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More abour Our Region At the heart of our area is Conques, one of the most beautiful medieval villages in the whole of France and a stop over point for en route to Santiago de Compostella in northern Spain for over a 1000 years. The display of gold precious stones forms one of France’s most treasured collections. The many medieval villages are largely untouched by tourism each one proudly maintained in the unique style of this area with “fish scale” roof tiled hoses. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming, with tourists still looked upon as something of a novelty. The restaurants are excellent and wonderful value and can range from 9€ including coffee and wine up to Michel Bras( no. 10 in the world) in his fantastic 3 Michelin starred restaurant high in the Aubrac mountains at 75€ per head.
The wines of the area are very underrated and rarely sold other than locally. The published “route du vin” for visiting Entraygues/Le Fel and the Marcillac vineyards are all in the cottages and are well worth exploring. Sporting activities are well catered for. Here in cleaner and less crowded surroundings, rivers and lakes provide all that can be offered on the coast whether it swimming, wind surfing, sailing, canoeing rafting and fishing. Walking is excellent with many well marked paths crossing all types of terrain from hills and mountains over 2000ft through to deep river gorges. There are tennis courts in every village, good riding establishments and golf courses. There are also ski resorts about an hour away in the Aubrac and Cantal. Although we may be in magical “back water” here, no area could be better placed to explore many of France’s natural splendours. Routes for you to enjoy include an unforgettable scenic trip though the lunar landscape of the Auvergne through the ancient village of Salers and through the mountain pass by Puy Mary, some 6000ft high. No one is ever quite prepared for the stunning grandeur of the 3 Tarn Gorges. Griffon vultures circling the sky somehow make it even more awesome. The Dourbie Valley is the most picturesque of the 3 gorges du Tarn. Richard Binns describes the Dourbie valley as the “supreme wild flower spectacle of France.” There are several spectacular caves in this area – one so called Even Arman has every shape of stalagmite and stalactite enhanced by some brilliant lighting and the Grotte de Darligan, the pink cavern, has vast chambers and a huge bell shaped structure, here too lighting works marvels. Here you are on the edge of one of Frances most beautiful National Parks, Parc Nationales des Cevennes, a mountainous range of scenic landscapes. Close by is La Couvertoirade, once a templar staging post. The tiny fortified hamlet features stone ramparts and towers, all beautifully restored. All around this area you will see the grazing sheep that provide the ingredient for the famous Roquefort cheese. The factories and the caves where the cheeses are stored are well worth visiting.
The completion of the Millau Viaduct, part of the A75, is one of the largest works of art in the world. 2,600m long, 343 high (the highest bridge span in the world and as high as the Eiffel Tower) makes the Tarn Gorges an even more eventful trip. Albi Abbey and the Toulouse Lautrec museum are certain to interest the historically minded, whilst the spectacularly perched village of Rocamadour is less than two hours away and its possible to take in the prehistoric cave painting at Peche Merle or an underground boat trip at Padipac on the same day.
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