no flag on Wikidata:  | |
| no coat of arms on Wikidata: | |
| Midi-Pyrénées region | |
| Capital | Toulouse |
|---|---|
| Residents | 2.954.157 (2013) |
| surface | 45,348 km² |
| no tourist info on Wikidata: | |
| location | |
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Midi-Pyrénées is a former administrative region in the southwest Of France. She went to the region in 2016 Occitania on.
Departments
- Ariège (09)
- Aveyron (12)
- Haute-Garonne (31)
- Gers (32)
- Lot (46)
- Hautes-Pyrénées (65)
- Camouflage (81)
- Tarn-et-Garonne (82)
places
- Toulouse, largest city and de facto capital of the region
- Albi
- Also
- Brassac
- Cahors
- Castres
- Cordes-sur-Ciel
- Foix
- Lourdes
- Millau
- Moissac
- Montauban
- Rodez
- Tarbes
Other goals
- The Canal des Deux Mers creates the link between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean; can be used with pleasure boats and houseboats; A cycle path runs parallel to it
- Pyrenees, The central part of these high mountains belongs to this region, the highest point on the French side is the 3298 meter high Vignemale
- Gorges du Tarndeep river valley in the shape of a canyon
background
Historically, the provinces (or parts of the provinces) Guyenne and Gascogne, Languedoc and Foix existed here. In the Middle Ages, Albi was a center of the religious movement of the Cathars (hence also called Albigensians), who were brutally opposed by the Catholic Church. The Midi-Pyrénées region was formed in 1960. In 2016 she was with Languedoc-Roussillon merged to form the new greater region of Occitania.
language
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Occitan is traditionally spoken in this region, but it has been on the decline from Standard French for over a hundred years. Most of the inhabitants today only speak a "southern" colored form of French. In some cities, however, bilingual signs have been put up. As everywhere in France, foreign languages are hardly used. Only in Toulouse is the English language skills slightly better than in other French cities due to the resident international companies.
getting there
By plane
The most important airport in the region is Toulouse-Blagnac, the sixth largest airport in France, where there are also direct flights from various airports in German-speaking countries. The airport is much smaller Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées, there are connections from there several times a day Paris-Orly as well as seasonal charter flights for the pilgrims. The airport follows in third place Rodez-Aveyron. If you want to go to the southwest of the region, you can also take a flight to Pau, for the southeast after Carcassonne contemplate.
By train
With the TGV (several times a day) it takes about 5½ hours from Paris to Toulouse, from Bordeaux a good two hours. Another TGV stop is in Montauban. Another TGV line runs from Lyon above Nîmes and Montpellier to Toulouse (Lyon – Toulouse in 4:10 hours). However, the TGV between Montpellier and Toulouse is not worth it, because the IC Marseille – Bordeaux is just as fast here, sometimes even faster. Between Bayonne and Toulouse run IC several times a day (via Pau, Lourdes and Tarbes). Twice a day there is an IC from Paris-Austerlitz via Limoges, Cahors, Caussade and Montauban to Toulouse.
The fastest connections from Frankfurt am Main to Toulouse (change in Paris) take just under 11 hours, and from Cologne a good 10 hours. From Basel you can get to Toulouse via Dijon and Lyon in less than eight hours, from Zurich in under nine hours.
By bus
Eurolines offer long-distance bus connections from several German cities with a change in Tours to Toulouse. From Cologne to Toulouse, for example, you need 19:45 hours and pay € 98 as standard (promo prices may be cheaper).
Ouibus, the long-distance bus subsidiary of the French state railway SNCF, offers trips from Strasbourg (18:45 hours; 34–60 €), Brussels (approx. 15 hours; 31–60 €), Lille (14:15 hours; 28–54 €), London (approx. 20 hours night drive; € 44–70), Brittany (Brest – Quimper – Lorient; approx. 18½ – 21½ night drive; € 38–70), the Côte d'Azur (Nice – Cannes; 10–11 hours; 21–27 €) and the Basque Atlantic coast (Donostia San Sebastián – Biarritz – Bayonne; 3: 40–5: 25 hours; 15–25 €) and Bordeaux (3–4 hours; 9– 12 €) to Toulouse.
In the street
The most important thoroughfare in the region is the A 20 motorway ("L’Occitane"), which connects Paris with Toulouse. Coming from the Mediterranean, the region can be reached on the A 61, from Bordeaux on the A 62, from the Biscay coast (Biarritz) on the A 64.
By boat
On the Canal des Deux Mers one can go by either houseboats or kayaks Castets-en-Dorthe at the mouth of the Garonne into the Atlantic Agen and Moissac (Canal latéral à la Garonne) or from Sète across the Mediterranean Beziers and Carcassonne (Canal du Midi) drive to Toulouse.
By bicycle
The French cycle route V80 leads into the region along the Canal des Deux Mers from Bordeaux to Toulouse. He is also on the European long-distance cycle route EuroVelo 3 (“Pilgrim route” or “Scandibérique”), on which you can even start from Germany. If you want to go to the north of the region, the valley of the Lot, you can turn off at Aiguillon on the V86 ("Véloroute de la Vallée du Lot"), which leads to Cahors. In future, it should also be possible to travel along the Canal du Midi from the Mediterranean to Toulouse, but it is not yet completely completed. The V81, which is supposed to lead from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean at the foot of the Pyrenees, still has a few gaps.
On foot
Several branches of the Way of St. James, namely the Via Podiensis or long-distance hiking trail GR 65, on which you can hike from Geneva, the Alpine region, the Rhône or southern Auvergne to Figeac, Cahors and Moissac, as well as the Via Tolosanawhich leads from Arles and Montpellier to Toulouse and on via Auch and Pau to the Pyrenees.
mobility
Tourist Attractions
- UNESCO World Heritage Sites on Way of St. James:
- Romanesque Benedictine Abbey of Sainte-Foy in Conques (Aveyron), especially their monastery church
- Rocamadour. Extremely picturesque medieval town leaning against a steep slope with Saint-Amadour crypt and Saint-Sauveur basilica; Rocamadour is one of the most popular tourist destinations in France.
- Toulouse. Romanesque basilica Saint-Sernin, Hôtel-Dieu Saint-Jacques.
- Romanesque basilica Saint-Just in Valcabrère (Haute-Garonne)
- Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges (Haute-Garonne). Early Christian basilica and Romanesque-Gothic cathedral, there are also remains of the ancient Celtic-Roman city in the place Lugdunum Convenarum and late medieval half-timbered buildings.
- Viaduc de Millau (Aveyron). Motorway bridge over the Tarn, completed in 2004, which is the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world at 2,460 meters and the tallest structure in France with a maximum pillar height of 343 meters.
activities
- Hiking on the Way of St. James, especially on the Via Tolosana of Arles via Toulouse and Auch after Oloron-Sainte-Marie at the Pyrenees or the Via Podiensis of Le-Puy-en-Velay above Figeac, Conques, Cahors, Moissac and La Romieu to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port
- Boating, kayaking or cycling along the Canal des Deux Mers
- Climbing in the Gorges du Tarn or in the Pyrenees
- Winter sports in the Pyrenees, e.g. B. Saint-Lary-Soulan, Grand Tourmalet / Pic du Midi, Ax les Thermes
