After spending a fantastic day looking around beautiful Montpellier, we decided to venture out of the city to explore more of the stunning Occitanie region in France.
Just about an hour from Montpellier is Millau, where you’ll find the world’s tallest bridge, among other attractions. There’s a convenient parking area near the bridge, complete with restaurants and a picnic spot, so it seemed like a good idea to check out this engineering marvel while we were there. After that, we were off to enjoy one of the most breathtaking views, not just of Millau, but the surrounding countryside as well.
That amazing view came via paragliding! It doesn’t exactly feel natural to run off a mountain strapped to a paraglider (trust me, it doesn’t), but fortunately, this time, the wind lifted us right up without much running involved, unlike our earlier experience in Geneva.
Away we went, soaring over the gorgeous French landscape. Lloyd had taken off before me, so I didn’t know where he was until his red and yellow paraglider zipped past mine. The perspective from up there is absolutely stunning, offering a clear view of Millau nestled in the valley below, alongside the massive bridge.
After a while, we returned to our take-off spot. Once we landed, the adrenaline rush gradually faded and was replaced by hunger. That’s when we headed into town for a quick meal, along with a refreshing beer and some caffeine.
As the cloudy but warm morning turned into a sunny afternoon, we made our way to the Tarn River for some tubing between the Gorge du Tarn. Even if it doesn’t show in our photos, the area was quite lively, with families and friends swimming, picnicking, and kayaking to escape the heat.
You can rent tubes from a company further down the river; they’ll transport you and your tubes for the ride. I didn’t expect, though, to be handed the tubes, paddles, and life vests and be left to figure it out! 😄 I assumed we’d have some guidance, so I briefly panicked. But once we got going—and with others around us—it was easy to relax and go with the flow to our meeting point downriver.
Oh, and by the way, this trip finally settled the question of who’s the better paddler. Lloyd and I have done tandem kayaking and canoeing before, and I’ve always claimed I have better control and power. 😆 After several instances of Lloyd lagging behind or getting stuck (I still don’t understand why he didn’t use his paddles), he finally agreed I’m better at this! 😁 The Gorge du Tarn is breathtaking and definitely worth a visit if you’re nearby.
Eventually, we arrived at our meeting point, feeling refreshed and with a newfound appreciation for the lovely French countryside.
We then returned to Millau to pick up our car, made a quick stop to see preparations for the Tour de France—passing through the city the next day—and then checked into our hotel. That night, we took in the vibrant Jazz festival in Millau.
Dinner was a spontaneous affair, grabbing a quick bite from a festival stall because we didn’t want to miss the street dancing to live music. A little humming turned into foot-tapping, then ‘seat-dancing’, and soon enough, my feet were doing some proper dancing!
After spending time in the lively square, we wandered over to a more relaxed part of the festival to enjoy a performance (by someone whose name I can’t recall now), which made for a brilliant end to the evening.
This sort of unplanned excitement has happened so many times in this part of France. We’ve stumbled upon festivals and street parties during earlier visits to places like Nimes and Carcassone. These impromptu nights often make this one of my favorite areas—and times—of the year to visit France!