Toulouse is a city in southwestern France, near the Pyrenees, in the Midi-Pyrenees region, half way between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
Toulouse has become a center of aviation and spaceflight in the past 20 years. More than 35,000 of the city's 400,000 citizens work in the civil aviation or space industries; Airbus / EADS is the largest employer in the region. The city has remained relatively unchanged despite the economic boom.
The city at the Garonne river is located on the site of an ancient Roman settlement; even today many of the smaller streets follow their Roman counterparts and many of the red brick buildings are of a pseudo-Roman style. These buildings are also what gives Toulouse its nickname La ville rose (The pink city).
In the middle ages, Toulouse was one of the richest cities of France due to the sale of blue coloring (pastel) extracted from woad plants. This monopoly was only broken when the Portuguese began to import Indigo to Europe. Over 50 hotels, mansions, remain witness to the past wealth.
Access
By plane
Regular scheduled domestic and international flights arrive at Blagnac airport , about 20 minutes from the city. It serves connections from Paris about every hour. There are many other flights as well, for example to London, Munich and Frankfurt.
To get to the city from the airport, you can use a bus shuttle for about 4.00 €. Going by taxi will cost about 20 €.
By train
Paris : 5h (by TGV) to 7h30 (common train). Bordeaux : 2h30. Marseille : 4h00. The train station is almost in the heart of the city. Cheap tickets can be found via iDTGV which offers TGV tickets from Paris starting from about 18 euro.
Access
By plane
Regular scheduled domestic and international flights arrive at Blagnac airport , about 20 minutes from the city. It serves connections from Paris about every hour. There are many other flights as well, for example to London, Munich and Frankfurt.
To get to the city from the airport, you can use a bus shuttle for about 4.00 €. Going by taxi will cost about 20 €.
By train
Paris : 5h (by TGV) to 7h30 (common train). Bordeaux : 2h30. Marseille : 4h00. The train station is almost in the heart of the city. Cheap tickets can be found via iDTGV which offers TGV tickets from Paris starting from about 18 euro.
By car
Major highways towards Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille, Barcelona
By bus
Bus terminal at the railway station.
Transportation
Toulouse is not a very big city, so you can walk to most destinations in the inner city quite comfortably. This is definitely the best way to explore the city. For getting in and out of the centre, Toulouse has a network of bus and metro lines. The bus services tend to be not very reliable and miss the timetable. The metro is relatively small, there are two lines, one going east-west (line A), and the other going north-south (B).
Public transport company web site:
- Tisseo
Page with the network map, and specific maps and schedules for all the bus and metro lines: This page features an online travel planner ("recherche d'itinéraires" tab) that will indicate the route and times to get from one place to another at a given time.
Rent a bike from Tisseo for €1 per day
By car
You should avoid going downtown with a car, as parking space is seriously limited. One good option is to drive to a metro station out of the center and park there, then head downtown by metro.
Sightseeing and Activities
Toulouse is a small city, and you can reach most interesting places in the downtown area comfortably on foot.
City center
- Basilique Saint Sernin – a church from the 11th Century, partly restored by the famous french architect Viollet-le-Duc.
- H̫tel d'Ass̩zat Рone of the most appealing of the many old mansions of the city
- Capitole – the imposing and palatial townhall and theatre, its beautiful facade facing onto the grand Place du Capitole
- Pont-Neuf – despite its name(like the Parisian bridge of the same name, it's title is most probably derived from the French for 'New', not 'Nine'.), the only old bridge across the Garonne river; built between 1544 and 1626
- Les Jacobins monastery church, contains Thomas Aquinas' relics.
- City park at the Grand Rond, a bit south-east to the center of the city
- Les Augustins Used to be a monastery church, and is today an art museum
- Les Abattoirs Modern Arts museum, and there is also a nice garden with a nice view on the Garonne
- Take a walk through the city and along the Canal du Midi
Have a walk along the Garonne river from St Pierre bridge and Pont-neuf during the evening.
