Collioure (Catalan: Cotlliure) is in Pyrénées-Orientales. Collioure is an ancient fishing village 27km from the Spanish Border. The Mediterranean laps on to its beaches and you can spy the last summits of the Pyrenees.

The fortification called La Tour de l'étoile (1725), with the bay of Argelès in the backgound

Understand

You can often see little Catalan boat in the port or on the beach. The first station on the Vermeille Coast, the village offers a pleasant and calm life to its 2700 inhabitant and those who flock to the swimming stations when the weather is good. The village extends round the bay and the surrounding hills. The seafront is split into two parts: the centre of town between the Royal Castle and the Clock tower and the Port d'Avall from the Royal Castle to the Pams Museum. The two parts are connected by a footbridge at the foot at the Castle.

Get in

By train

Several trains and TER a day leave from Perpignan or Spain

By bus

Catalan Courriers run from Perpignan and Banyuls-sur-Mer serve Collioure. The bus stop is in front of the Post Office.

By car

Take the RD 114 which comes off the RN914 which links Perpignan with Spain. The RD114 route takes you alongside the sea and through the picturesque hills.

Get around

By foot

The best way to get around is on foot. The heart of the village is made up of pedestrian streets and compact.

By car

It is advised to leave your car parked for your visit. It's pretty much impossible to park in the streets but there are many car parks in the centre of the village. In summer, when it's busy, there's a Park and Ride with shuttle near the exit of the RN114.

See

The Church of Notre-Dame des Anges at dawn, along with the former watchtower, now a clock tower

• L'église Notre-Dame des Anges. 17C church with exterior church bells and glitzy Baroque altarpiece inside. 
• Château Royal de Collioure (The Royal Castle). This 13C castle costs €4 to enter but is well worth it. You get views across the bay. The castle was of strategic importance, so it was rebuilt several times and fortifications strengthened over time, including by Vauban, a famous French military engineer whose work you can find across many parts of France. 
• Tour de l' Étoile (Star Tower). (updated Jan 2020)
• Fort Carré. (updated Jan 2020)