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Looking for village in the Auvergne
I recently saw a movie in Paris that was filmed in the Auvergne region of France. I was very impressed with the beauty of this rural part of France and would like to spend a couple weeks there in July. I would like to find a small town or village with train service where I could rent a place for two weeks and maybe make bike trips and day trips in the area by train and bus. Can anyone suggest such a town or village?
Thanks, Larry J |
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We stayed 2 days in a B&B in Orcines, at the foot of the Puy-de-Dôme. It's a small and authentic but sleeping village. Still, wonderful to start bike trips. The Puy-de Dôme is wonderful and wild, especially when the weather is foggy.
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LarryJ, it is indeed a beautiful area. We spent two weeks there last year and enjoyed every second of it.
A couple of thoughts come to mind: - It's a huge area. We covered far less of the region than we thought we would, and we had a rented car. - I think the most striking scenery is west of Clermont-Ferrand in the Parc Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne, although I hasten to add that we did not get as far south as St-Flour and les Monts du Cantal. One town you might consider is le Mont-Dore. I think there is a railway line in and out, and the town is large enough to offer a choice of cafés and restaurants. There is a great deal to explore within a thirty kilometre circle of the town. For example, you can hike up le Puy de Sancy, or bike on any of the roads into the surrounding mountains. I don't know what the local bus service is like, however. Rental accommodation is not as plentiful as areas such as Provence. We searched French Connections, Holiday Rentals, and VRBO and found slim pickings. Nonetheless, we finally found an excellent house in Montaigut-le-Blanc, but it is some distance from the nearest railway (Issoire, I think). Now that I think about it, there is a rural bus service through that valley. If you've searched Fodors you've probably found our trip report and a link to our photos, but just in case you haven't, here's the story: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34742279 And here are the photos: www.pbase.com/anselmadorne Just click on Auvergne and Paris. Happy travels; it's a wonderful part of France. Anselm |
This past July, we spent 2 weeks in a Gite west of the Puy de Dome near the village of Olby. We had fantastic views of the Puy du Dome from the lovely outside patio. We rented through the Gites de France program. Our gite had 3 bedrooms, two baths, large kitchen/dining room, garden, lovely views, and all modern amenities. It rented for 600E per week in July. We've rented over 25 Gites in France - and this gite was in the Top 5, as far as "comfort" is concerned.
The Auvergne is a beautiful area, as Anselme stated. I would strongly recommend that you get a car. The area is quite large, not heavily populated, and many of the sites are quite distant from each other. I think we visited about 20 Chateaux in the area. Pick up a copy of "Route Historic des Chateaux d'Auvergne" from a chateau or tourist office to find out about the chateaux available for visiting & opening/closing times & days. Stu Dudley |
We love all the areas of the less crowded Auvergne. Figure out which section you'd prfer: Allier, Pay-de-dome, Cantel or Haute-Loire with all their surrounding villages. Ther is much beauty to find you have a carm from spas, fine Romanesque chrches, hiking, I'm told it has alot in common with the Highlands of Scotland, mountains, lakes and rivers but where th soil is often poor. Theirs is a town famous for its knives as it Laguiole where in the wild barren outskirts sits a famous restaurant of Michel Bras.
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Hi
A good website for train and bus services in Auvergne : http://www.transbus.org/reseaux/r_auvergne.html Places to stay : http://www.the-languedoc-page.com/to...-allier-03.htm Peter |
Thanks for the help. This will help me find something. I have already sent a couple of inquiries.
Larry J |
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