France’s ‘Pink Metropolis’ Is a Charming (and Inexpensive) Different to Paris

As I walked alongside the riverfront walkway from Pont Neuf at sundown, I basked within the delight of one other profitable French getaway. Throughout my five-night journey, I had ticked off all of the checkboxes of a well-spent French trip. I discovered a favourite bakery, made (quite a few) journeys to Monoprix, visited ethereal cathedrals with sunshine-illuminated stained glass home windows, sampled produce and cheese at an area market, and launched into a number of museum outings to view works produced by grasp artists like Claude Monet and Auguste Rodin. 

However there’s a catch: I wasn’t in Paris. 

As an alternative, I visited the nation’s fourth largest metropolis, set within the southeastern province of Occitanie: Toulouse, France.

Very like Paris, town is located on a river, the Garonne, which is (for my part) simply as romantic because the Seine. It even has a waterfront pathway in addition to a collection of bridges, together with its personal Pont Neuf. And whereas the capital has Canal Saint-Martin, Toulouse has Canal du Midi — whereas the previous is simply shy of three miles in size, the latter is a part of an almost 223-mile waterway linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean. It’s so spectacular that it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Web site in 1996.

Toulouse is far much less touristed than the Metropolis of Mild, however it’s definitely not quick on notable sights. Elements of the famed pilgrimage route, the Camino de Santiago, run via town, and you could find a number of factors of cultural significance alongside its path together with Basilique Saint-Sernin and the Hôtel-Dieu Saint-Jacques, a hospital based within the twelfth century that catered to sick pilgrims.

There are many different historic marvels to see, such because the gothic medieval architectural marvel, the Jacobins Convent (do not skip out on a stroll via the cloistered backyard), in addition to the Fondation Bemberg Museum. The museum simply reopened final yr after three years of intense renovations, and its huge assortment of paintings — together with 1,400 items of work, sculptures, furnishings, and extra — is on the market to the general public as soon as once more.

In terms of purchasing, Paris’ most well-known division retailer Galeries Lafayette has a hearty outpost right here, as do French manufacturers Comptoir des Cotonniers and The Kooples. However, in the event you’re in search of one thing extra native, head to AHPY for garments which have been dyed a pastel, moody blue with isatis tinctoria flowers (also referred to as dyer’s woad), and to La Maison de la Violette for artisanal creations, which run the gamut from soaps to candies, crafted with candy violet blossoms.

Toulouse is understood for a number of issues. It has a fame as a university city and is dwelling to Université Toulouse, the second oldest college within the nation, courting again to 1229. It is usually widely known as one in all Europe’s main aerospace hubs. (In 1890, native engineer Clément Ader flew a bat-like plane 164 ft into the air — a flight that predates the Wright brothers’ 1903 aviation feat. Airbus is predicated in Toulouse, in addition to 500 different aerospace manufacturing and engineering corporations, which has earned it the title of “Aerospace Valley.”)

That stated, Toulouse is probably merely finest generally known as La Ville Rose — the Pink Metropolis.

In contrast to Paris, with its mishmash of eclectic architectural types, Toulouse has a way more unified look, and it is characterised by its eye-catching, terra-cotta brick buildings. The Toulousean custom of brick development dates again to the twelfth century and started with centrally-located constructions, such because the Basilica of Saint-Sernin and Le Capitole, and radiated outward to the remainder of town.

The bricks in Toulouse have a singular, soft-reddish hue that casts a terra-cotta glow on all the pieces round them. To enhance the rosy colour, many companies within the historic a part of Toulouse are required to make use of brass signage. (Sure, meaning the McDonald’s golden arches really look gold right here!)

However Toulouse’s distinct fascination with the intersection of artwork and expertise is probably finest skilled with a go to to La Halle de la Machine, an interactive museum sited on a decommissioned runway. The runway is now populated by monumental, elaborate animatronics — some, such because the 47-ton, 46-foot-tall Minotaur and Ariadne, the Spider — may even take you for rides on their backs.

