2 Days in Toulouse: A First-Timer Plan
Two days covers Toulouse’s brick-and-river core: Place du Capitole, the Basilica of Saint-Sernin, the Jacobins, and the Garonne quays, with one aerospace museum worked in on day 2. Base yourself in the Capitole or Carmes-Saint-Etienne quarter and you’ll walk almost everywhere. Need more time? See our 3-day , 5-day , or 7-day versions of this same plan.
Book these before you go: a Cite de l’Espace ticket online saves a line at the gate, and if you want the Airbus assembly-line tour on day 2, book it now, slots require advance ID registration and fill up (verify current operator).
Day 1
Morning: Start at Place du Capitole, the pink-brick city hall completed in 1760, then walk to the Basilica of Saint-Sernin, Europe’s largest surviving Romanesque church and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998. Entry to the nave is free; a small fee applies for the crypt (a few euros, verify current price).
Lunch: Head to Marche Victor Hugo, the city’s covered food market, and eat upstairs at one of the small bistros serving market-fresh lunches (roughly EUR 15-20 for a plat du jour, verify).
Afternoon: Visit the Jacobins, the Dominican Gothic church famous for its palm-tree vault and the relics of St Thomas Aquinas, then the Musee des Augustins nearby for its Romanesque sculpture collection (entry a few euros, verify current price).
Evening: Walk the Daurade quays along the Garonne as the light drops, then find dinner in the Carmes-Saint-Etienne streets back from the river. Tip: skip the tip math, a service charge is already built into the bill by law.
Day 2
Morning: Take the Tisseo metro (a single ticket runs a couple of euros, verify current fare) out to the Cite de l’Espace, the space-themed park with a full-scale Ariane 5 mock-up and two planetariums. Budget half a day; tickets run roughly EUR 20-25 for adults (verify current price before booking).
Lunch: Grab something quick near the park or head back toward the center for a bistro lunch.
Afternoon: Walk or cycle the Canal du Midi towpath from the Port de l’Embouchure, where the canal meets the Garonne. A VeloToulouse bike rental costs a few euros for a short session.
Evening: Return to the center for a final dinner, and if your dates line up, check whether Stade Toulousain has a home match, the atmosphere in the streets on rugby nights is worth catching even without a ticket. Tip: book your Cite de l’Espace or Airbus tour slot before you land, both require advance booking and neither is a same-day walk-up option.