Things to Do in Toulouse

Welcome to Toulouse! I'm Auréline, passionate about my city and ready to share its treasures with you, from the most famous to the most well-hidden. My tour is conceived to offer you the best of both worlds: the must-sees that make the "Ville Rose" famous, and those little gems that only locals know about.

We'll start our walk right in the heart of the city, heading for the legendary Place du Capitole before delving into the fascinating history of the Basilica of Saint-Sernin. We'll then head to the quays of the Garonne for a breathtaking view of the heart of the city.

Along the way, we'll wander the city's hidden streets as I tell you a little of its history and show you what makes Toulouse so unique to Toulousans.

As I'm passionate about general culture, travel, architecture and history, my tour is a mix of all these! My personal visual aids will help you capture the soul of the city. 

Whether you're a lover of history, gastronomy or unusual experiences, I promise you a unique tour, between tradition and modernity, as if you were a real Toulousan. So, ready to follow me?

And of course, at the end of the tour, I'll be very happy to share with you all my favourite addresses of restaurants, bars and shops. 

Français : 

Visite de Toulouse avec une locale 

Bienvenue à Toulouse ! Je suis Auréline, passionnée par ma ville et prête à vous en dévoiler ses secrets. Du Capitole à Saint-Sernin, en passant par les quais de la Garonne, je vous ferai découvrir l’âme de la Ville Rose, entre histoire, gastronomie et rues cachées. Prêts à me suivre ?

Take a journey through history on this free walking tour of Toulouse! You'll be accompanied by a guide as you explore this French city's most iconic monuments.

Toulouse is a city that has a feel of a small town. The center is connected by all its little streets.

Why choose me? 
Because I am your personal guide from the moment you sign on to my tour. I care about every individual that comes to my tour. I can recommend and help you with your holiday before, during and after my tour.

I will also send you old photos of Toulouse on your telephones, so please leave me a whatsapp so I can send you these photos, recommendations of restaurants and bars and the meeting point. (So you can find me easily)

This is more a comedy tour than a serious historical tour. My focus is on the monuments and interesting facts.

Come with me in to discover the secrets and stories of this university town. My tour isn't based on boring historical dates but on fun facts. I will bring you to see the main monuments of the city and tell you stories about the different places. 
 
So where do we go? We will start the tour in jean jaures and then move on to Capitole Square and then to the Convent of the Jacobins and the churches San Sernin and Daurade and cross the Garonne river to see the other side of the city. You will discover fun stories about the monuments and the people who lived here.

At the end of the tour, I will leave you near a cafe with the best caramel crepes in Toulouse. (Food and drinks at your own cost)

Hi. This is VERY much a History Tour. It opens with a 15 minute introduction to the city, so much fun in January, just standing there. I just thought it best you know upfront that I cover most of the sites for siteseeing but it is not the focus of the tour. The focus is on the major events and era's in the cities past. I speak of them in linked stories trying to leave you (by the end of the Tour) with a real idea of how the city came to be what it is. It's not easy to do in 3hrs but I do try, and I love the subject.

I've lived here over 20 years now and have spent quite a lot of that time trying to write an Historical Fiction of this city. What does that mean for you? It means I've studied its History as a personal passion and have always regarded its Historical events through the lens of "How could this best be told in narrative form?" Which is what I do. I tell stories. True stories of things that happened here in Toulouse. But stories, nevertheless.

On this Tour you you will see…

• Place du Capitole
• Rue Saint Rome
• Hotel Assezat
• Pont Neuf
• La Daurade and la Basilique
• Les Jacobins
• Rue de Taur
• La Basilica St Sernin

And, although the History stuff does tend to wander I try to make its telling as linear as possible.

I will cover… 

• Medieval Toulouse
• The Cathars
• The Albigensian Crusade
• The Inquisition
• The Canal du Midi
• The Revolution in Toulouse
• The Great Flood of 1875
• and a lot more…

Things like the Capitouls, the Troubadours and their influence, a bit of the Ligne Aeropostale, some Martydom by Bull, the Resistance and all the fun of the Black Plague.

I won't leave you ignorant either as to where is best to eat and drink in town and what other things there are to do. I always try my best but constrained as I am by the limitations of time and geography I cannot cover everything I would like.
 
Most notably lacking from my Tour will be much mention of Toulouse's Blue Dye Trade, the rebellion of the Huguenots and a visit to the Cathedral. There is (of course) lots of other stuff I have to leave out but these three pain me the most. Sorry.   

P.S.  In the summer I tend to open up some afternoon tours. These are less reliable than the morning tours. If you book an afternoon tour understand that it may get  cancelled if it gets too hot.  Around 35c is ok with a bit of wind but from around 38c or over the tour is probabaly going to be cancelled a couple of days before. With that kind of heat we'd all just be feeling like rotisserie chickens anyway! It's no fun. Those are the kind of days where you want to find a cocktail and some air conditioning.

Disclaimers. 

1. I sometimes get involved in the subject matter. I never tire of telling my stories but if English is a foreign language to you I may at times talk too quickly. Let me know and I will slow. I try to remember but... hell! How do you give a passionate tour while talking slowly and carefully?

2. I like variety in the world. I like religions. In my opinion the Modern day Catholic church and the Dominican Order are organizations that give a lot of people hope and strength and help have my full support. The Pre-Enlightenment Catholic Church was not so nice. Not all saints were saintly and the first century of the existence of the Dominican Order and its expansion of the Inquisition and what they did was positively evil. If you have a problem with any of these statements and/or can't bear to hear ill spoken of the church or the Dominican Order in any context then you REALLY don't want to take my tour. I'm not here to offend and yet -even avoiding all conjecture- I keep managing to do so. It's not through some wish to be contentious, more a refusal to give an anodyne or sterile tour. That's just not me.

