september-2010

For our full route map visit www.ryanair.com TEXT BY MARGIE RYNN
Ryanair Two-Minute Guides
FRANCE
NUMBER CRUNCHER
8,422,000
Montpellier
EAT: LE PIC SAINT LOUP
Feel like eating really good food outside
while listening to crickets chirp? About
20km from Montpellier, this former winery
(pictured) serves up modern southern
French cooking, spiced up with a dash of
satay sauce, or a slice of mango, or shitake
mushrooms, or lime juice… Reserve ahead.
176 ROUTE DE MONTPELLIER,
LES MATELLES, TEL: +33 (0)46 784 3518
DRINK: DELECTO
Smoothies, or “smoossies” as they are
pronounced here, have fi nally arrived in
France and, naturally, the Gallic version
is exceedingly yummy. Try one at this
hip juice bar, where fresh fruit is peeled,
chopped and blended before your eyes.
3 RUE DES ECOLES LAIQUES,
TEL: +33 (0)46 702 0896
STAY: HOTEL DES ARCEAUX
Tasteful, modern rooms are on offer in
this 19th-century erstwhile mansion,
which was recently renovated with loving
care. A small garden courtyard beckons
for breakfast alfresco. Doubles €65-€105.
33-35 BOULEVARD DES ARCEAUX, TEL: +33
(0)46 792 0303, WWW.HOTELDESARCEAUX.COM
WATCH: CINEMED
Dedicated to cinema from the
Mediterranean region, the 32nd edition
of this fi lm festival will include some 250
features, shorts and documentaries.
Last year’s winners included Retorno a
Hansala (Spain). From 22-30 October.
VARIOUS VENUES, TEL: +33 (0)49 913 7373,
WWW.CINEMED.TM.FR
FLY TO MONTPELLIER FROM THREE
DESTINATIONS, INCLUDING LEEDS BRADFORD
The number of visitors
to the Louvre in 2008.
Paris
EAT: L’AGRUME
If you can wedge yourself in at lunchtime,
you can sample two courses from chef
Franck Marchesi-Grandi’s superb menu
for a mere €16. Or go for dinner, where
highlights include free-range pork from
Bigorre, and mustard-crusted chicken.
15 RUE DES FOSSES ST-MARCEL,
TEL: +33 (0)14 331 8648
DRINK: CAFE PERLE
During the day this crowded café caters
to both Marais hipsters and construction
workers, who come for the low-key
ambiance and reasonable prices – at
night the hipsters rule. The sidewalk
tables are perfect for people-watching.
78 RUE VIELLE DE TEMPLE,
TEL: +33 (0)14 272 6993
STAY: HOTEL ERMITAGE SACRE-COEUR
In 1890 a rich man built a lovely
townhouse in Montmartre for his
mistress. The mistress is long gone but
the house lives on as an unconventional
hotel that feels more like a quaint bed and
breakfast, with lots of period prints and
canopy beds. Doubles €96-€100.
24 RUE LAMARK, TEL: +33 (0)14 264 7922,
WWW.ERMITAGESACRECOEUR.FR
SEE: PERE LACHAISE CEMETERY
This lush, green cemetery (pictured)
is the place to go when you are dead.
Illustrious fi gures such as Oscar Wilde,
Proust and Sarah Bernhardt are buried
here, as well as rock legend Jim Morrison.
20TH ARRONDISSEMENT,
WWW.PERE-LACHAISE.COM
FLY TO PARIS (BEAUVAIS) FROM 34
DESTINATIONS, INCLUDING MARRAKESH
Salon de Provence
EAT: LA SALLE A MANGER
Once the home of a soap manufacturer,
this 19th-century residence boasts rich
decoration, an interior garden – and one
of the best restaurants in Salon, featuring
exquisite, creative cuisine. Book ahead.
6 RUE DU MARECHAL JOFFRE,
TEL: +33 (0)49 056 2801
STAY: GRAND HOTEL DE LA POSTE
This former postal relay looks over the
Fontaine Moussue, a fountain covered
with centuries’ worth of lush moss. The 23
colourful rooms offer calm, comfort and a
touch of Provence. Doubles €50-€60.
1 RUE DES FRERES JOHN ET ROBERT KENNEDY,
TEL: +33 (0)49 056 0194, WWW.GHPSALON.COM
SEE: NOSTRADAMUS MUSEUM
Michel de Nostredame, otherwise known
as Nostradamus (1503-1566), spent the
last 20 years of his life in this house. The
fabled seer, who claimed he was capable of
predicting the future up to 3797, wrote his
famous book, Prophecies, here.
11 RUE NOSTRADAMUS, TEL: +33 (0)49 056
6431, WWW.VISITSALONDEPROVENCE.COM
VISIT: RAMPAL AND MARIUS
FABRE SOAP FACTORIES
Two of the few remaining manufacturers
of authentic Savon de Marseilles, a natural
olive oil soap, these 100-year-old factories
(Rampal pictured) offer guided tours and
exhibits of their soapy wonders.
71 RUE FELIX PYAT, TEL: +33 (0)49 056
0728, WWW.RAMPAL-LATOUR.COM;
148 AVENUE PAUL BOURRET, TEL: +33 (0)49
053 8275, WWW.MARIUS-FABRE.FR
FLY TO MARSEILLE PROVENCE MP2 FROM
32 DESTINATIONS, INCLUDING MADRID
CURRENCY EURO
POPULATION 64 MILLION
LANGUAGE FRENCH
Je prends
l’avion
pour Paris
I’M FLYING TO PARIS
Je vol à
Paris
I’M FLAPPING
MY WINGS AND
LITERALLY FLYING
TO PARIS
Say this… not this.
RYANAIRMAGAZINE
105