One of the best little train journeys in Europe departs from Villefranche on a 2.5-hour, 63-km rollercoaster run to La Tour-de-Carol on the Cerdagne plateau. Nicknamed ‘the Canary’ by locals, the tiny yellow and red train (open carriages in summer) trundles through gorges and tunnels, over viaducts and up the side of Mont Louis until it gains the plateau which boasts the highest sunshine rating in the country.