3. If you've come for the match (any match) and you're just looking to find out where the good restaurants and bars are and what there is to do I will cover it all (I know them well) but unless you're also really, really into history you might be bored. "Too much information." is a comment I get a lot of. I'm sorry.
There are other tours and they are all shorter and may be more fit for purpose. I'm not trying to be rid of you I just say this because - you're on Vacation, you want to have fun! And I'm not here to bore you. I try to make the tour as funny and entertaining as possible but I accept that history just isn't everyone's bag.

4. I am a Scot (from Scotland) I know I sound American. It's a complicated thing. 😉

Final Note.

Percentage wise by time spent my History Tour is divided by the relevance of the era to the Modern day city (I.M.O). All in all, in the tour it comes out about -

15% Antiquity
5% Dark Ages
35% Medieval
5% Renaissance
15% Industrial era/Post
15% Architecture
10% Food Places/Stuff to do.

The percentages may vary depending on whether people show a particular interest in one era. And the tour may overrun if everyone seems like there having fun, but rarely more than by 10 mins.

Basically I tried to create the Tour I'd like to go on.

There. That's done. I hope I haven't put you off too much. Toulouse is an amazing place and its history isn't so much drama as melodrama and I love telling people all about it.

I look forward to seeing you on the Tour.  Take care.

H. 

This tour will allow you to explore the entire history of the city, from Roman Tolosa to present-day Toulouse, the capital of the aerospace industry.

We will visit the essential monuments , without forgetting those charming corners that build the true identity of Toulouse.

At Capitole you will learn the history of Palladia Tolosa, the city protected by Athena and why Toulouse is the city of culture.

Imagine how in medieval times the inhabitants filled the squares in popular assemblies like in Ancient Rome.

We will follow the steps of the Camino de Santiago to the majestic Basilica of Saint-Sernin, exploring the language of the troubadours: Occitan and the traces of the Spanish exile.

In the Jacobin Convent we will delve into the history of the Cathars and a region marked by religious wars, punished for its independent and forward-thinking spirit.

And of course, we'll talk about the Renaissance… do you know which pastel color everyone in the city knows?

Throughout the tour we will discover the street art works that fill the city.

In addition, I'll share recommendations for restaurants, cafes, and concerts so you can continue enjoying the city after the tour.

The tour will open your eyes so you can discover for yourself the beauty and charm of this incredible city.

If you want to discover iconic Toulouse but also its little secrets in a relaxed and professional atmosphere... this is your tour!

Discover with me the soul of the Pink City!

*The duration is approximately 2.5 hours.
*It ends at Pont Neuf, near the restaurants I recommend for eating.

A walk through the historic center of Toulouse. We will know the main monuments and squares through its charming streets with the characteristic color of the city. We will learn the interesting culture and its exciting history in a fun way. We will start at the Cathedral of St. Etienne and after visiting the Musée des Agustins we will walk through the alleys of the old town along the banks of the Garonne to the Capitol. We will finish at the Cathedral of San Sernin. The route will be: -St. Etienne, where will we start. -Short stop in front of the Musée des Agustins. -We will enter the courtyard of the Hôtel d'Assezat -Rio Garonne, near the Pont Neuf -Visit the impressive Augustinian convent. -Plaza del Capitolio, the busiest point in the city. -Cathedral of St. Sernin, the second largest Romanesque cathedral in France! A tour that will not leave you indifferent!

Join us for a journey through Toulouse’s famous Victor Hugo Market, where we'll explore the vibrant world of French gastronomy. Plus, taste local delicacies!

A journey through medieval Toulouse! Come and discover for yourself why all attendees rate it positively.

The Middle Ages, a time of crusades, heresies, passions, and miracles.
Join me on a time-travel journey through the iconic and must-see places of the city of Toulouse.

We will discover how the great pilgrimage routes were born and what drove people to travel hundreds of kilometers on dangerous journeys into the unknown, all through the spectacular Basilica of Saint Sernin.

We will walk the streets where the most famous myths of the city of Toulouse took place.

We will learn about the language of the great troubadours in front of the marvelous façade of the Capitol, the spectacular city hall.

We will delve into the roots of the Dominicans, the crusades, and the heresies through the magnificent convent of the Jacobins.

And this is just the beginning of this impressive 2-hour tour in which I will reveal to you the colors of Toulouse and its secrets, the disasters that almost erased it from the map, and the strange name "La Ville Rose" that the city of Toulouse receives.

A dynamic tour of living history to understand the present of this wonderful city that we will conclude at the Cathedral of Saint Etienne.

What are you waiting for to book? Cancellation is free 🙂

Important:
The tour aims for a fresh and pleasant route, avoiding staying too long under the sun. Still, it is recommended to bring water and stay hydrated during the summer months. 

-For bookings of more than 6 visitors, please contact me in advance

-There are no restrooms on the route, only one stop to replenish liquids

-Payment can be made with Bizum and cash 

Join me on a 3-hour tour where we will enter the old town of Toulouse to discover the history of the city , its most emblematic buildings and the reason for its unique architecture.
We will see works of art, sculptures, we will walk along the river, we will relive the history of the Cathars, we will discover the legends of some notable characters and the mysteries that the pink city holds.

What will we visit?

• Capitol Square
• Charles de Gaulle square
• Saint Georges square
• Saint Étienne cathedral
• The Augustinian convent
• The Hotel d'Assézat
• The Garonne River
• The Pont Neuf
• The convent of the Jacobins
• and we will finish the walk at the doors of the Basilica of Saint Sernin.

At the end of the tour I will give you my recommendations so that you can continue enjoying the city, its gastronomy and its cultural life.