Pyrenees base locations

For exploring the Catalan Pyrenees the town of Ribes de Freser makes a good base, from there you can take a rack railway up to the Vall de Núria which is an excellent area for all kinds of hiking. The Sanctuary of Núria is also an important pilgrimage location in Catalonia.

Another option is Vielha, the capital of it's own autonomous community called Aran, which is tucked away in the corner of Catalonia. From there it's a short drive to the Vall de Boí, which is a mountain valley with many old 1000+ year Romanesque Churches, Vall de Boí is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Yet another option is Jaca, which is the old medieval capital of the Kingdom of Aragon and is dominated by a huge 16th-century star fortress. From Jaca, you can do a day trip to the Castillo de Loarre (about 1 hr), which is one of the oldest castles in Spain or explore the southern foothills of the Pyrenees.

I'd recommend you just do all three of these locations, as they each give a different flavour of the Pyrenees.

Thank you Carlos - this is exactly the kind of information I'm looking for. Wow....!

@Susan - no problem :)
The Pyrenees are a beautiful and (thankfully) underappreciated corner of Western Europe. You'll have a blast!

I spent time last June in the Languedoc area. I based in Carcassone for a few nights then wandered northwest to Bordeaux through the Lot and Dordogne Valleys.

My favorite castles/towns were, going north, Foix, Carcassonne (only went at night), Cordes sur Ciel, Najac, and Conques. The towns I'd also recommend are Narbonne and Collioure.

I went on lots of hike up hills to see castle ruins from right around 1300 and stopped at some small towns that had abbey ruins from the same era. Most were in very rough shape but interesting to me. The forests are thick in the area. After having been in the Basque area of Spain and Provence, I was expecting something more arid. It looked like Burgundy except the small towns were dispersed much more widely.

Here are some random thoughts. On one trip, we based in Vernet-Les-Bains. We hiked up to a monastery, st. Martin du Canigou, that has wonderful medieval sculptures, as does that of San Michel de Cuxa. We visited the towns of Villefranche-de-Conflent, Castelnou, and Corneille-de Conflent, and generally loved the area.

If you go to Foix, you should not miss the Grotte de Niaux. It is a cave system with wonderful pre-historic paintings. Entrance is quite limited, so advance reservations are a must. Tours in English are even more limited.
The basque areas are, again, very wonderful, with pretty little towns, a distinctive cuisine, and plenty of opportunities to sample wines. The town of Bayonne has a good museum of Basque history and culture.

hey susan
is any of your exploring interested in the basque region of spain and france (san sebastian and biarritz)? my best friend is from the french basque area, if interested i can send you info.
aloha

Brad and Rosalyn - thank you very much for your input. Great suggestions for the french side of the Pyrenees.

Princess Pupule - I'm sure we'll find some time for the Basque parts of France and Spain, but not sure what that looks like yet.

Our trip is not for a couple of years, but we don't know much about these areas of France or Spain, so are getting an early start on trip planning and research. I'm so grateful for all the input.

Very timely-after reading the excellent NYT article on Gascony, which someone (?) was kind enough to post here a few weeks ago, I've been contemplating a Southern France/Northern Spain trip. When I looked at Jaca on a map, the landmark that grabbed my eye there was "Bingo Hall"; I just love that, though it's not really Bingo. Thanks for an excellent reply, Carlos and others.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/15/travel/gascony-food-restaurants-france.html?_r=0

Ceret is a beautiful little town, not too far.