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Travel guide
Aveyron
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to June, and September
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Welcome
Aveyron, in a few days
The largest department in Occitanie is also one of the least populated, and that is its strength. Expect endless uplands on the Aubrac and the Larzac, gorges where the Tarn and the Aveyron wind between limestone plateaus, and villages a thousand years old.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Conques and its abbey church free · 2 to 3 hA Romanesque pilgrim church to Saint Foy, whose gold reliquary statue sits in the treasury; its Last Judgement tympanum holds 124 carved figures.
- Afternoon · The Trou de Bozouls free · about 1 hThe village street ends at a 400-metre horseshoe canyon almost 100 metres deep, with a 12th-century church on the spur.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel du Vieux Pont€120 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Musée Soulages, Rodez · about 1 h 30Corten steel boxes by RCR Arquitectes holding some 500 works given by Rodez-born Pierre Soulages, from early walnut-stain studies to his late black paintings.
- Afternoon · The Aubrac plateau and Laguiole free · half a dayWindswept volcanic pasture at 1,000 to 1,400 metres, with basalt walls, old stone dairy huts and fawn Aubrac cattle grazing from May to October.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Oustal del Barry€110 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · The Millau Viaduct free · about 1 hNorman Foster and Michel Virlogeux's 2,460-metre bridge across the Tarn valley, opened in 2004, with a mast 343 metres high, taller than the Eiffel Tower.
- Afternoon · The Roquefort caves · about 1 hNatural caves under the Combalou, cooled and ventilated by rock fissures, where sheep's milk cheese must mature to be called Roquefort.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel de la Tour Maje€110 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · La Couvertoirade free · about 1 hA Templar village on the Larzac, walled by the Hospitallers in the 1440s; walk the ramparts, then find the paved pond where sheep drank.
- Afternoon · Najac · about 1 h 30One stone street along a ridge above the Aveyron, leading to the royal fortress begun in 1253 by Alphonse de Poitiers, brother of Saint Louis.
🛏️ Where to sleep · La Ferme de Bourran€120 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €88 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to June, and September
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/aveyron
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.