Getting to Vernet from the UK

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• By Plane: the nearest airport is Perpignan. Other airports within about a two hour drive are Béziers, Carcassonne and Girona. The last of these is known as Barcelona (Girona) but is well north of Barcelona (and thus closer to Vernet). A bit further away are the airports at Montpellier, Nîmes and Barcelona (which is on the wrong (south) side of Barcelona.). From Perpignan airport there is a shuttle and buses into the city centre and to the bus and train stations.
• By train: the nearest main line station is Perpignan. The TGV from Paris takes about five hours. There is then a branch line from Perpignan to Villefranche-Vernet-les-Bains. The station is  about 5km from Vernet, at Villefranche de Conflent. From there you can get a taxi or a bus, or arrange a lift with a local ringer. With careful planning, it's also possible to arrive at Villefranche on the touristic Little Yellow Train from la Tour de Carol (connections to Toulouse and Barcelona).
• By ferry or Eurotunnel and then driving: The French ports are Calais, Dunkerque, Dieppe, Caen and Cherbourg, but if coming from the north of England, consider also the Hull-Rotterdam overnight ferry. In all cases, you'll almost certainly want to take two days to do the drive unless you have two drivers. Distances range between 670 miles (Caen and Dieppe) and 850 miles (Rotterdam).
• By car from Calais: Try to give Paris a wide berth unless you like heavy traffic. The route round the east side of Paris via the A/N104 is probably best. Alternatively, miss Paris entirely and drive via Rouen or Reims. Once south of Paris, there are essentially three motorway routes to choose from: the western A20 via Limoges, the central A75 via Clermont Ferrand, or the eastern A6 via Lyon. Unusually for France, the long stretch of the A75 from Clermont-Ferrand to Béziers is toll free, apart from the spectacular Millau viaduct (which can be avoided by a detour through the town if you're a cheapskate). The A20 also has a good toll-free stretch between Vierzon and Brive. The western route sets you up for some spectacular mountain scenery if you head towards Andorra from Toulouse, via the col (or toll tunnel) de Puymorens. Alternatively, you can continue on the motorway via Carcassonne. The route via Reims and Lyon is probably the quickest, being motorway nearly all the way, but expect to pay around 110€ in tolls.
• From Perpignan, take the 240 bus all the way to Vernet. The bus station is at the back of the train station and is easy to find.

Accommodation

Vernet is well geared-up for an influx of tourists during the holiday season. There is plenty of accommodation to be found on sites such as Booking.com and Airbnb. There are three campsites in the village. Unless you're staying in Vernet itself, you'll probably want a car to get around. You'll probably want one anyway if you're planning food shopping in the main supermarket, which is at the bottom of the hill on the way out of the village. The other villages in our valley, Casteil and Corneilla, are 20-30 minutes walk from Vernet. Other nearby villages, all nice places to stay, are Sahorre, Fuilla, Fillols and Villefranche-de-Conflent.