THE Region
Maureillas (officially the municipality is called Maureillas-las-Illas) is located in the French Pyrénées-Orientales département and has about 2300 inhabitants. Maureillas-las-Illas consists of 2 cores: Maureillas low in the valley and Las Illas high on the mountain. Here is also the border with Spain. The place is part of the arrondissement Céret, this town with medieval core lies 7 km away.
Maureillas is a small, quiet village. Céret is the capital of the department with more shops, restaurants, cafes and on Saturday mornings a busy, cosy market. ‘Tout le monde’ comes here to do their shopping, meet friends and have a drink; this is a see and be seen place for them.
In other surrounding villages there are also, mostly in the morning, picturesque markets with regional products but not the bustle and atmosphere as in Céret.
In the village Maureillas you will find all amenities: 3 restaurants, 2 cafes, bakery, butcher, Spar, pharmacy and ATM and also a unique cork museum.
In Céret there are several museums, with the Museum of Modern Art as the topper with yearly changing exhibitions and a beautiful permanent collection. Think Picasso, Miró, Dali. Céret has all kinds of shops and restaurants and 2 large supermarkets: Carrefour in the centre and the Intermarché along the road to Boulou on a small industrial area. There is also a small hospital, a rugby stadium and a real bullring, where bullfights still sometimes take place. This “sub-prefecture” has had a bullfighting tradition since the end of the 16th century.
Céret is nicknamed “capital of the cherry” because it has many cherry orchards, where the earliest cherries in France grow. Around “quatorze juillet”, there are festivals with demonstrations of local dances, including the Sardane.
From Maureillas it is only 10 km to Perthus, a border village with Spain, with many shops where you can do your tax-free shopping.
Just across the border (40 km) is Figueras, the city of the famous painter Salvador Dali, with a Dali museum where you can admire the most beautiful works of this master of surrealism.
The area is very suitable for hikers on the paths of the Pyrenees. We have booklets with hiking descriptions from light to heavy; short and long. Almost every village has a restaurant where you can eat well, often simple but well prepared and also local specialties.
The largest town in the region is Perpignan (approx. 30 km), with several museums and all kinds of entertainment. A ride with the ‘Petit train jaune’ into the mountains is also highly recommended.
For lovers of “sun, sea and sand”, there are the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea. In the seaside resorts of Saint-Cyprien and Argelès-sur-Mer you will find beautiful naturist beaches at only 25 km from our house. Collioure is a real tourist attraction, and the port town of Port Vendres is also worth a visit.
Good, honest wines are made in the whole region and you can often taste them at the wineboer himself. The region has its own appellations, from ‘ordinary’ regional wine to luxury aperitif and dessert wines such as Banyuls.
The region also has a long and eventful history. The first people in Europe at Tautavel; Romans along the coast; the medieval kingdom of Mallorca; Spanish and since 1659 part of France. The Cathars with their fortresses and castles; Vauban forts, fortified towns and battles, the retreat of the Spanish refugees after the Spanish Civil War and then the smuggling routes along which allied pilots and refugees from occupied Europe were brought to Spain. Everything is there.
In short: Sport? Recreation? Culture? History?
There is something for everyone, you will be surprised by the many possibilities the region has to offer.
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