# Quickest and Cheapest Way to Montpellier



## walsh101 (12 Mar 2010)

I'm think of going to Montpellier in the south of France in September, does anyone know the best way to fly there which doesn't involve lots of changeovers and isn't too expensive or can anyone recommend somewhere else in the same region thats easy to get to from Dublin.


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## dereko1969 (12 Mar 2010)

Carcassone with Ryanair is your only direct option.

You could go via Leeds to Montpellier with Ryanair but timetables seem to indicate you'd have very long waits between flights.


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## walsh101 (12 Mar 2010)

Thanks for the reply, anyone been to Carcassone ?


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## dereko1969 (12 Mar 2010)

mates have, the old town is supposed to be gorgeous, not sure there'd be enough touristy stuff for longer than a weekend so depends on what type of holiday you want.


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## BOXtheFOX (12 Mar 2010)

walsh101 said:


> Thanks for the reply, anyone been to Carcassone ?


 
Lovely spot. We stayed at http://www.maison-miro.com/   You can take a trip along the Canal du Midi from outside the local train station. Also take a local train to Narbonne for a day trip. 
The Cite is stunning. Full of reasonably priced restaurants.
[broken link removed]


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## babaduck (12 Mar 2010)

Carcasonne is beautiful.  The Old Town is very picturesque and attracts tourists in a big way.  We stayed in www.lemontmorency.com which is right beside the castle walls.  The new town has lots of shops, a gorgeous food market & some lovely restaurants.  There's also a SNCF station to catch the train to wherever you want to go.  The airport is 10-15 mins away by taxi


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## deli (15 Mar 2010)

Ryanair also fly Dublin Rodez, which is probably much the same distance as Carcassonne. However flights to Rodez tend to be a lot cheaper !! Carcassonne a great place to visit, I think a couple of days might be enough there, although lots to do and see in this part of SW France.


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## dereko1969 (15 Mar 2010)

but if hiring a car in rodez don't some/most companies not allow their vehicles to be used outside the country of hire?


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## BOXtheFOX (15 Mar 2010)

deli said:


> Ryanair also fly Dublin Rodez, which is probably much the same distance as Carcassonne. However flights to Rodez tend to be a lot cheaper !! Carcassonne a great place to visit, I think a couple of days might be enough there, although lots to do and see in this part of SW France.


 
Is there a good train station/bus station in Rodez for onward journeys toward coast?


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## ollaetta (15 Mar 2010)

dereko1969 said:


> but if hiring a car in rodez don't some/most companies not allow their vehicles to be used outside the country of hire?


 
Rodez is in France, 180km north west of Montpellier. While Carcassone is a shorter distance (150km) I would fly to Rodez every time. You are into the car and on the road south in no time and apart from a toll for crossing the very impressive Millau bridge (6 euro) the autoroute is toll free.

While not as famous as Carcassonne, the area around Rodez has its own fortified towns and really spectacular scenery.

Ryanair fly to Rodez about 3 times a week from April to October and it's a small but nicer airport than Carcassonne. All car hire companies have desks there.


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## deli (15 Mar 2010)

dereko1969 said:


> but if hiring a car in rodez don't some/most companies not allow their vehicles to be used outside the country of hire?


 Both Rodez and Montpellier are in France !!

With regards to trains, I'm not certain, but i would think you would have to get a train to Narbonne and then change to Montpellier. Check out www.sncf.fr
The airport in Rodez is a few mile outside of the town and I'm not sure if there is a shuttle bus. Car hire would be easier, and depending on the time of the year, may be just a economical.


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## dereko1969 (15 Mar 2010)

deli said:


> Both Rodez and Montpellier are in France !!
> 
> With regards to trains, I'm not certain, but i would think you would have to get a train to Narbonne and then change to Montpellier. Check out www.sncf.fr
> The airport in Rodez is a few mile outside of the town and I'm not sure if there is a shuttle bus. Car hire would be easier, and depending on the time of the year, may be just a economical.


 
oops! what a dope, was getting mixed up with reus!


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## EvilDoctorK (16 Mar 2010)

If you don't want to drive then Aer Lingus and Ryanair both also serve Marseille which is a similar distance away as Carcassonne / Rodez are from Montpellier but much better served by trains (at a glance they run about hourly and take about 90 minutes see )

Edited to add - looks like Carcassonne actually has just as good a train service to Montpellier ... but Rodez doesn't really have any decent train service.


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