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Travel guide
The Gers and Armagnac
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to June, and September to October
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Welcome
The Gers and Armagnac, in a few days
The Gers is travelled hill by hill, between vines, sunflowers and fortified towns: walled Larressingle, round Fourcès, jazz-loving Marciac and Lectoure on its spur. In Auch, the cathedral's choir stalls hold more than 1,500 carved figures, and in Armagnac you taste the brandy with the people who distil it.
- 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 · Auch Cathedral free · about 1 hBuilt from 1489 to 1680, with 18 vivid windows by Arnaut de Moles and 113 carved oak choir stalls holding more than 1,500 figures.
- Afternoon · Lectoure free · about 1 hA former Roman town on a spur above the Gers valley; walk from the cathedral to the Bastion promenade, with Pyrenees views on clear days.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Auberge de Larressingle€110 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Condom free · about 1 hA former bishopric on the Baïse and a stop on the way to Compostela, with a Gothic cathedral, a cloister and a musketeers statue.
- Afternoon · Larressingle free · about 45 minA tiny fortified village near Condom that fits entirely inside its 13th-century walls, about 270 metres round and fortified by the bishops of Condom.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel de Bastard€120 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Fourcès free · about 45 minA rare circular bastide, its round, tree-shaded square ringed by half-timbered houses on arcades, entered through a 13th-century clock tower.
- Afternoon · Maison Gascogne Armagnac, Eauze free · about 1 hIn the self-styled Armagnac capital, a tasting centre for armagnac, Floc de Gascogne and Côtes de Gascogne wines that points you on to local estates.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hotel le Fleurance€110 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · D'Artagnan Museum, Lupiac · about 1 hIn a listed chapel in the village of the real d'Artagnan's birth, the museum sets his life as a musketeer against the Dumas novel.
- Afternoon · Marciac free · about 1 hA royal bastide founded in 1298 around the largest square in the Gers, lined with arcades, below the tall spire of Notre-Dame church.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Auberge de Larressingle€110 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 to October
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/gers
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.