Special Tourism and Leisure The Hérault today Nature/Environment Origins Life in the Hérault Festivals and celebrations Food and wine www.herault-en-languedoc.com Index THE HÉRAULT TODAY Tourism on the waterways and in the vineyards, shellfish farming and innova- tive urbanism… the Hérault of the 21C combines dynamism and a love of life. The Canal du Midi The great leisure waterway 4 Tasting on site 6 Etang de Thau (Thau Salt Lake) A journey through the marine garden 8 Montpellier A city of passions 9 NATURE/ENVIRONMENT Well before fashion made an old war-horse of the subject, because of their nature and certainly also because of the interest in the stakes, the people of the Hérault already had it in their hearts to protect their environment. Today, 60% of the coas- tal area is preserved… Bagnas Reserve Nature is for the birds 10 Kaleidoscope of abundance Over 30 protected species 12 Nature takes priority The preserved coastal area 14 ORIGINS Traces of the past and ancient customs come together: jousting, drumming and passion of the “bull god” 2 A glimpse at some of the history 17 The Jousts 19 The bull herds of the Lunel countryside 20 LIFE IN THE HÉRAULT 300 days out of each year in the sun, between the mountains and the sea… Discover the lifestyle of the people of the Hérault through their language, their rites, leisure activities and projects. On this soil of the South 21 Culture 22 Living beside the sea 23 Sporting activities - just around the corner! 24 The picture tradition 26 Balneotherapy 26 FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS Galas and carnivals, village fairs and festivals… throughout the whole year, highlights to be shared with pleasure Carnivals, ceremonies and galas 27 Village fêtes 28 Variety in art 29 FOOD AND WINE From three stars to the tiny inn, recipes and specialities, an exceptional land for exceptional wines…carpe diem! Gastronomy 30 This magazine is edited for 2002/2003 by the Department of the Hérault Tourism Committee. Editor Martine MERLIN-DHAINE - design and creation : DDB Haute Saison - RC Toulouse 95 B 1458. Photo credits: P. 1 : Liégeois - P. 2/3 : Liégeois, Comte, Grosclaude - P. 4/5 : Liégeois, Comte - P. 6/7 : Liégeois, Comte, Le Guen, Lallemand - P. 8/9 : Liégeois, Comte, Mairie de Montpellier, Soulié imprimeur - P. 10/11 : Liégeois, Orel, Lallemand , C.A.U.E - P. 12/13 : Bertrand, Liégeois, Berthillier, Fesquet - P. 14/15 : Liégeois, Comte, Bertrand, C.A.U.E. - P. 16/17 : Comte, Grosclaude, Bury, Bertrand, Iacoponelli, Cambon - P. 18/19 : Liégeois, Gas, O.D.S.H., OT de Sète - P. 20/21 : Liégeois, CDT Hérault, Comte, Girod - P. 22/23 : Liégeois, OT Montpellier, Comte, Bertrand - P. 24/25 : Verthongen, Grosclaude, Liégeois, Gas, Lallemand, Girod - P. 26/27 : Lallemand, Tableau Musée Fabre, Grosclaude - P. 28/29 : Grosclaude, Comte, Mas - P. 30/31 : Lejeune, Crassous, Gas, Le Guen. e live here all year round and today we would like to share with you Wour South and its sunshine, its sea and lakes, mountains and EDITORIAL artists’ towns, its forests and cliffs, vineyards and garrigues, its ports and beaches, the canal and the rivers, the beauty of the light and the joys of the life here… Everything, just everything that you dream of when you close your suitcase for a few days or a few weeks of holidays, you will find here. Everything is in the Hérault. First of all, the Hérault gives you the freedom to not have to choose, but to do as you please, whether it is climbing, swimming, sampling local produce or simply absorbing the culture. Whatever you feel like, at any time of the day. You will find just a small sample in the following pages. In the Hérault, it is up to you to invent the holiday that you want, at any time of year, with the certainty that you will be enchanted by a reality much richer in flavour than the pictures and much stronger than the words. Great destinations in the Hérault GARRIGUES PAYS DE THAU Pic St.Loup – Upper Valley of the Hérault. Land of the sun, around the Etang de Thau and the Mas- At the gates of Montpelier, between the Cevennes and the sif de la Gardiole. The towns and villages of this land of Mediterranean. A land of secrets and preserved charms, to be fishermen and shellfish farmers will astound you with their savoured at the slow, leisurely pace of the outdoors. diversity of natural, cultural and historical riches. Pays d’Accueil : Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 55 16 82 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 55 16 97 Pays de Thau : Tel: +00 33(0)4 99 57 22 50 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 99 57 22 59 Website: www.cardonille.com Website: www.paysdethau.com - E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] PAYS