Dordogne to Barcelona

Two summers ago I went from Perpignan (on the coast) to a charming little walled town of Villefranche le Conflent. I stayed overnight and from there I took the Little Yellow Train through the Pyrenees to the end of the line. It was the most scenic and delightful 3 hours. From the last stop there is another train that goes right into Barcelona. It wasn't expensive and it was a totally relaxing day.

Thanks, Marcia. Would you recommend the accommodations where you stayed?

Drive to Perignan, ditch the car, and take the train to Colliour for the night. Spend another night if you have time. Proceed by train to Barcelona.

Thanks, Adam. What you think about driving to Collioure, spending the night and then driving back to Perpignan? I spent two nights in Collioure a few years ago in a great hotel above the Bay, but we need a car to stay there. Any idea about the driving time between the two points?

Driving Collioure-Perp: You can do that, they are close. But why keep the car? There are frequent local trains. Maybe I should explain that I'm assuming that you want to ditch the car in France to avoid stiff drop-off fees in Spain. If so, I don't see any advantage to keeping the car as the train is cheap and takes 21 minutes. You certainly do not need a car in Collioure. But you could if you prefer; as I recall there is parking right outside of town.

Thanks again, Adam. We are trying to limit the number of times we have to haul our bags onto and off of the train. I understand that there is a TGV from Paris to Barcelona. If by some miracle we could go straight through from somewhere in southern France to Barcelona would be great. In any case, I very much appreciate your input.

We spent three nights in Sarlat and then drove fto Carcasonne and spent a night there. the next day we drove to Barcelona (with a stop in Couillure). Sorry about the spelling.

After our stay in Avignon, we left early morning and drove to Carcassone for a few hours visit and then drove to Perpignan and took the train. It was far better to get rid of the car there as the fees to drop the car in another country was terribly expensive. The train ride worked out fine and took us right into Barcelona.

thanks, Nick & Kathy. Looks like we'll drive to Perpignan & take the train from there. Any Ideas about time it will take to get from there to Barcelona?

We took the train later in the day so we would be able to tour for the day before leaving and took maybe 3 hours (was 4 years ago so my memory is fading a bit on times). I believe there were faster trains but were earlier in the day.

I am trying to plan a trip to Provence and really want to go to Barcelona as well. It seems like it is doable. Several folks on this site said you are trying to do too much by going to Barcelona. Can you drive to Perpignan, leave a car in a lot overnight and spend one night in Barcelona?

David – how many days are you planning for Provence? Could you fly out of Barcelona at the end of your trip? Since I first posted this question I found, through the help of many readers that I should drive to Perpignan (from the Dordogne you but also doable from Provence), return my car at the Perpignan train station and take the train from there to Barcelona. But then again, I want to take a plane from Barcelona to Venice and return home from there. I'm assuming you will be flying into Provence and flying out of either Provence or someplace else in Europe to return home. You could probably fly home from Barcelona, which would enable you to spend one or more nights in Barcelona without having to return to Perpignan, if this would suit your needs. For me, it's not too much to go to Barcelona as I will be spending one week in a Gite in Provence, one week in a Gite in the Dordogne, four or five nights in Barcelona and then a about week in Venice. But it all depends on how much time you have and how much moving around you want to do. Provence is a big place. Where in Provence are you interested in staying?

David Yes, but why? It's a two hour drive. Depending on which train you catch, by the time you park the car in France and get somewhere from the Sants station, it going to take exactly the same time or twice as long. There's no rule that prohibits taking the car across the border. Doing, or not doing, too much is an individual call.