[tom.wilky]

Montpellier looks like a great place to live (vibrant city, good climate, good schools for children, access to nature, airport, language schools/Uni). WHEREabouts would you recommend we look to live? (a) if looking inside the city (and we have a 3 and a 6 year old) (b) if we wanted to be in the suburbs closer to nature but still able to very easily get into the City? Many thanks!

 

[thebouffards]

Hi, if you find anything out let me know.. I am in the same boat as you, moving to Montpellier in August with my wife, 6 year old and 2 year old. I'm going there on Wednesday for a few days to have a look at areas to give us a better idea..

 

[tom.wilky]

Hi, if you find anything out let me know.. I am in the same boat as you, moving to Montpellier in August with my wife, 6 year old and 2 year old. I'm going there on Wednesday for a few days to have a look at areas to give us a better idea..

Thanks. Will do. Hope you have a fun/successful trip. We are hoping to go for a week in June so when I get back we can swap ideas if you like. Not even sure where to stay for the week yet let alone permanently!

 

[thebouffards]

It's tricky isn't it.. Very difficult to ask for advice on where to look as everyone likes somewhere different.. We are only there for 3 days but will spend the time just driving to as many areas as possible. At least we have narrowed it down to the Montpellier area.. I'll let you know what I find out when I get back.

 

[Bevdeforges]

One place to start is by looking at the transit maps http://www.montpellier-agglo.com/tam/upload/Plans_Avril_2012/Plan_resea_Agglomeration_BD.pdf

The TAM system has a very helpful webpage with lots of information about public transport in the area. Transports de l'Agglomration de Montpellier - TaM - Plans & docs
Cheers,
Bev

 

[John34000]

Hi,
Having lived in Mpl for the last 5 yrs, I still reckon Port Marianne is the best quarter to live. Its well served with trams, has easy access to the airport, beach and town centre. I'd avoid Mosson and the town centre. Antigone and Richter can be a bit noisy at night. Areas previously difficult to access have recently been "opened up" now the 3rd and 4th tram lines are open so there are more possibilities to look at.
I've always had a liking for Lattes, a commune between Mpl and the coast which is now served directly by tram 3. Typically, you'll find a place there cheaper that in town. My place is for sale in Port Marianne, but it'll likely be looking for something more affordable as you have a young family. Try Lattes!

John

 

[thebouffards]

I was actually thinking about Lattes, but there doesn't seem to be anything for rent there.. Maybe that will change..

 

[John34000]

Hi again,

Most of the Immobilieres in Lattes are located around the little port, have you looked there?

However, many Immos in Montpellier will carry adverts covering Lattes.

You could research PAP (particulier a perticulier) leboncoin.fr or look in the local Gazette (out Thursdays) All good for private rents.

All the best,

John

 

[tom.wilky]

Hi again,

Most of the Immobilieres in Lattes are located around the little port, have you looked there?

However, many Immos in Montpellier will carry adverts covering Lattes.

You could research PAP (particulier a perticulier) leboncoin.fr or look in the local Gazette (out Thursdays) All good for private rents.

All the best,

John

Incredibly helpful. Thank you John. Any ideas of where I could take my family for a week (2-9th June)? Part holiday, part exploring the area. Looking to spend up to 1000euros on accommodation for the week. Doubt you have anything in mind, but thought I may as well ask.

Many thanks again,
Tom

 

[ralphnev]

We also are looking at Montpellier for Aug. 2013 though a bit difficult from Canada
/ my spouse may have to fly over & get the ball rolling ahead of time ... (wasting precious $$)
we have daughters 10 & 13, so are looking at two different schools as well
please share your impressions from your "location" hunting !!

 

[John34000]

Incredibly helpful. Thank you John. Any ideas of where I could take my family for a week (2-9th June)? Part holiday, part exploring the area. Looking to spend up to 1000euros on accommodation for the week. Doubt you have anything in mind, but thought I may as well ask.

