon T3i/600D EOS (with the Canon STM 50mm 1.8 lens). I would like to upgrade to the Canon EOS 5D Mark III (however my budget does not allow for it yet) because of its full frame (22MP full frame CMOS) sensor capacity. My current camera has a cropped frame which means I need to stand further away from my subject when I shoot.
Then, I use the Osmos DJI Mobile for my videos/vlogs. I love the Osmo Mobile because you control it via an app on any Android or IOS phone. It seriously has changed the way my travel videos look! Some of its features are Active Track technology which automatically keeps your smart phone facing you as you move and smooths and even cancels out the movements you make, stopping camera shake and turning every shot into a cinematic video!
We very recently added the GoPro HERO5 and the Accessories Starter Kit to our collection and can´t wait to test it out! Watch this space.
Here are a few photos of me and hubby using the Osmo Mobile
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Amandine Murat says
Montpellier is a great city! There are so many things to do and see! I have studied there and i had such a great time! it has all that i love: gretat night life, many cultural events and festivals and of course the sea!!! you should definitely visit it!
David from Travelodium says
Yeah Montpelier reminds me a bit of Aix-en-Provence maybe its the students or the tree lined streets. I only passed through looks like I should have spent a bit more time there. On the list for next time.
Johlene Orton says
Hi David, yes it´s in the Hérault department not far from Aux-en-Provence. This city took me by surprise because I didn´t really know what to expect before we arrived there… It´s beautiful, you´ll love it! 🙂
Sharon says
I would love to visit southern France someday! This gives a good idea of how lovely it is! It looks like a small slice of Paris!
Johlene Orton says
Hi Sharon, it seriously is. Montpellier reminded me of when I was in Paris more than 10 years ago, it´s just smaller 🙂
Cathy (MummyTravels) says
Such a gorgeous city and how cute is that little pony with Luca on – looks like you had a great break. Thanks for linking up wth #citytripping
Johlene Orton says
Hi Cathy, the pony ride was one of the highlights for me because I´ll always remember his big smile 🙂
Lins @ Boo & Maddie says
I haven’t ever been to Montpellier but your trip sounds idyllic (and that candyfloss!!) #citytripping
Johlene Orton says
Yes it was the biggest candyfloss I´ve ever seen! haha!
Kerstin says
Just gorgeous! Love the recommendations!
Johlene Orton says
Thanks so much Kerstin! 🙂
David @ Spiced says
I’ve never been to Montpellier (and to be honest, I’m not sure whether I’ve heard of it or not)…but you’ve convinced me! This city looks amazing. I’m a sucker for European cities. I just want to go sit at a cafe and people watch all day long. 🙂 And I love that video, too…thanks for sharing, Johlene!
Johlene Orton says
Me too David! A real sucker! 🙂
Glad you liked the video because I loved editing it, and remembering how much fun we had on our trip… 🙂