Hi, we are a young couple arriving in July to the Pyrenees for a couple weeks of hiking and trekking. We fly to and from Bordeaux (yes I know Toulouse is closer but we had our constraints), and we will spend a day at the beginning and end of our vacation to drive to and from the mountains.
I would love to hear some suggestions about nice locations along the way (or not too far off it), either as a stop or a place to overnight, as I'm willing to devote two days instead of one to reach the Pyrenees after we land in Bordeaux.
We have not set aside time for Lourdes, Tarbes, Pau, Grottes de Betharram, etc. during our time in the mountains, so those two/three days at each end of our vacation will be the time to visit those places.
However, maybe there are more interesting further up north on the way to Bordeaux? I heard for example of Saint-Emilion as a recommended stop, although that's not exactly on our way south (but again, we're willing to detour a bit).
Our destination when arriving from Bordeaux is Bagnères-de-Luchon, and on our way back we will depart from Gourette.
In terms of timing, we land late in the evening and will spend the night near the airport (after renting a car), so next day will be a full one. Or two full days if we decide to make an overnight somewhere. Similarly, we depart in the morning and will spend the night before near the airport, so again the commuting day is full.
Thanks!