Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand’s skyline broods with volcanic stone, but its most impressive edifice is Cathédrale Notre-Dame, whose 108m twin spires pierce the sky…
©Florian Leoty/500px
Auvergne
Explosive history slumbers underground in the Auvergne. This land-locked region was scorched by ancient volcanoes, which left behind chains of cinder cones and mirror lakes, overlooked by the razor peaks of the Massif Central mountain range.
Attractions
Must-see attractions
Parc Naturel Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne
This midnight-blue crater lake, enclosed by a fuzz of pine trees, lies 6km southwest of Besse. Blasted out of the earth by a volcanic explosion nearly…
Auvergne
Le Puy's oldest chapel, first established in the 10th century, and rebuilt several times since, teeters atop an 85m-high volcanic plug, reached by…
Église Abbatiale de St-Robert
Auvergne
For Pope Clement VI, a humble tomb simply wouldn't do. The pope commissioned a palatial church to shelter his final resting place and the resulting Église…
Auvergne
Split across two buildings, this museum gives an entertaining account of cutlery-making history. In number 23, a kid-friendly sound-and-light show evokes…
Parc Naturel Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne
Feel the Auvergne's smouldering terrain beneath your feet at this mined volcanic site, across the main road from amusement park Vulcania. In summer, at…
Parc Naturel Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne
Roosting on a basalt knoll above Murol village, the 12th-century Château de Murol offers peerless views along with insights into a brutish medieval past…
Clermont-Ferrand
Housed in an Ursuline convent 3km northeast of central Clermont, the city’s premier gallery takes design cues from NYC’s Guggenheim, its white spiral…
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