Party at St Pierre Place: ve
ry popular among Toulouse's students
For cultural events, have a look at this website, Toulouseweb (in French)
For diverse type of events (inc. free concerts of local bands in bars, theater plays of the month in the various theaters, regional festivals, etc.), have a look at this website: (in French)
Tours
The tourism information office, Toulouse Tourism Office , is located in the back side of the Capitolium organizes guided tours of the city. Some of these are in English. Check ahead for their schedule.
There is another possibility if you want to have a private guide for a personnalized tour, visit the website called Toulouse A La Carte .
If you are a group, the service Toulouse Visit provides tour in English and Spanish or French.
If you are an individual you can also take daily excursions departing from Toulouse and that head towards all the major sights of the region: Small villages of the region, Albi, Carcassonne, Lourdes, Canal du Midi… The excursions take place on board 8 seater fully equipped minivans and are taken care of by professional driver guides. Languages include English and German. Visit the website Ophorus. The company is also specialised in Pyrenees ski transfers as well as Canal du Midi transfers departing from Toulouse and heading towards all major resorts.
Airbus
Airbus offers tours of their facilities; the tour takes about 60 minutes and includes a guide who will tell you some background about the company; the screening of a promotional / historical video, and a look at the A380 production line. Photography is strictly forbidden, and you need to bring a piece of photo identification. Book ahead. Those who have done the tour before 2006 should note that tours now set off from a new purpouse built structure shaped like a cross-section of the A380. The building can sometimes be awkward to find so check the website in advance.
Visit the website of Airbus Visit , the unique company agreed by Airbus to provide tours of the A340, A380 and Concorde.
Cité de l'Espace
The "space city" is another of Toulouse's "aviation" attractions. However you must be aware that it is not exactly a museum but a sort of scientific theme park without rides. There are some replicas of spacecraft and other exhibits, many of the later interactive in some minor way. There's also a small planetarium. The park is suited well to 5-14 year old children, everybody else should probably spare themselves the trip. It's situated fairly outside the city but there's a bus service starting outside the main train station.
Artsy places and associative world (websites in French!)
- Toulouse is one of the most alternative French cities – maybe due to its huge student population and its historical past with half a million Spanish republican/communist/anarchists 'rebels' that settled in the region after they failed to rebel against Franco and escaped through the Pyrenees during the 'Retirada' in 1939. So even though the city is trying to get rid of them, it still offers a large number of squats, some of them hosting artistic movements. MixArt Myrys is one of the oldest and most active squat of artists within the city.
- Les Motivées is an association that is very active on the political and social scene in Toulouse, and that organises or takes part in many free events, strikes, concerts, etc. throughout the year. They founded a political party a few years ago that is pretty active locally and holds a few positions with the City Hall Council. Check also the Tactikollectif their fellow co-working association on events like festivals, etc. that has its origin in the Northern quarters of Toulouse, which are the ones with social housing and lower quality of life.
- La Grainerie is more particularly dedicated to circus and was first created and settled on derelict brown land ; it hosts various collectives of artists every year.
- L'Usine is another residence for artists and collectives, located in the close suburb (Tournefeuille, 12kms from the City centre of Toulouse]
- le Collectif d'Urgence Acteurs Culturels РEmergency Collective for Cultural Actors defends the local associative and alternative cultural world, whereas the Toulouse R̩seau Unitaire Citoyen РCivil Unitarian Network of Toulouse aims at stirring local, social and political debates.
Restaurants
Like all of France, you will not be disappointed with the food Toulouse offers. Duck is a regional specialty, and thus many restaurants will offer duck for dinner.
Also, go during lunch time at the first floor of the Victor Hugo market, you'll find many good restaurants at a very good price. Market atmosphere, and better be patient to wait for seats as no reservations are possible, but it is worth it if you want to feel a typical local atmosphere.
