A medieval garrison town suffering from arrested development, VILLEFRANCHE-DE-CONFLENT, 6km up the Têt from Prades, is a tourist classic and lives off it, but is nevertheless an interesting place. Founded around 1100 by the counts of Cerdagne to bar the road to Moorish invaders, remodelled by Vauban in the seventeenth century after rebelling against annexation by France, its streets and fortifications have remained untouched by subsequent development. Worth a look is the church of St-Jacques, with a primitively carved thirteenth-century baptismal font just inside the door, and you can walk the walls for a fee (daily: Feb, March, Nov & Dec 2–5pm; April, May, Sept & Oct 10am–noon & 2–6pm; June 10am–7pm; July & Aug 10am–8pm; €3.50). If you do so, you'll see why Vauban constructed the Libéria fortress on the heights overlooking the town to protect it from "aerial" bombardment. Getting up to the Libéria (daily: June–Sept 9am–8pm; Oct–May 10am–6pm; €5.34) involves climbing a stairway of a thousand steps beginning just across the old bridge and rail line at the end of rue St-Pierre. If you don't fancy the climb, look for the free minibus leaving from near the town's main gate.The tourist office (Feb–Dec daily 10am–12.30 & 2–5.30pm; tel 04.68.96.22.96) is in place d'Église. For accommodation, try Le Vauban (tel 04.68.96.18.03; €30–40; closed Oct–March) next door, or the magnificent old Auberge du Cédre (tel 04.68.96.05.05; €30–40; closed Nov–April; meals from €11.43), situated just east of the old walls. Villefranche is the terminus for trains from Perpignan. From here up to La Tour-de-Carol on the Spanish frontier, transport is by SNCF bus, or, far nicer, the narrow-gauge Petit Train Jaune, which climbs to the valley head at a pace that allows you a walker's or cyclist's proximity to the scenery, especially in summer when some of the carriages are open-air (late May to Sept 4–6 daily; tel 04.68.96.56.62; €30.20 return). Best of all the frequency of the trains makes it practical to hop off and on, allowing you to explore the areas around the smaller, isolated stations.
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