# Tarbes

Tarbes is a town in the Hautes-Pyrénées of France. From Tarbes, you can explore the foothills and the mountains of the central Pyrenees. It has 44,000 inhabitants (2022).

## Understand

Overlooked by the Pyrenees mountain range, Tarbes is a city marked by its military history and the renewal of its industry. Its gardens serve as settings for the rich homes of former industrialists and notables. Entertainment is provided in former factories. Horses are celebrated there (Equestria, National Stud Farm), the army (statue and birthplace of Marshal Foch, Museum of Deportation and Resistance, Hussar Museum), and the Pyrenees (Four Valleys Fountain, Pyrenees National Park House). Enjoy the tranquility of the climate just a stone's throw from spa resorts and winter sports.

## Get in
### By plane

The nearest airport is Lourdes/Tarbes. There are city buses from the airport to the city of Tarbes.
Other airports around are in Pau, Toulouse, Biarritz and Bordeaux. All these towns have direct trains to Tarbes. (From the Biarritz Airport, take a city bus to the train station of Bayonne.) Some of these towns also have direct intercity buses to Tarbes.

### By train

* 43.2402370.0694981 Tarbes Train Station. Free shuttle service to the city centre .– Partial TGV connection with Paris and the northern half of France (Strasbourg, Lille) via Bordeaux, Corail connections via Toulouse with Paris or the South-East (Montpellier, Lyon, etc.), access to the French and Spanish Basque Countries via Dax. (updated Feb 2018)

### By car

* A64 motorway, exit 12 Tarbes Ouest (free alternative route: D817): Direct connection with Pau and the French Basque Country (Bayonne) and indirect connection with Bordeaux (via the expensive A65), Aragon (Zaragoza) or the Spanish Basque Country (San Sebastian, Bilbao, etc.)
* A64 motorway, exit 13 Tarbes Est (free section if exit at Capvern-les-Bains, free parking for carpoolers): Direct connection with Toulouse, partially free route to Paris and the northern half, indirect connection with the south-east (Narbonne, Montpellier, Lyon.)

## Get around

* Alezan Bus Network. The airport, train station, car parks and entertainment venues (Méridien, Arsenal, Palais des Sports, Parc des Expositions, etc.) are connected to the Alezan bus network, whose main information centres are located in the bus stations at Place Verdun and Place au Bois. 1 free electric shuttle runs through the city centre. (updated Apr 2015)

## See

* 43.2291670.0688891 Haras National de Tarbes, 70, rue du Régiment de Bigorre, ☏ +335 62 56 31 01. A green equestrian training and show venue with a horse museum. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2380.07612 Massey Garden (Jardin Massey), Rue Achille Jubinal, ☏ +33 5 62 44 36 95. A remarkable garden, setting for a Moorish-style museum dedicated to the Hussars, a cloister from the Abbey of Saint-Sever-de-Rustan, an orangery and featuring a little train and a small animal park Free access to the gardens, museum entry fee €5. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2412320.0790723 Arsenal District (Quartier de l'Arsenal). The remains of buildings and lifting mechanisms... artillery workshops and ceramic factories from the 19th century. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2305870.0733214 Allées du Général Leclerc. A martial avenue extended by a street with colorful lighting bringing together the equestrian statue of Marshal Foch, the Larrey military barracks, commemorative monuments, a carousel, the tourist office, a chapel converted into a music conservatory and a contemporary luxury hotel. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2241220.0691045 Soult District (Quartier Soult). Tree-lined paths leading to the 35th Parachute Artillery Regiment where a Noratlas (military transport aircraft) is on display. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2321420.0778386 Rue Maréchal Foch. The main shopping street bringing together eclectic buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries , the town hall, the courthouse and providing access to the contemporary Brauhauban market and a replica of the Alhambra fountain. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2330020.0758747 Rue Brauhauban. A secondary pedestrian shopping street where the homes of famous people (Bertrand Barère, Théophile Gautier, Laurent Tailhade) and a Gothic church are visible. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2311490.0832778 Place Marcadieu. A monumental fountain of the Four Valleys, depicting the fauna and flora of the surrounding valleys, Baltard-style hall and Romanesque church. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2340030.0696899 La Sède district (Quartier de La Sède). Popular for its restaurants, home to a Renaissance high school, a small cathedral with a Baroque façade, the Resistance Museum and the birthplace of Marshal Foch. (updated Mar 2015)
* 43.2243870.07730710 Ormeau District (Quartier de l'Ormeau). A district with multiple parks housing the remains of a Gallo-Roman villa and the Pyrenees National Park house. (updated Mar 2015)

## Buy

City centre ( Maréchal Foch and Brauhauban streets) has streets bringing together major national and international ready-to-wear brands (H&M, Galerie Lafayette), bookstores, etc.

## Eat

Around the Place de Verdun you will find a collection of traditional cafés and bistros and in the Sède district several traditional French or Hispanic restaurants (Route 66, l'Epicerie, l'Ambroisie, etc.)
* 43.237820.071151 Le Petit Gourmand, 62 avenue Bertrand Barere, ☏ +33 5 62 34 26 86. Su 12:00-13:30, Tu-F 12:00-13:30 and 19:30-21:30, Sa 19:30-21:30. Game meat, casseroles, quality bistro. (updated Mar 2020)
* 43.2040890.0394342 L'Aragon, route de Tarbes, Juillan, ☏ +33 5 62 32 07 07. 2 restaurants : one quality and one bistro-style (updated Mar 2020)
* 43.224810.065893 Le Soixante Cinq, 29 Avenue Aristide Briand, ☏ +33 5 62 360800, lesoixantecinq@gmail.com. M-W 07:30--16:00, Th F 07:30-16:00 and 19:00-02:00. Their brasserie cuisine is rather traditional with fresh products for great restaurant classics revisited by their cooks. Evenings enlivened by concerts on Thursdays and Fridays. A tapas menu is renewed each week according to arrivals is offered as well as a regional and foreign wine list. (updated May 2021)

## Go next

* Lourdes
* Pau