www.luchon.com. A fashionable Central Pyrenean spa town which makes a base for several excursions. The bustling main street, allées d’Etigny, is well-supplied with shops, cafés and eateries, and you can pop in to take a cure in the station thermal, fed by 80 mountain springs. The tourist office provides details of several popular walking trails along the Spanish border. One of the best starts from Lac d’Oô (14 km SW via D618/D76); also, the Vallée du Lys (32 km S via D125/D46). A rack railway hauls up to Superbagnères (1,800 m), and there is skiing in winter.