Go to the beach without a car - Montpellier

Like most of our students, you're in Montpellier without a car and you want to enjoy the beach after your French lessons! When you don't have a car, getting to the beach from Montpellier can seem complicated. So to help you, here's some advice from the Accent Francais Blog:

Which beach to choose?
- If you want a beach close to a tourist centre with shops and restaurants, choose : Palavas-les-Flots (10 km) or Carnon (12 km)
- If you're looking for a wilder beach with no housing nearby, choose Petit Travers and Grand Travers (between Carnon and La Grande Motte) or Villeneuve-les-Maguelone.

How do I get there?
- Palavas-les-Flots, option 1: Go to Garcia Lorca station on tramway line 4, then take bus number 631 on the LIO-Hérault bus network to Palavas-les-Flots, Salle Bleue. 
- Palavas-les-Flots, option 2: Take tramway line 3 to the terminus "PEROLS Etang de l'Or" + bus line 1 from the Transp'Or network to Palavas-les-Flots, Salle Bleue. 
- La Grande Motte, Carnon, Pérols: Using tramway line 3 to the terminus: "PEROLS Etang de l'Or" + bus line 4 on the Transp'Or network.
- Carnon, La Grande Motte, Le Grau du Roi: Take tram line 1 to "Place de France" station + bus 606 from theLIO-Hérault bus network, which links Montpellier to Aigues-Mortes via the coastline.

From "Pérols - Etang de l'Or" station, you can :
- Walk (1/4h walk) to Carnon beach.
- Hire a bike at the Velomagg'Loisirs station and all the beaches are within easy reach.
- Take the Herault Transport Navette des Plages, which serves the Petit and Grand Travers beaches in July and August.

You can take your bike on the tram, except during weekday rush hours (7am-9am and 5pm-7pm) and at weekends the tram may be a little overcrowded to accept bikes.

Accent Francais Blog's little secret: the Pilou beach in Villeneuve-les-Maguelone
Take bus line 32 from tram stop line 4 Garcia Lorca to the Pilou stop in Villeneuve-lès-Maguelone, then head for the beach:
- On foot
- By train (https://www.villeneuvelesmaguelone.fr/cadre-de-vie/plage/)
- By bike: Every weekend in June and every day in July and August, go to the Vélomagg' plage reception desk next to the Pilou stop. Show your season ticket or validated travel pass. Hand over an identity document as a deposit. You can borrow a bike free of charge, or a trailer or baby seat. Children's mountain bikes are also available. Pedal for the day and return your bike to the Vélomagg' plage reception until 7pm.

The ultimate tip from the Accent Francais Blog for those who already have a bike
Take the train from Montpellier station to Villeneuve-les-Maguelone with your bike (all these trains accept bikes free of charge). After a 5-minute train journey, you'll need to cycle 3 km to reach the magnificent Pilou beach.