DE BEZIERS CAUSSES ET VALLEES Cradle of Pierre Paul Riquet (creator of the Canal du In the heart of the Hérault, surrounded by 4 exceptional Midi) and long-time capital of wine and rugby, Béziers sites - the Cirque de Navacelles, Saint Guilhem le Désert, and this region offers a wealth of culture through its out- standing sites - the Fonséranes locks, St. Nazaire Cathedral, the Oppi- 3 Salagou Lake and Pézenas - the golden valley and the Larzac foothills are a combination of nature and culture. dum of Enserune and Vendres lake. Pays d’Accueil : Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 57 58 83 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 57 67 95 Office du Tourisme (Tourist Office): Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 76 47 00 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 76 50 80 Website: www.mnet.fr/caussesetvallees E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] MINERVOIS HAUT-LANGUEDOC Pays Cathare The Hérault section of the Regional Natural Park of Haut- From the glory of the ancient town of Minerve centre of Languedoc, between the Atlantic and Mediterranean clima- the Cathars to the undulating countryside covered in vineyards tes, the foothills of the mountains open out onto the plains and garrigue, discover 2000 years of history and wine culture. and the vineyards. Nature tourism is at home here. Maison du Minervois : Tel: +00 33(0)4 68 27 80 00 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 68 91 70 95 Parc Haut-Languedoc : Tél. +00 33(0)4 67 97 38 22 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 97 38 18 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Maison du Tourisme St. Pons (St. Pons Tourist Centre) Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 97 06 65 MONTPELLIER MEDITERRANEE Little Camargue CaussesC A City of the South! It has the accent, the shaded squares; ett Vallées Garriguguess its jewels are the garrigues, the lakes, the Little Camargue and PPic Saint-LoLoup the Mediterranean, with its beach resorts at Palavas, Carnon and La HHaut Languedocuedo Parc Naturel Régionagion l Grande Motte. Office du Tourisme (Tourist Office): Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 60 60 60 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 60 60 61 Website: www.ot-montpellier.fr - E-mail: [email protected] Méditerrand anée VignobleVVig Petiteite Camaamargue VIGNOBLES Faugerois - St Chinianaisn Faugères and Saint-Chinian wine regions. In Orb soil, the renowned vineyards and a warm welcome Minervervoiiss Pays Cathare combine to offer the tourist the discovery of regional products. Charte Coteaux de l’Orb : Tel: +00 33(0)4 67 38 11 10 - Fax: +00 33(0)4 67 38 20 50 E-mail: [email protected] Payaysys de B éziers THE HÉRAULT TODAY The Canal du Midi, the great leisure waterway Originally an economical artery dedicated to transport of merchandise, the canal has taken on a new life thanks to our leisure society. T A here is no point in hurrying…the economic deve- fter several decades of inactivity, lopment of Languedoc owes much to this long, green ribbon the Canal du Midi has come alive again where barges and other vessels with holds full of wine vats, thanks to waterways tourism. What can be more relaxing than to take a boat trip cereals and cloth once glided along. On the banks, life was very – at 6 km./ hr – bordered by the foliage closely associated with the canal, with dockers and storage of the century-old plane trees, going warehouses, odd jobs associated with maintenance of the through almond-shaped locks and locks, towpaths, draught-horses, little bits and pieces here passing under small, arched bridges, and there, people selling ropes, wood, vegetables… surrounded by soft, rolling countryside 4 right up to the salt lakes. Passing through towns also takes on another meaning, Capestang and its Gothic collegiate church, Béziers with its out- standing view over the cathedral, the black basalt towns of Vias, Portiragnes and Agde, followed by Sète, the view of the lakes…Listed a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1996, the Canal du Midi is now sure to keep its perso- nality and charm for a long time to come. Some history… This 240 kilometres long canal that joins Toulouse to the Mediterranean was the work of Pierre Paul Riquet, although the Romans had already considered building a canal. By solving the problem of feeding the canal with a constant supply of water, the Béziers businessman, with the support of Colbert, a minister of Louis XIV, launched the works that were to last for 15 years. From 1667 to 1681, 12,000 workers dug and built outstanding structures. Riquet died a ruined man, just one year before the inauguration of the canal.