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Mountain scenery in Spain and France
Discover the very special corner of the world that straddles southwest France and Spain's Catalan northeast, as you enjoy journeys into the heart of the stunning Pyrenean countryside aboard some delightful, historic railway lines, winding your way upwards aboard sometimes modern, sometimes historic rolling stock, and across some marvels of railway engineering. With a stay in a colourful Costa Brava resort - and another road train journey to enjoy - this is a perfect holiday choice.
What's Included
- Spend five nights on the beautiful Costa Brava
- Unspoiled Roses, the holiday base, sits on a sweeping bay
- Enjoy the views from the Roses Express road train
- The historic Little Yellow Train climbs into the French Pyrenees from UNESCO-listed Villefranche-de-Conflent
- The Nuria Rack Railway offers the only access to the year-round Spanish resort
- Discover the stunning Upper Aude Valley on France's Red Train
- Three heritage train journeys and a ticket for the Roses road-train
- Five nights' half-board accommodation at the three-star Prestige Hotel Coral Platja, Roses, including a glass of wine and water at dinner
- Return flights to Barcelona or Girona
- Coach travel and transfers throughout
- Fully escorted by a friendly, experienced Tour Manager
- Single rooms are available for a supplement
1
Fly to Barcelona or Girona and board the coach to transfer to the delightful Costa Brava resort of Roses, set beneath ancient fortifications on the sweeping Golf de Roses. Settle into your comfortable hotel and, depending on your arrival time, perhaps enjoy a stroll along the beach to the harbour and marina, home to some gleaming leisure craft, before dinner is served.
2
Today is free to get to know the pleasant surroundings of your holiday base. Roses has been settled since the days of the Ancient Greeks, but today is a colourful, typically Catalan resort, with a host of bars, restaurants, cafes and other diversions to enjoy. Don't miss the included ride on the tractor hauled, tourist road train, the Roses Express, which winds its way - at an anything but express pace - into the wooded hills of the Cap de Creus national park above the resort, offering wonderful views and the chance to buy refreshments at the summit of the ride.
Other sites to see in and around the resort include the ruins of the 16th-century citadel walls and Trinitat Castle, and some fascinating ancient dolmen burial sites. Those preferring food to sightseeing will enjoy tasting the local specialty, the suquet de peix - fish with potatoes served with a flourish in most of the towns many restaurants. With a working fishing port, seafood is the most popular fare in Roses.
3
Travel aboard the historic Yellow Train, or Petit Train Jaune, which winds its way through the sun-kissed French Pyrenees. Beginning in the picturesque, UNESCO-listed walled town of Villefranche-de-Conflent, travel across improbably vertiginous bridges and viaducts - all engineering marvels - and through some stunning scenery towards France's highest station, at Bolquere-Eyne, and on through a spectacular mountain landscape to the Pyrenean commune of Mont-Louis with its citadel and city walls. Take in the beauty of the surroundings and perhaps enjoy lunch (payable locally) before making your way back to Roses by coach, at the end of a thoroughly absorbing day.
On fine days, don't miss the sunset from the beach - Roses is the only Costa Brava resort to face west, meaning some evenings can be truly spectacular.
4
Heading into the beautiful Catalan Pyrenees, today's included excursion has as its highlight the 45-minute journey aboard the two-car Nuria Rack Railway, or Cremallera, from the hamlet of Ribes de Freser up through a steep, forested gorge to the pilgrimage shrine - the imposing lakeside sanctuary drawing visitors from across the globe - at Nuria. Enjoy a stroll on the paths that cross the alpine meadows, sample some homegrown produce and learn about the history of this extraordinary place, before re-boarding the train - privately owned and twinned with Switzerland's famous Jungfraujoch mountain railway - for the return journey down the valley and then back to Roses.
5
Cross the border back into France on today's final included excursion, which has as its highlight the journey aboard the hundred-year-old Train du pays Cathare et du Fenouilledes, more often called simply the Red Train, travelling through the spectacular scenery of castle-dotted Cathar Country from Rivesaltes, near historic Perpignan, to the Pyrenean village of Axat. On fine days, travel in open-air summer wagons across viaducts and through tunnels, past the vineyard-clad lower slopes of the Eastern Pyrenees, and after time to savour the wonderful surroundings for the last time, return to enjoy a final evening in Roses, including a dinner at the hotel.
6
Bid farewell to your Catalan hosts, and transfer back to the airport for the return flight to the UK, at the end of a wonderful few days.
