Perpignan

By car

• Autoroute A9, from north (France) and south (Spain)
• D 914 (ex RN114)
• From Andorra, N116.

By plane

• Perpignan–Rivesaltes AirportFor getting into the city the easiest is bus 7. A one way ticket was €1.20 in September 2015. The stop closest to the train station is Catalogne.

• From Dublin Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus.com)
• Regular line from Paris Orly: 5 planes/day. (Air France)
• From Manchester Airport, England, use BMIbaby
• From London Stansted airport - daily flights, use Ryanair (www.ryanair.com)
• From Birmingham (3 flights a week) with Ryanair
• From Southampton (2 flights a week), use Flybe (www.flybe.com)
• From Bristol (2 flights a week) - about €44- use Ryanair (www.ryanair.com)
• From Charleroi , Belgium (3 flights a week), use Ryanair (www.ryanair.com)

Girona

• From all over Europe to Girona, Spain with Ryanair

By train

• Gare de PerpignanThe station held major importance for Salvador Dalí, who proclaimed it "the center of the universe" and made a painting of it. As for travel, it sits along the first and thus far (2017) only standard gauge connection between Spain and France, served by French TGV and Spanish AVE bookable through RENFE and SNCF at rather affordable rates if you book early.

By bus

• Eurolines : 04 68 34 11 46 - 10, avenue du Général de Gaulle (close to the railway station); www.eurolines.fr
• DeinBus serves Perpignan from stations as far away as Germany
• German bus-behemoth Flixbus serves Perpignan

The main way to get around in Perpignan (due to its relatively small size) is by foot, but there are buses run by Compagnie Transports that go right through the city centre, and then further out, even going as far as Cabestany and Canet. Driving is also a good way to get about, with lots of underground parking in the city centre, but beware, during the summer and 'tourist season' there will be a lot of traffic, and few parking places left.

By bike

There is shared bike system called BIP!. It has around 15 stations, for example at place de Catalogne and next to the train station. A weekly subscription is €1, with the first 30 minutes of each ride being for free. It can be bought at http://wap.bip-perpignan.fr, after which you can retrieve a bike with an ID and the password you provided. Watch out! The text message you receive containing the ID and password has been known to switch those (should be fairly obvious). Also, don't include the leading zeros when entering the ID.

• The cathedral of St Jean was begun in 1324 and finished in 1509.
• The 13th century castle of the kings of Majorca sits on the high citadel, surrounded by ramparts, reinforced for Louis XI and Charles V, which were updated in the 17th century by Louis XIV's military engineer Vauban.

Musée de l'aviation - created in 1976 by Mr Noettinger, this museum located at "Mas Palégry" gathers planes, models and hundreds of original pieces. Open from Monday afternoon to Saturday from April 1st to October 31st.
Spectator sports: Perpignan is one of France's rugby hotbeds, and boasts professional teams in both rugby codes:

• USAP Perpignan — Plays rugby union (15 a side) in France's Top 14 competition, where it is frequently one of the strongest teams. Home ground is Stade Aimé Giral.
• Dragons Catalans — Plays rugby league (13 a side) in Super League, where it is joined by 12 teams from England and one from Wales. Home ground is Stade Gilbert Brutus.

The festival Sant Joan is not to be missed.

The centre of Perpignan is filled with lots of small boutiques, but there are also large stores such as the department store "Galeries Lafayette", and the small shopping centre "fnac".

• Les Antiquaires

  address: Place Desprès 66000
  Founded in 1973, this restaurant located in the heart of a historic neighborhood offers traditional French fare focusing on simplicity and authenticity.

Budget

• Premiere Classe Perpignan

  address: Chemin Du Mas Palegry Rn9

• Best Hotel Perpignan

  address: 900, Avenue D'espagne

• Tropic

  address: Route D'Opoul

• Victoria

  address: 57 Avenue Maréchal Joffre

• Hotel Aragon

  address: 17 Avenue Gilbert Brutus

• Comfort Inn Perpignan Aéroport

  address: Avenue Du Languedoc Espace Polygone.

• Campanile Perpignan

  address: 12 Rue Alphonse Laveran, Lot. Porte D'espagne

• myerpignan

  phone: +33468350496
  address: Centre of Perpignan

• ibis Perpignan Centre

  address: 16 Cours Lazare Escarguel

Mid-range

• Arcantis Hotel Mondial

  address: 40 boulevard Clémenceau

• Hotel De France

  address: 26 Quai Sadi Carnot

• Hôtel New Christina

  address: 51 Cours Lassus

• Kyriad Perpignan Centre

  address: 8, Boulevard Wilson

• PV-Holidays Port La Nouvelle

  phone: +33 1 58 21 55 84
  Located between Narbonne and Perpignan and just a matter of minutes from the Spanish border. Also a car-free residence. Has at least 15km of sandy beaches (1.2km). On-site activities, include two large swimming pools, three tennis courts, table tennis, a multi-sports area, sailing, cycling and a children's playground.

• P&V Résidence Maeva Port Argelès

  phone: +33 1 58 21 55 84
  Has private swimming pool, near the yachting marina, between sea and mountain, in the Port Argelès district. Located between two sand beaches

Splurge

• Villa Duflot

  address: Rond Point Albert Donnezan, Serrat Den Vaquer

• Chateau La Tour Apollinaire

  address: 15 rue Guillaume Apollinaire
  A luxury oasis with pool set in exotic gardens.

Perpignan is a reasonably safe city compared to larger and more populous ones. Being street smart and taking basic precautions should be enough to avoid problems.
However, some parts of the city, namely the district of Saint-Jacques, should be visited with caution, and ideally never on your own. No matter where you go in town, never wear jewellery or other signs of wealth.