France's largest wine region
If Provence accounts for half of France's Mediterranean coastline, Languedoc-Roussillon has the other, less celebrated half. It may not be the first choice playground of the rich and famous, but the coastal region which stretches from Nimes in the east to the Spanish border in the west nevertheless has 200 miles of premium coastline with a variety of beaches and resorts to suit most tastes, and a wealth of historic and natural features that virtually no region in France can match.
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France's largest wine regionThe region has five departments – Aude, Gard, Hérault, Lozère, and Pyrénées-Orientales – and some fine towns: Montpellier, the nominal capital, Béziers with its Roman origins, Perpignan, Narbonne, Carcassonne and Nimes, to name just a few. It is heavily influenced by Spain to the south, to the extent that Béziers has a famous bullring, and there are some who see its southernmost department Pyrénées-Orientales as part of Catalonia rather than France. There's even a small town, Llivia, which is part of Spain, but surrounded by French territory close to the border.
Topographically, Languedoc-Roussillon has some foothills of the Pyrenees but also extremely flat areas such as the Camargue, breeding ground for wild horses and flamingos. Another important feature is the 240km long 17th century Canal du Midi, the world's oldest working canal, which connects the Mediterranean to the Atlantic, passing through the Aude and Hérault départments. This is also the largest wine growing area in the world; some 160,000 hectares of vines produce more than 2bn bottles a year, and although the quality is generally below the level of Bordeaux, there has been some significant investment in top quality wines in recent years.
Among its many historic treats are the Pont du Gard, a three-tiered aqueduct the tallest ever built by the Romans; the Roman ampitheatre of Nîmes; the fortified walls of Carcassonne, Europe's largest intact medieval city and a wonderful selection of circular villages. And the region claims to be the hottest in France, with over 300 days of sunshine, and an annual average temperature just under 15 degrees centigrade. That said, it is also the windiest, with the Mistral and the Tramontane blowing in summer.
Getting to Languedoc-Roussillon is aided by the generous supply of cheap flights; airports served include: Nimes, Perpignan, Beziers, Carcassonne, Montpellier and Avignon.
Because of its varied nature, it's not easy to generalise about why people choose to buy a home in Languedoc-Roussillon; however it's fair to say that for those wanting to be on the coast, it's cheaper than the Cote d'Azur, and for those wanting to be inland, it's generally less than Provence. The one wholly inland department, Lozère, is the least populated in the country, a wild place dominated by mountains rivers and gorges, where old farmhouses can still be found, though no longer at the bargain prices they once were. 
The best bargain throughout the region are generally village houses, available in fairly prodigious supply even under the €100,000 mark, for the simple reason that the French aren't that mad about living in villages. Montpellier and Nimes are both quite expensive by comparison, though prices ease off as you head towards Spain. You'll pay a premium to be near the coast and properties by the Canal du Midi are also in demand. Finally, there's a growing choice of new tourist developments, often offered on leaseback purchase, where there is typically a shared pool and other facilities – ideal for the lock-up-and-leave buyer.
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Alexander Garrett is a freelance property writer who contributes regularly to The Observer and British Airways' Business Life.
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