Cassoulet is the most famous regional dish, a stew made with white beans, various kinds of meat, and pork skin. Try it.
Shopping
Opening hours in Toulouse are generally Mon-Sat 9AM-1PM and 3PM-7PM, but there are numerous exceptions.
- As Toulouse is a city of aviation and spaceflight, check Airbus and the Cité de l'Espace for souvenirs
- There's a flea market every Sunday morning near the Basilique Saint Sernin. While it does not offer anything too special as flea markets go it's a great way to mingle with a local crowd. Another flea market is held every first weekend of the month at the Grand Rond
- Also a very nice market around the St Aubin Basilic every sunday morning, selling producer's vegetables and fruits. Very relaxed atmosphere.
- Every weekday there is a vegetable market before noon along the Boulevard de Strasbourg – this is actually the cheapest of all the vegetable and fruit markets of the city
- There are excellent 2nd hand shops or "fripperie", especially on Rue Gambetta and in the whole quarter behind the 'Ecole des Beaux Arts', around the 'place de la Bourse' which is the historical textile production quarter of Toulouse
- If you are on a budget, the supermarkets where most students use to go are the brands 'Lidl' and 'Leader Price'. Those are to be found more on the 'edges' of the city (though some are accessible with the underground). In the centr
e, you'd rather go for Champion or Géant Casino.
Lodging
See the complet list of the Hotels in Toulouse .
- Gitounet (gitounet@free.fr), Avenue Camille Pujol, . A self-catering studio apartment suitable for 1 or 2 people (large double bed), with a total floor space of 18 sqm. Includes a fully equipped kitchen, en suite shower and toilet. Bed linen and towels provided. The apartment is situated to the east of the city centre, only 15 minutes walk from the Place du Capitol, with a frequent bus service. It is on the ground floor of a family house overlooking the garden.45 E/night.
- Cap de Castel…,
On the Pastel road, a few miles from Albi, Toulouse, Lautrec, Carcassonne, Castelnaudary… The Cap de Castel Hotel is a small charming hotel set within a typical medieval Mediterranean village, dominating the Lauragais hills and valleys, renowned as "Little Tuscany", in the rural south of France. The hotel is named after the 13th century Castel (in Occitan patois), outbuildings and ramparts forming the property overlooking south the Pyrenees and Black Mountain chains. The breathtaking view is an invitation either to discover the surrounding gem-like villages, vineyards or simply relax on the shaded terrace nearby the pool. Rooms, Suites from 60Eur to 165Eur.
- Holiday Inn Le Capoul, 15 Place Wilson, . Rooms are up to 155 €/night (without any discounts you may get), plus 13€ for breakfast. The location is quite good; there are many decent restaurants of various styles in the immediate neighbourhood and many stores and interesting sights are within comfortable walking distance.
- Novotel Airport is about 15 minutes from the airport, a shuttle bus exists. Has decent, standard Novotel rooms. Staff speaks little to no english however, except those at the reception.
- Accor hotels in Toulouse. The hotels Novotel, Mercure, Ibis, Formule 1 and Etaphotel in Toulouse.
- Hotel le Clocher de Rodez, The two stars Le Clocher de Rodez Hotel is an 18th Century building. As one of Toulouses historic hotels, the building has sheltered numerous artists and musicians. Rooms from 50 to 100 €.
- Hotel le Moulin de Moissac,. This three star hotel is the oldest in the area – it's five centuries old! Located just 37 miles from the airport. Rooms from 46 to 100 €.
- Résidence les Princes, Two charming, comfortable and well equipped apartments (30 and 45 m2) in a small flat building with an oven-cooked red-brick front which is typical of "Toulouse" style. Documentation about equipment is in french and in english. More than sixty european or american TV channels can be received. Each apartment is equipped with an individual air-conditioning. Very quiet and very close to the "canal du midi" and the center of the city, they give a view on an exotic garden with palm and banana trees. It's just like a "sanctuary in the city"!
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