Vernet-les-Bains sits on the eastern flank of the Pyrenees, in the Têt Valley just below the imposing peak of Canigou. It's a small spa town that most guidebooks underrate — the setting is beautiful, the walking is excellent, and it has a genuine unhurried character that makes it a much better base for exploring this corner of Catalonia than its modest profile suggests.
The town is most easily reached via Villefranche-de-Conflent, a short bus ride away on the Perpignan rail line and the starting point of the Petit Train Jaune narrow-gauge railway that winds up to Latour-de-Carol. If you're arriving without a car, this connection makes Vernet straightforward to reach.
The surroundings are the main draw. Hiking trails fan out in every direction, from gentle valley walks to the Cascades des Anglais to routes climbing toward the Canigou summit. The unmissable excursion is the Abbey of Saint-Martin-du-Canigou, a Romanesque monastery perched on a rocky spur an hour above the town. The town was also France's first village arboretum — over 2,000 labelled trees of 320 species line the streets and paths. A geological museum with an exceptional fossil collection rounds out the local sights; the curator is the collector himself and gives an enthusiastic tour in multiple languages. The thermal baths, fed by springs at 65°C, are the town's original reason for being and still open for both curative courses and day visitors.
Late spring and summer are the best times to visit — some trails and facilities only open in June, which can be frustrating if you arrive in May with the sun blazing and the trees in full leaf.