I have been to Montpellier several times over the past few years, I got a glimpse of the city and the coastal region (Agde, Palavas les flots or Sète for example).
However, I have never been north of Montpellier, in April I had the opportunity to discover the Aveyron region which is an hour and a half north of Montpellier and I was not disappointed.
I really liked this region because of its nature activities with its beautiful landscapes and its cultural activities with the historical part. The food is also very good and I will tell you about that later! Here is why visit Aveyron which is the nature destination visit around Montpellier!
What to do in Aveyron?
I spent 4 nights in Millau which is the second city of this region and I do not regret it at all because it is a good choice for a base camp.
My program was as follows: the Larzac region, the surroundings of Millau by bike and the discovery of the Millau viaduct. At the same time, I participated in the travel bloggers’ fair: the famous monumental WAT18 which was the main reason for my visit to Aveyron, so you can do my program in just a few days.
The Larzac region
To start our visit to Aveyron, we began with the Larzac and its valleys for a day trip.
My excursion companions are also travel bloggers: blog trip 15 Larzac, this part of Aveyron is located 20 minutes from the city of Millau.
Caro from Tong and Sri Lanka (left in striped sweater), Chris from Chrisovyages (white top and shorts), Laure from on part quand (selfie mode), Michael from Crossing the border (blue top)!!
Our road trip was as follows:
- La Cavalerie: a historic place which is a hospital and Templar site. We went inside where we had an explanation of the place and the history of the Templars and La Cavalerie by a local guide and around the building.
Article from Tourisme Aveyron presenting La Cavalerie: TEMPLAR AND HOSPITAL SITE OF LA CAVALERIE
- Visit to a dairy farm producing milk for Roquefort cheese production: Martine, the owner, is very nice, she showed us her farm, she explained how milk production is done. We also had a Roquefort tasting workshop and a brief explanation. The tasting was short and left me wanting more but we had lunch right after.
Presentation of the Frayssinet farm on the Tourisme Aveyron site: FERME DU FRAYSSINET
- Lunch in Cornus: the thing I will remember is the kindness and warm nature of the mayor.
- Visit to a Larzac plateau, that of Guilhaumard by electric-assisted bike and meeting with a caver: I tried an electric-assisted bike for the first time since I usually prefer city bikes or mountain bikes, it felt quite strange. The place where we met the caver was quite impressive and in some spots, it was quite dizzying. If you are experienced, you know you can do caving in Aveyron.
Facebook page of SudAveyronSportNature, the company that accompanied us on the plateau by electric bike, but they also offer adventure hikes in the south of Aveyron or mountain biking courses.
- Rappelling down the Viala du Pas tower: I missed the presentation of the Viala tower because I missed the documentary viewing. However, I was the first to go down the rappel. Being afraid of heights, it scared me to jump into the void but after straddling the first barrier and letting my feet hang in the void, the difficulty passed. Then you just have to let yourself descend but since I was in costume, I got tangled several times and I also had a GoPro in my hand, which didn’t help make it easier.
I did it!! We all did it in the Blogtrip 15 team!!
We did the rappelling activity with Antipodes who have a very professional team. They do not regularly do rappelling down the Viala tower, these activities are more focused on bungee jumping, tree courses, canyoning, via ferrata, aquatic hiking or climbing. Of course, if you want special requests, you just have to contact them.
This road trip combines a cultural part and a so-called “sporty” part without getting too tired but showed us different parts of the Larzac.
In the evening we returned to Sainte Eulalie de Cernon where we spent the evening at the commandery with a visit to the Larzac Velorail.
- Velorail: It is quite an entertaining activity where you pedal on a rail, the route is 4 km, we only did the descent which lasted a good ten minutes but the ascent and descent is about 1h30. You pass through beautiful landscapes but the weather was not good and it was a bit cold.
For more photos, I recommend Instagram: velorail and tourist train of Larzac.
