Well-fed and Martini-ed after lunch, we decided to head off to explore even more of Montpellier – starting with some gems hidden in plain sight.
The first of said gems was a 13th-century Mikvé.
To be totally honest, I had no idea what a Mikvé was before visiting Montpellier (it was only thanks to a last-minute tour – which you can actually book from the official city’s tourism office)
A Mikvé is a ceremonial Jewish bath and this particular one is pretty special as it’s centuries old and is one of the best preserved across all of Europe!
We carried on traipsing through the city…
…till we arrived at the Porte du Peyrou – Montpellier’s very own Arc de Triomphe – located right next to its equally impressive courthouse.
The Arc was actually built as a monument to King Louis XIV (the very same one who built the Palace of Versailles as it stands today) but what’s even more impressive is that you can actually go inside it and head straight to the top (you have to book the tour to do this though).
The views from the top are pretty amazing over the city and a definite must-do when you visit the city!
Oh, and be sure to pop by the Promenade du Peyrou while you’re here too! It’s the park right opposite the arch and worth a little gander through…
One spot people had recommended checking out in the city was the cathedral and so, with no real clue what direction we were heading in, we went off in search of the cathedral.
I’m pretty sure we must have taken the longest route possible to get to the cathedral but I actually love aimless jaunts like this.
It’s just such a great way to get to know a city by stumbling upon pretty streets and viewpoints you had absolutely zero plans on seeing. 😉
The cathedral, by the way, is absolutely gigantic and impressively so!
It’s hands down one of the largest cathedrals I’ve ever see (from the outside anyway) and it totally took me by surprise!
Right next door to the cathedral is the medical school (Montpellier is home to one of the oldest Universities in the world) and we decided to pop in quickly before making our way over to the cathedral.
The cathedral and medical are actually adjoining in the same structure so popping into the medical school is actually a great way to get a different (but still impressive) perspective on the cathedral.
Eventually, we made our way over to the cathedral…
…which is as impressive inside!
As this was in the middle of a summer heatwave, Montpellier was unbelievably hot and so it didn’t take too long for our thought to start to turn to ways of cooling off in the city.
We made a quick pit stop at the Église Saint-Roch de Montpellier…
…before deciding to stop for drinks in the evening sunshine too cool off.
Dinner that evening was at L’idée Saveurs, a restaurant that came very highly recommended by the locals.
And they weren’t wrong! The food here was absolutely delicious and the perfect way to finish off a sun-soaked day in the South of France.
Seared tuna, lamb cooked to perfection, desserts and cheeses that turned out to be exactly what we needed. *licks lips*
Done with dinner, we made our way over to Place de la Comédie, where families, friends and visitors to the city alike were all out having an amazing time!
Suffice to say, if you’re up for a few drinks and just generally chilling in the city at the end of the day – Place de la Comédie is where you need to head to!
After hanging around for a bit, we decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel – thoroughly impressed by the French gem that is Montpellier.
Read more: Best things to do in Montpellier
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