Maraussan

Maraussan is situated between the awesome Languedoc National Park and magnificent Mediterranean coastline with it's extensive stretches of golden sandy beaches too numerous to mention. It's is a village as popular with the locals as it is with holidaymakers. It has just about everything you could wish for from a southern French village — shops, a market, excellent boulangerie and two highly-rated restaurants. In addition, it’s very close to Béziers with all the interesting features this major town has to offer. Maraussan is not a particularly small village — its proximity to Béziers means that it has grown a lot in the last twenty years - but it still retains its charm and picturesque little streets.

The Cave Coopérative (communal winery) in the village was one of the first to be constructed and was visited by Jean Jaurès in 1905. Nearly every commune followed suit and most villages now have their own cooperative, although not all are still functional. Jean Jaurès was a socialist politician at the beginning of the 20th century, assassinated just before World War I. Nearly every town now has its Rue, Place or Boulevard Jean Jaurès named in his honour.

Just outside Maraussan, on the flat plain of the River Orb, is the Château Perdiguier. This is a real castle with turrets dating from the 14th century. Nowadays, in addition to producing excellent wines and arable farming, the Château hosts a range of exhibitions and has two salles de reception available for weddings. Guided visits can be arranged. To get there, take the picturesque route via the Pont de Tabarka, an old iron railway bridge over the River Orb, now used exclusively by road traffic.                                       

The centre of Béziers is only 5 minutes by car and there is ample parking in town or at the new shopping mall, the Polygone. Friday is a good day to visit the town as the markets (flowers on the Allée Paul Riquet, food between Boulevard Frédéric Mistral and Avenue Jean Moulin, and textiles at Le Champ de Mars in front of the Médiathèque) are all open. Remember that markets usually close at midday.  

Narbonne is about a 25 minute drive also steeped in history sitting along the Canal Du Midi, good for sightseeing, shopping and lots of excellent restaurants. The area is steeped in vineyards or domaines as they are known locally most of which are only too happy to offer a tasting of their many famous wines, the closest being only 5 minutes away at Cazouls Les Beziers where there is also an interesting museum. The Languedoc region is now becoming more and more famous worldwide for its excellent wines.