Hotels in Toulouse

Toulouse is France's fourth-largest city and its aerospace capital, home to Airbus's headquarters and assembly lines next to Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, plus the Cité de l'Espace museum. Its nickname, la Ville Rose, comes from the pinkish terracotta brick that colours almost everything in the old centre, from the vast Romanesque Basilica of Saint-Sernin to the Capitole on its grand central square. The Garonne and the Canal du Midi give it pleasant waterside walks, and a large student population keeps the bars and squares lively well into the night.

Rugby is close to a religion here, and the food leans hearty: cassoulet and Toulouse sausage are local pride. Be honest: it lacks the headline sights of Paris or the beaches of the Mediterranean, summers can be stiflingly hot, and many visitors are business travellers passing through for aerospace work. Stay in the old centre around Place du Capitole or the Carmes quarter, where the main sights, restaurants and nightlife are all within easy walking distance.