Experience the best of Cap-d'Agde

Cap d'Agde is a seaside resort on Languedoc's Hérault coast, built in the 1960s and 1970s as part of a state plan to develop the Mediterranean shore. It wraps around a rocky headland with long sandy beaches, several marinas and Mont Saint-Loup, an extinct volcano that gives views along the coast. Just offshore the fort of Brescou sits on a volcanic islet.

Old Agde, a few kilometres inland on the Hérault, was founded by Greek traders, and its fortress-like cathedral of Saint-Étienne is built of dark volcanic stone. The Canal du Midi meets the Hérault at the Round Lock, a rare circular lock with three exits. The Thau lagoon and the fishing port of Sète lie to the east, Pézenas, where Molière once worked, is to the north, and the resort also has a large naturist village.

The lagoon supplies oysters and mussels from Bouzigues, and Sète's octopus pie, the tielle, is a local classic. Picpoul de Pinet, a crisp white wine, goes with it. Swimming is best between June and September, and the marinas stay lively in the evening.