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Learn French in Montpellier

Montpellier is a city brimming with history, with a past stretching back to the Middle Ages and a university tradition, yet it is simultaneously a young and dynamic place with an abundance of all kinds of cultural events. Located on the Mediterranean coast, it benefits from the mild winters, warm summers and exceptional sunshine levels (more than 300 days per year) of the Mediterranean climate.

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A city brimming with history

Montpellier was founded in the year 980 and is home to France’s first university, founded in 1120, the faculty of medicine. At that time, numerous scholars from across the Mediterranean came to study, work and live in this cosmopolitan city where medicine was freely taught. Located on the pilgrimage route of Santiago de Compostela, Montpellier has undergone considerable economic development, the influence of which can still be seen today in the shape of its little medieval side streets or its magnificent ochre stone buildings.

For lovers of history and ancient architecture, Montpellier is the perfect destination for your French language holiday.

A young and dynamic city

Montpellier’s university tradition endures to this day; it continues to host students from all over France and around the world. A quarter of the city’s population are students, which makes for a vibrant ambiance with plenty of cafés, bars, theatres and concert halls.

As Montpellier is also an important cultural city, several international dance, theatre and music festivals take place here. Not to mention the countless free lectures, book launches and exhibitions which you can attend every day, keeping up to date with them thanks to La Gazette de Montpellier. This is yet another fantastic opportunity for immersive French learning in France, after classes have finished for the day.

A sun-kissed city, a Mediterranean atmosphere

Montpellier has a Mediterranean climate, with mild winters, warm summers and all the days of sunshine you could possibly wish for. It is an excellent place to learn French in France. Located on the Mediterranean coast, you can also make the most of its fine, white sandy beaches.

Less well-known than Nice or the Côte d’Azur, Montpellier has the advantage of also being less expensive.

An exceptional region

Near Carcassonne, the Camargue region with its pink flamingos, Avignon with its city of popes, the Gallo-Roman city of Nimes and the Pont du Gard, Montpellier is also surrounded by stunning, wild and unspoilt nature and little medieval villages you can visit. But as you’re taking a French course in the south of France, don’t miss out on discovering Languedoc-Roussillon wines, which are abundant in the region. Kick back and enjoy sipping a rosé, white or red wine whilst listening to the gentle noise of the crickets in the background.

More about the region

the landscapes

The Cévennes Mountains, to the north of Montpellier, are grandiose. They are still wild and isolated, with incredible vegetation made up of holm oak, chestnut trees, and pine trees. Boars roam wild, and old dry-stone walls have shaped the landscapes over the centuries.

In the South, the Mediterranean Sea. No matter how many times we say it, its intense blue is extraordinary. And it’s so nice to swim in 22-degree water in the early morning or the evening—or even at night—when the beaches are still empty…

To the East, the Camargue. Another landscape formed by plains, canals, wild horses, free-roaming bulls, and pink flamingos. This region also has its own thriving cultural traditions.

And, everywhere, the garrigue and the song of the cicadas and the vineyards that produce the Languedoc-Roussillon wine, some of which is not bad at all… as you’ll see!

the villages

The circulade form and narrow Medieval streets of Languedoc villages embody all the charm of villages in southern France. Nothing is more enjoyable than to pass one’s time at the outdoor cafés, admire the old stone houses, and participate in the many local festivals in the summer.

A strong identity

Languedoc-Roussillon is a long way from Paris… in every sense of the word! The history of this region is based upon its original identity, quite distinct from that of the capital. The region was influenced by its early trade with the Orient, and it was part of Spanish Aragon for 150 years.

That’s why Occitan is still spoken today. The Cathar “heresy” and Protestantism were also religious signs of opposition to the royal power. More recently, the history of the Cévennes and the Larzac region remains part of the tradition of this remembrance of revolts.

These are some of the historical topics we can explore through the traces that remain in the region…

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