From the May issue of The Sunday Times Travel Magazine

There is a South of France that is neither the Côte d’Azur, with its movie stars, nor Peter Mayle’s media-manicured Provence.

Between the Pyrenees and the valley of the Rhône lies a France most people know only from the windscreen as they motor through. Which is all the better for anyone who takes the trouble to roam around the underrated, undiscovered corners of Languedoc.

A couple of decades back, the eastern département of Hérault was infamous, its vin de pays among the roughest on the rack. But times change, and now it’s a desirable destination – with wine so good even the French like it.

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Montpellier has led the revival; Toulouse and Lyon might challenge its claim to be capital of the south, but neither is as lively or cosmopolitan. Shops, restaurants, a riveting museum and budget-airline connections make it an excellent weekend getaway, but you’ve got many more attractions beyond.

First decide which way to go: along the coast or up into the arrière- pays (back country). The former is a varied affair: it has some huge resorts and some pristine sandy beaches; it has the ferry port of Sète (if you fancy sailing to Algeria) and the seafood haven of Bouzigues, fronting one of France’s finest oyster beds.

Inland, the coastal plain slopes up through rich wine and olive country, dotted with small towns and villages, many home to little more than a bakery, a butcher and a restaurant (you can eat well here in a way that has become hard to find in many parts of France). Beyond looms the Causses, a limestone plateau dotted with shrines and Crusader-era fortifications. So: along the coast or into the hills. Why not make a really long weekend of it and do both?

CRUISING THE COAST

* Beaches close to cities are rarely great, but if you can manage the 30km journey to Le Grau-du-Roi, l’Espiguette is a beautifully wild and empty stretch, backed by dunes. To the southwest, Cap d’Agde (www.capdagdefrance.co.uk) can be weird/wonderful/wobbly – and hosts Europe’s largest nudist colony. Otherwise there are equally splendid, less developed strands further west at Sérignan and Portiragnes, gently shelving and perfect for families.

* The étang, or lagoon, of Thau is one of the highlights of the coast. Not so much for its flat blue waters or its long spit of beach, as for its seafood: the bassin is one of France’s key oyster and mussel beds. The sleepy lagoon-side village of Bouzigues is the epicentre, and its Musée de L’étang de Thau (Quai du Port de Pêche; 00 33 467 783357, www.bouzigues.fr/musee; £4) is the showcase. But basically you’re here to eat: there’s a range of waterfront restaurants from simple sheds to fancy spreads.

* At the eastern end of the lagoon is Sète, birthplace of Surrealist poet and novelist Paul Valéry. There is a museum in his honour (Rue François Desnoyer; 00 33 467 462098; £3.60), although the real pleasure here is lazily strolling the breezy waterfront where it mingles with the Canal du Midi, which links the Med with the Atlantic Ocean.

* In July, Sète port booms to one of France’s best music shindigs: Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Festival (July 2-5; www.worldwidefestival.com; four-day pass, £107). Crowds carouse to world beats in the Théâtre de la Mer, which overlooks the sea, or out on the beach. And not a muddy welly in sight.

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