le fort saint elme

TravelTrax1

Worth the walk for the views to the coast and Collioure to the north and Port Vendres to the south. The trail is steep and you do need good footwear as the path is rocky along the vineyard terraces. One route passes through the olive tree terraces and allows a visit to the restored windmill, used to make the olive oil. The fort has an entrance fee of €3, has a museum and exhibitions inside and the building is well restored and shows off its might against invading forces over the centuries. Great for a wander round the outside, you could also drive up to the entrance by following the road signed from the railway station in Port Vendres.

726DanF

It is a nice hike up to their, from the town, it sits on top of the mountain, that is actually the start of the Pyrenees. On the hike up there you will pass the old wind mill, which is kind of neat, there is drinking water their, and places to sit, the trail is a little rocky after the wind mill.. From the town you should be able to make it to the Fort in 35-45 min, great view of the town from up there. At first, I thought 6 Euro seamed like a lot to get in, but they do really have a pretty impressive collection of things. There were many battles fought up their at the Fort, apparently they collected a lot of weapons, helmets, body armor, etc., from the invaders, now they are on display. A lot of the rooms are open, and the roof. It`s an ongoing excavation, it think the sign said there will be some new areas to visit in 2015, rooms that housed the Fort defenders. All in all, I enjoyed it !! If you want a different walk to get back to town, take a right out of their parking lot, you will be walking on top of the mountain for a while, then the roads start turning to the right, to head back to town.

Malya

We decided to hike up to the fort because we wanted a little exercise. Next time, I'll bring some hiking shoes as the path was pretty washed out and you are definitely hiking, it's not a little walk. The views that others have written about ARE spectacular. Collioure is really a charming beautiful little town tucked away. We arrived on the 12th of November and the fort had closed the day before (a detail that the tourist office forgot to tell us) but the owner was there and allowed us to visit with a guided tour. The guided tour made the fort so much more interesting, so I highly recommend the tour. We didn't have time to tour the Royal Castle or the Roque anchovies factory but they were on our list. We spent 6 hours in Collioure and it was not enough time. The market in the center of town is worth a visit, with not only regional food but paintings and souvenirs as well. November was nice because there were few tourists but I would go before November 12th. Apparently Collioure and Banyuls-sur-Mer make their own sweet wine as well. Definitely recommend this city!

kimballl2014

As a child I was fascinated by building forts. I was constantly looking for great sites to build my forts. The owner of this fort is the coolest person I don't know. Honestly, who can say "my summer home is a medieval fort that overlooks the Mediterrean"?Decided to make a day trip to Collioure, and once we entered the town we saw some signs to le fort so we drove up to it. No long hike for us. The girl at the desk was very nice. She got costumes for each on of our kids. Pink shields and swords for the girls and a blue outfit for my boy. Thankfully the swords are foam and not dangerous or we defintely would have had a trip to the ER.I found the fort interesting on how it was constructed in a star shape and the museum is well done. Quite an extensive collection.

poopsie_10

We climbed up there on a fairly warm day and the views were outstanding down to Collioure and along the coast. What would have been nice was a little cafe at the top to sit and have a cold drink but there was only a vending machine once you were inside the fort, and you had to have the right money. I did think the entry fee was a bit steep as though the views were amazing there wasn't an awful lot of fort open, once again a little cafe inside the fort looking out over the sea would have been a great idea. We did read everything and took out time but we weren't in there that long. The little gift shop had lots interesting books and games on knights and castles for children though. worth the exercise:)

ChrisD628

We climbed up here on quite a hot day, but the views were really worth it. Wonderful to walk than rather than take the tourist train & worth the stunning view looking back down over Collioure.

Petit76

A very interesting and well documented presentation of centuries of european history and wars. Definitely, a private castle to visit, for both its cultural value and the tremendous landscape over Collioure.

HiddenCaviar

There are some great views available from this privately owned castle above both Coullioure and port vendres. Sitting out of the way it is still rather difficult to get to as it would have been in the days it was built.

FourBrownedOff

Wonderful views. Clean and well maintained.Tabards and swords for the kids. Lots of information in several languages. Good exhibits.Worth a visit. Would recommend.

FirstAmongstDaves

Well worth the "tram" trip up (the road is pretty bumpy) with great views over Collioure. We were there for a wedding and the vista looking east was a spectacular backdrop. A rain front forced a retreat into the castle proper which ended up being an unexpected education into the history of the castle.

Sabado113

Loved the walk and the history once we arrived at the fort. Some of the path is rocky and dangerous for anyone who might be unsure of their footing. Wear a good pair of walking shoes!

helens252

Fantastic views from all directions from this fort particularly of the beautiful bay of collioure. Take the little white train if you can't manage a steep walk.

TripPhotographer52

I love old castles and this was wonderful for me. It was not as easy to get to as the Royal Castle in the harbor area. We did not want to walk up so we took a taxi which was a little scary, as we met a couple of cars coming down the single lane road up and had to pull off on the side to let them through. This castle would have been much harder to attack than the Royal castle as it is on a steep hillside. There is a history of the place and great views of the harbor. We walked down the hill past the windmill and saw the other side of the town from where we were staying.

dougnpat

Lovely views once you reached the top but walk up via the interesting windmill only very limited opening but the sails were put up while we were there. Castle is impressive and vast and dominates the town.

Holidays1011532012

Very picturesque port and beautiful scenery. Loved the historic buildings and beaches nearby. Great restaurants and plenty of places to eat out. The market on Wednesday is well worth a visit. Highly recommend this place in the South of France. .