Throughout the October weekend I visited, the Minotaur and Ariadne turned town streets right into a stage for the city opera, Le Gardien du Temple, and drew a crowd of 1.2 million individuals. The efficiency felt like a real-life science fiction film, with flames, smoke, and reside music, including to the thrills.

All that sightseeing is certain to make you hungry, and there’s no scarcity of locations to eat in Toulouse. Occitanie is one in all France’s main agricultural areas and you may’t go to with out taking a visit to one of many metropolis’s trio of lined markets, particularly Marché Victor Hugo.

Overwhelmed with the delightfully dizzying array of stands, I hopped on a Style of Toulouse’s small-group tour led by Michigan native, Jessica Hammer, a French Wine Scholar, and former cheesemonger. As we shopped, snacked, and sipped our method via the aisles, Hammer shared her love of the French metropolis she’s known as dwelling for seven years.

“Like Paris, Toulouse has a really vibrant foods and drinks scene with chef-driven eating places that includes regionally sourced merchandise, lined markets, superb wine bars, craft cocktails, world-class chocolatiers, and extra — however it’s a lot inexpensive than Paris,” she informed Journey + Leisure. “Folks right here love good foods and drinks . . . the emphasis is on the substances.”

Throughout our market go to, she acquired me so hooked on boulangerie Maison Beauhaire (headed by baker Jean-Luc Beauhaire, who has earned the coveted title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France) that I went again each morning for a chocolate croissant. Take be aware: Toulousians have a regional identify for ache au chocolate — chocolatine. It’s precisely the identical pastry, however those that use the “fallacious” identify will probably be corrected. (Or, because the joke goes, charged extra!)

My wildest French cheese goals got here true when Hammer took us throughout the road to Xavier Fromagerie, whose head fromager, Xavier Thuret, additionally has a Meilleur Ouvrier. My love for pungent cheese was happy with the bleu d’hougarou, a uncooked sheep milk blue cheese that originates from the Hautes Pyrénées, a area simply southwest of town. Different spectacular culinary stops included the charcuterie Maison Garcia — do not skip the saucisson from Spanish producer Juan Pedro Domeq, which is requested by royalty and celebrities alike — and Chai Vincent with its wide selection of native wines.

Within the evenings, I indulged in French gastronomy at native spots like La Gourmandine and Emile, having fun with dinners paired with wonderful wine and even finer conversations. (Enjoyable truth: lengthy, leisurely dinners are such an integral a part of the French cultural expertise that the custom earned a spot on UNESCO’s Consultant Record of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.) Most eating places in Toulouse have cassoulet on the menu, a well-known regional stew sometimes consisting of white beans, pork, and duck.

One other one in all Toulouse’s main appeals is its location, because it’s about midway between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and presents easy accessibility to the Pyrenees mountains in addition to Bordeaux’s famed vineyards. With Toulouse as a house base, your complete area of Occitanie turns right into a playground.

Plus, it has all of the perks of a Parisian getaway, at a fraction of the fee. (For instance, the common Toulouse lodge room is round $259 per evening, in comparison with Paris’ common of $538 per evening.)

If adventures past Toulouse are in your want record, there is no scarcity of issues to do within the space. Throughout my journey, I packed in a number of native excursions and visited locations like Albi and its UNESCO-recognized Previous City, the quiet, charming city of Auch, in addition to the dreamy village of Cordes-sur-Ciel, which sits excessive upon a hill, seemingly above the clouds. On one outing, I even acquired to play assistant skipper, serving to wrangle ropes on a canal boat as we navigated via Canal du Midi’s locks in Castelnaudary.

“Toulouse has most of the identical advantages as Paris, however with out the FOMO or the frenzy,” Hammer informed T+L. “A part of the allure of town is simply melting into its stress-free embrace. Wander via the streets, benefit from the café terrace tradition, and stroll alongside the river or the canal. It is a metropolis of small delights as a result of you’ll be able to take the time to decelerate and see issues.”

However maybe town’s allure is finest summarized with its regional tackle the phrase “you’re welcome.” As an alternative of the everyday de rien, which means “it’s nothing,” it’s extra widespread for locals to answer a thanks avec plaisir, or “with pleasure.”

“That, to me, is Toulouse in a nutshell,” Hammer stated.