Our surroundings – detailed information and many useful links.
Please bookmark this page so you will be able to return to it easily after you are done surfing!

Within a little more than an hour’s drive, the immediate surroundings of the Auberge du Troubadour
include a heritage ranked village,
a spa town, a larger market town, medieval castles, Roman ruins, silk industry museums, a volcanic wilderness,
a mountainous plateau with the source of the Loire River (the longest in France) and skiing in winter,
vineyards, prehistoric grottoes and several rivers running in remarkable limestone and granite canyons
that are the delight of “water babies” and amateur geologists alike.

Tourism in Ardèche [Regional tourism portal, in French and English]

Antraigues, officially classed as a “village of character” is less than 5 km away from the Auberge du Troubadour.
It is perched on top of a rocky outcrop,
and charms the visitor with the boule games that take place on its sun-drenched square,
the 100 stone heads sculpted into the church walls, and the Chapel of St. Roch,
a saint renowned for his miraculous cures.
Home to famous artists including the almost legendary Jean Ferrat, who actively participates in village life,
Antraigues also boasts one of the best restaurants in the area, La Remise, on the main road from Vals les Bains,
as well as an excellent bakery, a grocer, and a couple of nice gift shops in the village proper.
Frequent concerts and exhibitions take place in the church and around the square.

Antraigues-sur-Volane [French only]

La Remise, Tel. 04 75 38 70 74 Note: Reservations are essential!

Vals les Bains, 10 minutes by car from the Auberge du Troubadour, is a genteel spa town
that has been providing relief to sufferers of gout and diabetes for at least two centuries,
and which saw its heyday in the 1930’s.
It is built along the banks of the Volane river, with a Casino complex that includes
a theater and cinema as well as a restaurant and exhibition center, situated in a large park shaded by plane trees,
in which antique markets, evening craft markets, and weekend dancing take place in the summer.
The Casino Park provides access to Vals’ Olympic size swimming pool and is also the meeting place
for the Historic Montecarlo Rally as it descends from the Massif Central via Antraigues.
Free tennis courts are available across the street from the Vivarais Hotel.
On one side of the river is the Thermal Quarter with charming gardens,
a geyser source, elegant shops, and a mineral water tasting pavilion;
on the other, a more traditional business street, the rue Jean Jaurès, is the home of the Sunday market,
well-stocked with local specialties from goat’s cheese to honey,
via saucissons [dry salami type sausages] in many flavors,
fabrics, plants, books and crafts in addition to a fishmonger and the usual vegetables stalls.
Gastronomical delights are alive and well in Vals,
especially at the restaurant of the Hotel du Vivarais [open year round],
run by Christiane Bossi-Brioude, a laureate of French cuisine.

Le Vivarais Hotel [Hotel entry, French, English, German]
For a stirring interview in French with Mme. Brioude, see
I've met with Christiane Brioude [French only for now].
Please note that Christiane Brioude has also founded an Association called Goûtez l'Ardèche.
Visit this site to fall in love with the cuisine of the Ardèche and its typical flavours :
Goûtez l'Ardèche

Several other friendly restaurants, bars and bistros can be found all over town,
as well as many excellent fine bakeries, chocolatiers and candy stores.
A few noteworthy ports of call are mentioned below.
Vals also has churches of every denomination, lawyers, doctors, architects, banks,
a highly competent computer expert...
and of course an estate agent in case you never want to leave!

Vals-les-Bains or Vals [In French and English]

Addresses/Tel. Nos.:
In the Thermal Quarter:
Beatrix [ice cream parlor, creperie, superb ice cream and sorbets!], 04 75 37 52 90
Magali [elegant casual clothing, local specialties, gifts], between Beatrix and the tobacconist’s
Le Péché Mignon Tabac [Tobacconist, gifts], Av. Paul Ribeyre, 04 75 37 47 48, open year round.
Maison de la Presse [newsagents and bookstore stocking lots of local history literature],
Av. Paul Ribeyre, 04 75 37 69 83, open year round.
In the Rue Jean Jaurès [the pedestrian market street]:
Baudoin [sophisticated pastry, candy and chocolate delicacies] 04 75 37 47 48
La Petite Maison [elegant mid priced restaurant with excellent food] 04 75 37 48 57, open year round
Agence Delas [real estate agent] 04 75 37 47 55 or Delas - Real Estate .
Fic07 [computer store and hardware/software specialists] 04 75 37 58 18 E-Mail
On the same side, by the water, at the end of the Casino Park:
La Clémentine [a cheerful brasserie, very friendly,
excellent food and atmosphere at low prices, shellfish a specialty in season]
04 75 37 40 77, open most of the year.