Many thanks again,
Tom

Tom, Hi,
OK, it depends on if you're driving down, or flying in then hiring some wheels, or flying in then taxi into town. Taxi to Antigone is about as simple as you could get. Either way, you'd do well to use a hotel in Antigone. There's several, Kyriad, Pullman, and other well known names, just google hotels Antigone. All will have car parking. Don't think about parking in the town centre, Park & Ride into town from Oddysseum if you're just visiting.
If you use a hotel in Antigone, access to the tram system will be a breeze and will take you effortlessly to most parts of town and the suburbs. Antigone has 2 tramstops of note, Leon Blum, and Place de l'Europe You can be in town centre on foot in 15 mins from there. The town centre tram stop is called Place de la Comedie.
By car, you have easy access to the coast from Antigone, plus in an hour, you can drive to a wide range of interesting places for a family day out. Getting back in is easy, just try not to cross the town at peak times, use a sat nav if you've got one.
I'm away all of June, otherwise I'd meet you and introduce you to a few estate agents who I know quite well. Perhaps another time?
In June, you may still be able to find accommodation privately for a week, but I think you'll save time and stress by using a modest hotel eg, (Kyriad)
A caravan park in Lattes is called Lac du Reves and is popular with Brits, you'll need a car to get around though. It's run by Siblu which is part of the Warner Group (UK) I think. They rent out vans.
Hope this helps a bit more,
John

 

[earthyaky]

I would try Castelnau. Tram line, bilingual montesorri for the young ones, far enough out of the city centre, but close to everything by car/tram/bus.

 

[tom.wilky]

Tom, Hi,
OK, it depends on if you're driving down, or flying in then hiring some wheels, or flying in then taxi into town. Taxi to Antigone is about as simple as you could get. Either way, you'd do well to use a hotel in Antigone. There's several, Kyriad, Pullman, and other well known names, just google hotels Antigone. All will have car parking. Don't think about parking in the town centre, Park & Ride into town from Oddysseum if you're just visiting.
If you use a hotel in Antigone, access to the tram system will be a breeze and will take you effortlessly to most parts of town and the suburbs. Antigone has 2 tramstops of note, Leon Blum, and Place de l'Europe You can be in town centre on foot in 15 mins from there. The town centre tram stop is called Place de la Comedie.
By car, you have easy access to the coast from Antigone, plus in an hour, you can drive to a wide range of interesting places for a family day out. Getting back in is easy, just try not to cross the town at peak times, use a sat nav if you've got one.
I'm away all of June, otherwise I'd meet you and introduce you to a few estate agents who I know quite well. Perhaps another time?
In June, you may still be able to find accommodation privately for a week, but I think you'll save time and stress by using a modest hotel eg, (Kyriad)
A caravan park in Lattes is called Lac du Reves and is popular with Brits, you'll need a car to get around though. It's run by Siblu which is part of the Warner Group (UK) I think. They rent out vans.
Hope this helps a bit more,
John

Thanks very much John. Sounds like great advice. Will check out the hotels. We will be driving down from Geneve (weird, I know). Thanks again and hope your trip away goes well.

 

[tom.wilky]

I would try Castelnau. Tram line, bilingual montesorri for the young ones, far enough out of the city centre, but close to everything by car/tram/bus.

Thanks a lot.

 

[thebouffards]

Hi, well, we have just arrived back from Montpellier, and unfortunately the trip was not very successful. We didn't really like the area, which was a big disappointment as we had high hopes, so we have put the move to France off until next June. We are going to start looking at areas in Provence from September, and hopefully that will be more up our street..
Don't want to put anyone else off as these things are all very subjective, but thought I'd come back with our findings..

 

[John34000]

Hello,
I'm sorry that you didn't like Montpellier, I accept fully that one person's needs are different from anothers! It would be very interesting to get a clearer understanding of your first impressions though. Don't worry, I for one wont be critical of your observations!!
Good luck with your next search, we made several trips before settling here, but there, we're on the move again. Ho hum.....

JOhn

 

[tom.wilky]

Hi, well, we have just arrived back from Montpellier, and unfortunately the trip was not very successful. We didn't really like the area, which was a big disappointment as we had high hopes, so we have put the move to France off until next June. We are going to start looking at areas in Provence from September, and hopefully that will be more up our street..
Don't want to put anyone else off as these things are all very subjective, but thought I'd come back with our findings..

Thanks a lot. Can I please ask what put you off as it might be useful. Many thanks.

