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What's on month by month in 2009 - the Languedoc on an elegant shoestring.

We're well aware that purse-strings are tighter this year, so we're researching the hundreds of events you can go to that won't break the bank. It'll take us a while, not everything's been anounced yet, so come back for updates over the next few weeks.

The annual Fête de la Vigne et du Vin takes place across France, offering a chance for producers, restaurateurs and wine enthusiasts to get together at countless vineyards and cellar doors to talk terroir and compare vintages. During May many wine domaines near Le Couvent have Open Door events where you can take a stroll in their vines, learn about grapes and wine-making and taste a drop too. For more information about the wines of the Languedoc take a look at the official site - lots of good stuff and a quiz too.

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Roses, wisteria, poppies, broom, honeysuckle, wild cherries - the countryside of the Languedoc is pure therapy for the senses at this time of year. We have descriptions and maps of lots of walks so you can stroll across the hills (and flat bits) to your soul's content.

Look out for the Aphyllante de Montpellier (pictured right) which gives the local countryside a blue hue.

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For people who see sand as a means to art and not just grainy irritation, the coastal resort of Cap d'Agde stages an annual Sand Sculpture Festival on the Plage de Rochelongue. Sand, what is it good for? Millions love it and millions loathe the stuff, but for the residents of Cap d'Agde sand is a building material - used to create some fantastic sculptures, normally considered only to be possible through the manipulation of stone. pic

OMT Cap d'Agde : G. Rey