AIRBUS A380
AEROSPACE
weekend in TOULOUSE
Airbus A380 assembly-line visit and city break
A
high-tech break in Europe's 'aerospace' valley in Toulouse.
Four day visit, 3 nights in a bijou hotel with breakfast in
the city centre, guided tour of the Airbus assembly line and
self-drive car included in this break. This programme is open
to individuals and groups.
The Airbus A380, largest passenger
airliner in the world, at your feet! Our intensive aerospace
break takes you into the enormous hangar where the A380 jet is
assembled at Blagnac, on the outskirts of Toulouse. Perched on
a 30 metre high balcony you will have a panoramic view of the
world's greatest aeroplane under construction.
You
will also see the A330/340 line and the last Concorde ever
produced. As
a bonus, you will probably see one of the operative A380's
taking-off or landing, as the test strip lies between the factory
and the
civil airport. A must for plane enthusiasts!
The Airbus factory lies
at the northern end of a great swathe of land to the east of
Toulouse
known as 'aérospace valley': this contains Airbus, Astrium,
Alcatel Space and the CNES (Europe's equivalent to 'NASA') and
a number of Aerospace universities (ENAC, Sup-Aéro). Bang
in the middle of this, in Toulouse's eastern suburbs, is the
Space Centre - le Cité de l'Espace.
The Space centre contains
a wealth of exhibits, interactive resources, planetarium, IMAX
cinema and other space-related games and documents to keep young
and old entranced for hours. From the only full-size MIR module
replica to the Ariane V rocket which towers over the site, space-watchers
will surely find something they have never seen before. (entrance
is payable on site: about €18 per person).
Some corporate visitors like to combine this
high-tech aerospace visit with a pilgrimage to the sharp edge
engineering masterpiece at Millau - Norman Foster's viaduct.
We can arrange this for groups of any size. more
Accommodation
You are at the heart of the lively and historic
quarters of the town: Place Wilson, Place du Capitole and Place
Saint Georges.
Discover this charming hotel** with its garden patio, lounge and very cosy
atmosphere; the decor is original and convivial.
Very close by you'll find the main cultural sights and tourist attractions:
museums, theatres, cinemas, restaurants, bistros and cafés.
The Hotel has 24 spacious rooms all individually decorated
and quiet
• Air conditioning
• Hairdryer
• Satellite TV
• Internet connection
• WiFi broadband System accessible at reception and in the hotel lounge
Breakfast is served in your room or in the dining
room.
Also available at the hotel:
• secure bike park and possibility of bike hire
Suggested programme
Day 1 - Friday
Pick up hire car at arrival airport (Carcassonne or Toulouse) and drive to
your hotel. From Toulouse airport follow the signs to 'Centre Ville' and
once on the tree-lined 'Boulevards' Lascrosse, Strasbourg and Carnot head
for the Place Wilson. 
Settle into the hotel and explore its immediate surroundings ... the Place
Capitole and Place St Georges are perfect for people-watching and a few apéritifs.
Overnight at the hotel.
Day 2 - Saturday
Breakfast
Stroll through the city's markets and shopping streets in the city-centre.
Lunch where you will.
2 pm: Visit of the Airbus plant and its assembly lines. After a guided visit
by coach of the extensive « Aéroconstellation » site
we visit the hangar where the A380 is assembled.
Overnight at the hotel
Day 3 - Sunday
After breakfast you could either devote the day to visiting the Space
Centre (especially if you have children) or explore the colourful
flea market of St Sernin and the Farmers' market at St Aubin. The museums
of St Raymond, Les Augustins and the modern art museum of les Abattoirs are
all open on a Sunday. Or even take a run into the country and visit the town
of Albi (40min by car) magnificent pink-bricked town on the banks of the
Tarn. Admire the fortified cathedral of Ste Cécile before touring
the Toulouse-Lautrec museum in the old Bishop's Palace. The vast exhibition
presented by the museum is the largest publicly owned collection dedicated
to Toulouse-Lautrec in the world.
Overnight at the hotel
Day 4 - Monday
Breakfast
Departure for airport
ENQUIRE
more about
Toulouse
This visit is possible
without the car hire: in which case you would arrive and
depart from Toulouse airport and use the shuttle into town
and taxis for transfers. ASK
about this
