When Salvador Dali arrived in the railway station he announced that it was the "Centre of the World". There used to be a statue to commemorate this in the station but it was removed some years ago.
Most of the town centre is a pedestrian area where you'll find the usual mix of international stores in the winding backstreets of the old town. What you'll also find if you look hard enough is the Palace of Majorca. Although this is a massive complex, it's surprisingly easy to miss it as the one way system directs you around it.
Alongside the charming canal you'll find numerous cafes strung along either side of the road (only used by the Petit Bus). At one end of the canal is the Castillet which is the symbol of Perpignan and is currently used to house various temporary exhibitions.
Perpignan really wakes up for one week at the end of August or start of September for the Visa pour l'Image photojournalism festival. Although aimed at professionals the exhibitions are open to the public as is the excellent nightly show.
Perpignan airport (PGF) offers flights from London Stansted (Ryanair), Birmingham & Southampton (FlyBE), Manchester (BMIBaby) and Paris Orly (AirFrance). Other options are Girona (GRO) and Carcassonne (CCF), both around 90 minutes by car.
The TGV station comes from Paris Gare du Lyon.
