NEAR SAINT-CYPRIEN

Fort de Salses fortress is around 40 minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite. This stunning military building sits at the end of the old border between France and Spain. Over the centuries, humans and nature have transformed borders that seemed to be unchangeable. The incredible Fort de Salses is set between the sea and the mountains, and now separates Roussillon from Languedoc. Built in the 15^th century by Francisco Ramiro López, it’s unmissable for anyone staying in the Pyrénées-Orientales.

The museum has also a game app for kids. Throughout your visit, the “Traps at the Fortress” historical investigation game takes you on a wonderful journey back in time. Official Fort de Salses website

Built after the discovery of the Tautavel Man, the Musée de Préhistoire museum of prehistory is around an hour from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite.

It has 21 rooms where you can learn about the Tautavel Man (from 450,000 years ago) and the oldest prehistoric humans in France (from 560,000 years ago). You will also find out about prehistoric humans in Spain, Italy and Georgia.

After your museum visit, head for Les Gorges Du Gouleyrous. Just under two miles from the village, at the foot of Caune de l’Arago, you will find the cave where the humans of Tautavel lived 450,000 years ago. The Verdouble stream widens out here, creating a little corner of paradise.

The Palais des Rois de Majorque dominates central Perpignan. Built on a promontory in the 13^th century, the Palace of the Kings of Majorca was the heart of the short-lived Kingdom of Majorca for almost a century.

The Palais des rois de Majorque runs daily guided tours introducing visitors to the history of this little-known kingdom. Tours start at 11am and 3pm.

Architecture lovers will notice the two styles combined to perfection on this masterpiece. The Late Romanesque style was used at the start of construction, while the Gothic style was used towards the end. The lavish chapels convey the period’s sophistication and encourage visitors to reflect.

The Cloître d’Elne is five minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite. Constructed between the 12^th and 14^th centuries, the building is made of white marble with blue veins. As a Monument Historique heritage site, the Cloître d’Elne cloister is famous for its Romanesque and Gothic sculptures.

The beautiful carved capitals, the oldest of which are in the south gallery, have a variety of motifs depicting Biblical characters, animals and plants. Formerly home to the Diocese of Perpignan-Elne, the Cloître immerses visitors in a distant era.

Love Leucate oysters? Then why not meet some oyster farmers?

Leucate, where the producers work, is 35 minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite. In their Mediterranean setting, they encourage you to try their produce. Washed down with a delicious glass of wine, Leucate oysters taste like happiness and holidays.

Photography enthusiasts will be able to treat their taste buds AND their eyes as these magical surroundings feel authentic and charming. The rows of huts have colourful terraces and fishing nets, driftwood, old buoys and piles of oyster shells add to the idyllic panorama.

Located between Narbonne and Perpignan, 50 minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite, the Réserve Africaine de Sigean nature park is like another world.

This park is home to more than 3800 animals, and giraffes, elephants, rhinos and other animals from the African savannah roam the 740 acres of land. The Réserve Africaine de Sigean is a semi-natural animal park. This means the animals have enough space to behave naturally despite it being thousands of miles from Africa.

The first part of the visit is by car. In your vehicle, your drive through the three African scrubland parks, spotting dwarf buffalo, impala, zebra and springboks. Continue to the Asian black bear and lion parks before visiting the three African savannah parks home to white rhinos, warthogs and Somali wild asses.

Visits to the Réserve Africaine de Sigean end on foot up close and personal with the animals.

There’s nothing like a train trip for immersing yourself in the unique ambiance of the Pyrénées-Orientales.

The departure of the famous Train Jaune is less than 1 hour from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée, in Villefranche de Conflent. Along a 63-kilometre route, the train offers a panorama of exceptional landscapes punctuated by cultural sites.

As a symbol of the Catalan country, the Train Jaune proudly wear the colours of blood and gold. It connects Villefranche-de-conflent to Latour-de-carol. It offers a unique experience for travellers who use it. Aboard the train, you will discover the Conflent, the Cerdagne and the territory of the Regional Natural Park of the Catalan Pyrenees.

55 minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite, you will find a unique French location: Les Orgues d’Ille-sur-Têt rock formations.

This hoodoo landscape with a fragile, ephemeral beauty is a magical place for a walk.
The park’s sand and clay cliffs have been gradually carved away by the rain. Erosion has added its artistic touch, sculpting the rock with slashes and ridges to leave it looking “cut away”.

This natural site is accessible to everyone and encourages visitors to reflect. Let your imagination guide you through your walk in the heart of this almost lunar landscape.

Discover the Vallée des Tortues tortoise park in the heart of Sorède‘s Vallée Heureuse.

Home to over 35 tortoise species, Vallée des Tortues in the heart of the Catalan Pyrenees is a centre for rearing, protection, breeding and conservation.

And it’s constantly growing. Today, the park feels like Noah’s Ark, with hundreds of animals living at the reserve.

When you visit, make sure you see the reptiles in the vivarium, the leaping marmosets, the ever-curious meerkats, the brightly coloured birds and the many other mammals and fowl.

In Torreilles, around 25 minutes from Le Soleil de la Méditerranée Campsite, your kids can have fun at L’Île aux Enfants. This kids’ entertainment park has lots of fairground games, carousels and inflatables.

Prices and useful information:

• Carousels: €1;
• Inflatables and trampolines: €5 for unlimited goes;
• Free daily tombola at 10pm with various prizes to be won;
• Mid-June to early September: park open daily from 8pm to midnight;
• April to June: park open weekends and bank holidays from 2pm to 7pm.