Activities

Nature / sport
Hiking and mountainbiking:
In the Park Livradois-Forez there are hundreds of kilometres of hiking and bicycle tracks for you to use. Ideal for bikers with a fairly good condition.

Motor and car:
There are beautiful, exciting winding roads with fantastic panoramas.

The chain of the Puys:
This famous chain includes more than 80 dormant volcanoes. On the top of the Puy de Dome (1465 m) you’ll find one of the most beautiful views which have the Grand Site de France ranking.

Golf:
There are about 20 golf courses at the foot of the volcanoes and in the huge green valleys. For example, the high-altitude golf course Les Volcans in Orcine (near Clermont-Ferrand) or Golf de Charade (also near Clermont). Or the two special golf courses near Vichy: Sporting Club de Vichy and Golf Club Montpensier.

Winteractivities
In winter when there’s snow, you can enjoy different winter activities

Skiing:
The 2 larger ski resorts in the Auvergne are located around the 2 highest mountains. Massif du Sancy (Super Besse with crossing over to Le Mont-Dore; total 85 km of pistes) and Massif du Cantalien (Super Lioran; 60 km of pistes). Both areas are about a 1 ½ hours drive away from our property, so a good opportunity for one or more days of skiing!

Closer (40 km from the property),in the Haute Forez you’ll find skistation Chalmazel. A smaller skiing area (12 km of pistes) wich is open from December till April. There are also snow cannons. Perfect for some runs with your kids.

You can alternate skiing with other snowactivities like cross-country skiing, snowshoetracking or hiking!

At the end of the day you can relax in our lounge where we will light the fire and pull up a chair at our ‘table d’hote’!

Cross-country skiing:
In the Auvergne are many hundreds of km cross-country skiing tracks. In the short distance of the property (as of 20 minutes by car), Les Crêtes du Forez offers 122 km of pistes for cross-country skiing: green 16 km, bleu 32 km, red 41 km en black 33 km. This area is divided in 4 sections. The area le Brugeron/Camelot is about 20 mintues by car and has 14 km of pistes. Le Brugeron/Camelot is connected with Col de la Loge and has 48 km of pistes.

Raquetting:
Or: snowshoe tracking. Experience the nature in a whole new way. In the above Les Cretes du Forez, there are 20 km of marked routes especially for raquettes. Explore the white landscape in a unique way!

Water
Swimming:
In the Puy de Dôme are many lakes and rivers. Close to our place you can swim and sunbathe in the ‘Plan d’eau of Cunlhat’ and in Lake d’Aubusson d’Auvergne.

Fishing:
In the rivers and lakes of the Puy de Dôme there are many kinds of fish. The king of which is the trout.

White-water rafting:
In the Haute-Loire the ‘Gorges du Haut-Allier’ promise you an unforgettable descent. At Vichy there are also possibilities to go white-water rafting. If you prefer paddling down quietly go downstream to the River Allier.

Culture
Markets and antique markets:
There are many local markets where farmers sell their vegetables, meat and cheese. You will find one every day somewhere nearby.

La Route des Métiers (Trades Road):
Along this route you will find castles, monuments, but also workshops where old trades are demonstrated. Find among others: potters, organic farmers, a pencil manufacturer and a soap workshop.

Museums:
There are many possibilities, for example:
Richard-de-Bas mill in Ambert, an ecomuseum that brings the history of the paper industry back to life (handmade paper production)
Knife Museum in Thiers
Museum of Fine Arts in Clermont-Ferrand

Castles:
There are many castles in the Auvergne which you will find in the booklet ‘Historical Routes of the Auvergne’. One of these routes is especially aimed at the castles of Livradois-Forez.

Villages and Towns:
Nice villages with an authentic character are: Olliergues, Cunlhat, Sauviat, Courpière, Thiers, Billom, Dore l’Église, St Dier d’Auvergne, Vollore Ville, Ambert, Usson and Issoire.

Fashionable Vichy is also worth visiting; it is one of the health resorts of the Auvergne. La Chaise Dieu has a famous abbey and in august the Festival of Classical Music is held.

Clermond-Ferand – the capital of the Auvergne - has a beautiful basilica (which is on the list of the world heritage) and picturesque streets with antique shops and galleries.

Unique train:
Aboard the ‘Train of Discoveries’ you enter the heart of the Regional Nature Park Livradois-Forez along the Gorges of the Dore.

Culinary
Cheese:
With 5 AOC-cheeses – Saint Nectair, Cantal, Bleu d’Auvergne, Salers and Fourme d’Ambert – and other local cheeses the cheese lover can really let himself go.

Beef and chacuterie:
The Auvergne has 3 cattle breed – the Charolais, the Salers and the Aubrac - which are famous for their tender, tasty meat. The quality of the sausages and ham is very high and have a hallmark.

Wine:
Till the 19th century a large quantity of excellent wines were made here. Unfortunately the phylloxera epidemic put an end to this. However, after the epidemic they started to make wine again. Highly flavoured wines are produced in the Côtes d’Auvergne and in Saint-Pourcain.

Kids
Foret d’Aventure: Adventure park in the trees in Cunlhat.

Zoo of Bouy in Champetieres (near Ambert). This 50-hectare-park houses 400 animals of all sorts. Visiting this park is like going for a walk in the countryside. The animals are fed every afternoon and they also put on shows with animals. There is also a playground.

An interesting outing with the children would be to the amusement park ‘Vulcania’. This theme park is 15 km. west of Clermont Ferrand in Saint Ours Les Roches. Scientific mysteries around volcanoes are unravelled here. It is an instructive park about all aspects of volcanoes.

Others
Rhones-Alpes: Don’t forget this department bording on ours with its delicious wines and nice cities such as St.Etienne and Lyon.