After the gloominess of Valras Plage,  the raw energy and excitement of Sete. It’s a fishing port, sometimes known as the ‘Venice of the North’ which gives a clue to the nature of the place. It is a confluence of waters, the sea, the Etang de Thau (a lagoon famed for its shellfish) and the canal which runs through the middle of the town. It’s a busy working port, with some seriously impressive fishing craft coming in and out. It’s also a great place to hang out, the canal lined with seafood restaurants and bars.

The town feels like an island, rising out of the flat landscape of the Languedoc, topped by the heights of leafy Mont St Clair.  There are some surprisingly elegant buildings around the harbour, including the impressive Palais Consulaire.  Even the graffiti is interesting.  Straight away, we liked the place and decided to stay for a few days.

We were hoping to find a campsite within walking distance of the town but there wasn’t one, so instead we headed out to the nearest beach campsite, a straight run of eight miles to La Castellas on Marseillan Plage. The campsite is unlike anything we’ve seen before, a massive site catering to 1,000 people, most of them in rows of mobile homes. It looks a bit like a military barracks. You need a map to find your way around. There’s a shop, a bakery, a spa and a hairdresser. A massive pool with flumes and slides. The toilet block is a a good half a mile from our pitch, which can be a bit awkward on a windy dark night when I’m staggering about with my eyes half shut dressed in David’s dressing gown! However, the site is just behind the sand dunes, and the beach is stunning – everything that Valras Plage was not. It’s a bit like Studland’s big sister – no on beach development at all, just miles and miles of open sand curving around to Sete at one end and Cap d’Agde at the other.

So it was down to the beach for us and straight into the sea. There were only about a dozen people on the beach. The sea was cold and David wimped out but he bought me a Magnum so I let him off! There was a beach bar playing laid back music, and I was happy, eating my Magnum in the sun, and with the prospect of visiting Sete again tomorrow.