View from the balcony of 40 Port de la Plage of Mt Canigou.

Port Leucate is located on the Golfe du Lion and is home to one of the largest Marinas on the French Mediterranean coast the other being nearby Barcares. It is part of the national park project. Barcares also has a superb beach, again blue flag and 5 miles long. It is home to the Lydia a 300 ft long steamer built in 1931 and deliberately run aground in 1967. It has been converted into a casino and disco and is extremely popular even having its own Miss Lydia elected every 2 weeks during the summer.

The old village of Leucate lies just a mile away from the beach and is dominated by the ruins or the fortified castle built in 1036. This stands on a promontory from which there is a magnificent view of Les Corbieres, the Salses lake and Mont Canigou.

Cap Leucate is a landmark for both seafarers and migrating birds it is a popular area for hikers and mountain bikers. Nearby La Franqui is the Audes oldest seaside resort and has various sailing competitions throughout the season. La Plage des Coussoules offers wild beaches and sand yachting.

The area around Port Leucate is renowned for its seafood, particularly oysters, celebrated with a week long festival in March. Wine production is as important as fishing in the area which is France's largest wine producing region. Autumn being an essential season for the peninsula during which time you can taste a wide range of local wines such as Corbiere, Fitou, Muscat de Riversaltes and Minervois.

The region is fantastic for Skiing. It is still used mainly by French people therefore tends to be quieter and less expensive than the Alps. The resorts are well managed and all have snow machines for low snow days, all have a good range of runs for skiiers of all levels. In summer the ski resorts turn into a hikers paradise with exceptional views with some of the resorts operating their ski lifts during the summer to transport hikers to higher levels.

The region was made for walking having hundreds of miles of pathways all are well maintained and clearly marked. They pass through areas of extreme natural beauty and local interest.

Other places of interest are nearby Barcelona, Carcassonne (with its famous walled city) Coulliere at the foot of the Pyranees and nearby Andorra a duty free country.