Discover the villages of character.

The Rhodanian Shore.

From time immemorial, the Rivage has been a passageway, an "imperial valley" where man has always made an alliance with the river. But what remains today of this impetuous Rhone, of these intrepid boatmen, "water beaters" evolving from "decise" to "remonte" between "Empi" (Dauphiné - left bank) and "Riaume" (Vivarais - right bank). The dams tamed the river, the railroad ruined the crews. From Serrieres, deprived of its bargemen, to Bourg-Saint-Andéol, stretches the "fruit valley": cherry trees, apricot trees, peach trees, apple trees, pear trees... where the vine also has its facets on the famous hillsides of Hermitage - Saint-Peray, Cornas... And the appellation "Cote du Rhône" extends largely to the south, as far as Bourg.

Bourg Saint Andèol

Rochemaure

Saint Marcel d'Ardèche

Saint Martin d'Ardèche

Saint Montan

Saint Remeze

Viviers

The Lower Vivarais.

Dazzling limestone in the southern light, here we are in the domain all scaled with stones and dolmens, enamelled with garrigues and holm oaks, that a river as astonishing as fiery has marked with an indelible seal, the Ardèche, symbolizing by itself the whole department. Its capricious waters have drilled the prodigious arch of the Pont d'Arc, dug and excavated countless caves and avens named Saint Marcel, la Cocalière, Orgnac, Marzal, La Forestière, La Madeleine, underground cathedrals with hallucinating splendors. The Ardèche, but also the Beaume, the Ibie, the Chassezac. Here, the Païolive wood, a ruinous landscape of limestone and greenery where the rocks take on the appearance of monsters and giants. Everywhere villages are crushed by the sun. On the "gras", lavender and olive trees compete for the arable land with the vine, pride of the farmer since it has relegated magnaneries and silk to the rank of memories. A page has been turned. And if it is very difficult to reconcile viticulture and tourism, one cannot praise one and vilify the other, but on the contrary, improve both.

Alba La Romaine

Aubenas

Happy

Villeneuve-de-berg

Vogüé

The Cevennes.

It is the most severe and harshest country of the whole department. It is a land of "greenhouses" torn and ravaged by the torrential rains which, in spring and autumn, transform the streams tumbling down from the tumultuous Tanague - the Thunder Mountain - into impetuous and devastating torrents. A heterogeneous country where granite, schist, mica-schist, sandstone and limestone are mixed to such an extent that one could believe that this complexity of building materials leads to a different rural architecture at every turn of the road. A land where the "Rayol" has built fabulous terraces on its slopes to fix the earth and support vines, crops and houses. It is the chestnut grove that gives the Cévennes its true face. Associated with the sericulture, the chestnut tree which, here, reigns supreme, was at the origin of the wealth of the country. At the same time a bread tree and a meat tree, for people and their animals, its wood was used to build the roof frames, the window lintels, its boards to make doors and floors. It is still the chestnut and its architectural translation in the landscape, "la clède" - chestnut dryer - which marked the landscape of its print. It is true that a house, whatever its plan or the nature of the materials used in its construction, is Cévennes only by the presence of this clède.

Antraïgue on volane

Gard rhodanien.

Aigueze

The tricastin.

Tricastin is a natural and historical region in the Rhone Valley between the southwestern part of the Drôme and the northwestern part of the Vaucluse. It is the cradle of the ancient tribe of Tricastins. Their capital was Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux. The name Tricastin, long interpreted as "country of the Three Castles", actually derives its etymology from the Ligurian tribe of the Tricastins, who occupied the territory throughout antiquity. The Tricastin region is known today for the Tricastin nuclear site, located on the course of the Donzère-Mondragon canal, a diversion canal of the Rhône, for its AOC Grignan-les-adhémar vineyards, and for the quality of its natural and architectural heritage.

Grignan

The adhemar guard

The valley of the Céze .

Considered as the hinterland of the Gard, the Cèze Valley, named after the river that crosses it, is a real nature escape between the Cevennes and Provence, accessible by the sun highway, between Vallon Pont d'Arc and the Pont du Gard. You will enjoy an authentic and wild south. Multifaceted, the Cèze Valley is a paradise for lovers of outdoor sports, swimming, local produce and heritage. It hides many secrets: caves, lavender fields, waterfalls... Each season inspires a new sunny discovery: in spring, nature awakens and the temperatures are ideal to discover the numerous paths and picturesque villages. On a hot summer day, cool off on the banks of the Cèze and discover the area by canoe. In autumn and winter, marvel at the richness of the colors sublimated by a golden light during a walk in the garrigue or in the Cévennes National Park and relax by the fire with a good glass of Côte du Rhône.

Goudargue