Aubenas is the local “market town”.
This is where most of the banks and professional services are to be found,
as well as cinemas and many fine shops of all kinds.
In Aubenas, the market takes place on Saturdays, and is exceptional in that it is not,
as is the case with most French markets,
confined to one street or square, but spills all over the lanes, streets, squares, nooks and crannies of the Old Town.
The array of wares on sale is bewildering, including herbs and olives, fresh meats, fish,
mushrooms and chestnuts in the season, live animals,
and exotic prepared foods (the population of Aubenas includes a diverse,
well integrated ethnic contingent from former French colonies).
After “doing the market”, an apéritif or lunch in one of the many pleasant brasseries or restaurants is a must.
Among our favorites are L’Or Noir [a coffee, chocolate and tea house; coffee roasters] in front of the church,
giving a vantage view of weddings and other important events that allow you to share in the lives of the locals,
Le Fournil and Le Chat Qui Pêche (both by the Dôme St. Benoît).
If you can’t live without Aubenas any more, the main office of real estate agent Agence Delas is on the main drag,
Blvd. Gambetta; Tel. 04 75 35 06 76 or Delas - Real Estate.

Everything about Aubenas [in French only]

Seigneurial castles of all eras can be found dotted around the countryside almost everywhere in the Ardèche;
the Auberge du Troubadour’s local Château de Craux is currently under restoration,
but art exhibitions take place in its parks.
Other medieval sites are Montréal [yes, really …]; Voguë,
Joyeuse, named after Charlemagne's sword,
lost in battle and found again on a spot nearby on which he ordered the city's castle to be built,
also boasts Gallo-Roman remains.
For everything about the past of Joyeuse, click here :
The History of Joyeuse [In French only]
Alba, which also has Roman ruins and a remarkable amphitheater presenting a plethora of summer performances,
the Chateau des Roure at Labastide de Virac with its fascinating museum of the silk industry,
formerly the life blood of the region, including live silk worms at all stages of metamorphosis.
For everything about silk worms and their gift to humans, click here :
Bombyx mori, the silk worm [in French only]
On the historical front, the Ardèche was also a stronghold of Protestantism in the Wars of Religion
and still remains a politically highly pragmatic Département today.

Heraldry of the Rhone-Alpes region [in French only]
The Roure Castle [in French, English and German]
Joyeuse, the city
[in French only – hint: if you get stuck in a subsidiary page and can’t get “back”,
minimize it and the home page will still be there!
Antiques in L'Isle-sur-Sorgue [in French and English, also portal to antiquing
in the Antiques Capital of France, Isle-sur-Sorgue, about 2.5 hours away from the Auberge du Troubadour!]

West and north of the Auberge du Troubadour lie the volcanic Massif du Tanargue,
the Plateau Ardechois
and the Ardèche Mountains. The skiing areas [beginners and intermediate] are at
La Croix de Bauzon and the Areilladou,
some 45 minutes by car from the Auberge du Troubadour.
The Ardèche is the country of “young volcanoes”,
and evidence of their former activity can be seen everywhere,
from columnar basalt to palisades to volcanic ash strata in the mesa-like hills and necks.
The Tanargue wilderness is simply breathtaking; an amazing place where one can still be surrounded by nothing
but miles and miles of pristine nature in the middle of a relatively small, highly industrialized country.
In the mountains you will find smooth prairies, cascades,
and mountain formations similar to sugar loaves, called “sucs”.
The savage Mont Gerbier du Jonc watches over the source of the Loire River
and marks the north-south watershed for France.
Refreshing mineral sources, bubbling brooks, cascades and crater lakes stimulate the senses.

The Ardèche Mountains [in French, English to come]

Just like castles, vineyards can be found almost everywhere except in the mountain areas.
Many Ardèche wines are not AOC classified, and, far from being a disadvantage,
this allows winemakers to be much more creative in their craft.
The main grape varieties are Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, for the whites
and Gamay, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon for the reds.
Two excellent small vintners to look out for are:
the Mas d’Intras, with a variety of hand-crafted reds, whites, and rosés,
and Gilles Azzoni, who produces delightful organic wines.

The Ardèche's Wines [in French, English, Dutch and German]

Ardèche history truly starts in prehistory, as evidenced by a number of amazing grottoes
located primarily around the Ardèche River canyon.
Some of the best known and most spectacular ones are
the Aven d’Orgnac, the Cocalière, the Madeleine,
and Chauvet, the oldest and most recently discovered.
Every one of the region’s main rivers [the Ardèche, the Ibie, the Chassezac, the Beaume, the Euyrieux]
has sections that include rapids and monumental canyons.
The Ardèche River is the most impressive, and canoeing or kayaking in spring white water conditions
or rock climbing on the vertical cliffs will provide a memorable thrill to amateurs of these sports.

For some magnificent photos, see:
Photos of the Ardèche [in French only]

© copyright 2003 - L'Auberge du Troubadour - Dee Braig. All rights reserved.