 

[thebouffards]

Sure, I'll give it a go but this is of course just my opinion, and based just as much on a feeling that we got, as anything more tangible..
We drove from Barcelona and had to drive straight into the centre to open a bank account. The traffic was horrendous. We went straight from there to view a house in the Aigulongue area in the north of the city. The house was lovely but we weren't sure about the area. when we were speaking to the lady who owned the house, she said the local school had a lot of gypsies and the kids got into a lot of fights. Her boy was in a school further away, and she said she could help us to try and get our boy into that school by giving a different address.. There was of course no guarantee this would work. Traffic was horrendous here too, and is apparently caused by the huge population of students, so in holiday time the roads are much better.
Apart from the centre of Montpellier which is lovely, we thought it was pretty rundown. Surrounding towns such as Lattes just seemed to have very little charm.
The day after we thouht we would take a drive further out and see if there were any villages we liked the look of. Maybe by that point we had just lost the enthusiasm for it, but whatever it was we didn't see anywhere we would have wanted to live. We then cut our losses and went to Barcelona for the weekend..
I think a lot of it depends on where you are coming from and what you want from life. We live in Marbella which is pretty rural, very relaxed and little or no traffic. It's probably also not everyone's cup of tea.
Anyway, the plan now is to stay here until next June then move to France, but we will look in Provence instead of Languedoc.
Hopefully we get a better feeling when we visit there, or I'll be running out of options..
Anyway, even though it wasn't a successful trip exactly, apart from seeing the Sagrada familia for the first time, it helped us to get a better idea of what we are looking for (or not..).

 

[earthyaky]

Sure, I'll give it a go but this is of course just my opinion, and based just as much on a feeling that we got, as anything more tangible..
We drove from Barcelona and had to drive straight into the centre to open a bank account. The traffic was horrendous. We went straight from there to view a house in the Aigulongue area in the north of the city. The house was lovely but we weren't sure about the area. when we were speaking to the lady who owned the house, she said the local school had a lot of gypsies and the kids got into a lot of fights. Her boy was in a school further away, and she said she could help us to try and get our boy into that school by giving a different address.. There was of course no guarantee this would work. Traffic was horrendous here too, and is apparently caused by the huge population of students, so in holiday time the roads are much better.
Apart from the centre of Montpellier which is lovely, we thought it was pretty rundown. Surrounding towns such as Lattes just seemed to have very little charm.
The day after we thouht we would take a drive further out and see if there were any villages we liked the look of. Maybe by that point we had just lost the enthusiasm for it, but whatever it was we didn't see anywhere we would have wanted to live. We then cut our losses and went to Barcelona for the weekend..
I think a lot of it depends on where you are coming from and what you want from life. We live in Marbella which is pretty rural, very relaxed and little or no traffic. It's probably also not everyone's cup of tea.
Anyway, the plan now is to stay here until next June then move to France, but we will look in Provence instead of Languedoc.
Hopefully we get a better feeling when we visit there, or I'll be running out of options..
Anyway, even though it wasn't a successful trip exactly, apart from seeing the Sagrada familia for the first time, it helped us to get a better idea of what we are looking for (or not..).

That was well put. We lived in the centre of Montpellier for just 3 months before relocating to Narbonne. I love the centre of the city, but the outskirts and surrounding areas are, I found, as you have stated: a lack of charm.

Have you gone through Bayonne/Biarritz area? We've heard it is lovely there, so we are going to have a look around there in the coming weeks.

 

[tom.wilky]

Sure, I'll give it a go but this is of course just my opinion, and based just as much on a feeling that we got, as anything more tangible..
We drove from Barcelona and had to drive straight into the centre to open a bank account. The traffic was horrendous. We went straight from there to view a house in the Aigulongue area in the north of the city. The house was lovely but we weren't sure about the area. when we were speaking to the lady who owned the house, she said the local school had a lot of gypsies and the kids got into a lot of fights. Her boy was in a school further away, and she said she could help us to try and get our boy into that school by giving a different address.. There was of course no guarantee this would work. Traffic was horrendous here too, and is apparently caused by the huge population of students, so in holiday time the roads are much better.
Apart from the centre of Montpellier which is lovely, we thought it was pretty rundown. Surrounding towns such as Lattes just seemed to have very little charm.
The day after we thouht we would take a drive further out and see if there were any villages we liked the look of. Maybe by that point we had just lost the enthusiasm for it, but whatever it was we didn't see anywhere we would have wanted to live. We then cut our losses and went to Barcelona for the weekend..
I think a lot of it depends on where you are coming from and what you want from life. We live in Marbella which is pretty rural, very relaxed and little or no traffic. It's probably also not everyone's cup of tea.
Anyway, the plan now is to stay here until next June then move to France, but we will look in Provence instead of Languedoc.
Hopefully we get a better feeling when we visit there, or I'll be running out of options..
Anyway, even though it wasn't a successful trip exactly, apart from seeing the Sagrada familia for the first time, it helped us to get a better idea of what we are looking for (or not..).

Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts. Good luck!