- Commandery Sainte-Eulalie-de-Cernon: This is the place where we spent the first official evening of WAT18, we were treated to a small show upon our arrival and we spent the evening at the commandery! Here is its Instagram so you can immerse yourself in the commandery of Sainte Eulalie de Cernon.
I even passed the test to enter the order of the Templar commandery!!
The surroundings of Millau by bike
During our stay in the Aveyron region, we had several days of good weather, so instead of scheduling appointments with tourist offices, I chose to spend an afternoon biking because the weather was too nice to be indoors. I therefore gathered information about where I could rent a bike (Diverbike), located a 10-minute walk from the Saint Estève estate, which is where I stayed for these 4 nights.
I set off on an excursion early in the afternoon:
There are several different paths with various places to stop:
- For example, you can stop between the Dourbie and the Tarn rivers; there is a park with spots where you can swim. This is where the Huttopia Millau campsite is located. From what I saw, the region offers good camping options in Aveyron. There is also a place where you can do kayaking/canoeing at the Maladrerie Leisure Park, and there is also a viewpoint of the viaduct, although you are still a bit far away. This is the green trail path (about ten kilometers).
- Personally, I got a bit lost and took a small detour. I went to Massebiau, which is 3 km east of Millau, then I took the bridge to get to the other side of the Dourbie. I climbed up and followed the Dourbie, then returned along the Tarn to reach a view of the viaduct (14 km going and the same for the return).
Here is the route I took which has a greater elevation gain but passes by the Dourbie, which is a small river; normally you can avoid going right by passing through the campsite.
Viewpoint upon my arrival:
Discovering the Millau Viaduct
The most impressive attraction in the region is of course the Millau Viaduct: if there is one place not to miss in the area, it is the view of the viaduct.
You can go to a rest area called Aire du viaduc de Millau. From this rest area, it is a 5-minute walk to the viaduct viewpoint. The view is breathtaking!
We spent the second official evening of WAT18 there!
Other nature activities to do:
During my stay in Aveyron, I shared a chalet in the Saint Estève estate, there were 4 of us in this chalet! Knowing that I couldn’t try all the possible activities in 4 days, I gathered the testimony of my chalet roommates for you!
@Copyright Far from here
Canoeing and Kayaking and rafting: Charlie from plongeraucoeurdumonde.com (on the left in red in the photo):
Kayaking being my favorite activity at the moment, descending the Tarn starting from Millau with this small boat was an obvious choice for my visit to the area.
I am used to navigating calm and gentle rivers, but here the Tarn does not let itself be tamed so easily. Nothing too violent either, rest assured, but it’s an opportunity to make the ride very fun with “mini” rapids that are in no way dangerous.
Even novices can make the descent thanks to the hard boats used here which allow you to pass the current without trouble as long as the rapids are taken head-on, otherwise you will easily taste the freshness of this river that comes straight from the icy mountain waters!
The little bonus of the ride is of course the passage under the “famous” Millau viaduct which overlooks the entire valley and impresses by its size.
Beautiful landscapes between mountains, forest, and river, I keep memories full in my head of this kayaking outing!
If you want a longer testimony from the enthusiast, here is his feedback on kayaking and rafting in Millau
Find these Instagram photos of Aveyron here:
It was in Millau that I had the chance to paraglide for the first time. It is a unique feeling to feel like a bird, gliding smoothly in the currents, with a magnificent panorama of the city of Millau and the surrounding nature.
Sometimes, I didn’t feel reassured, fearing that a strong wind might suddenly blow us off course.
But none of that happened, the instructor perfectly controlled his wing and the flight was an unforgettable timeless moment.
Zipline and Via Ferrata: Delphine from loindici.com (wearing the yellow t-shirt and the only girl in the group)
Doing ziplining and climbing via ferrata in Millau in an idyllic and green setting was a unique moment and an experience I recommend to all sports lovers who love nature.
A few little surprise challenges spice up the activity, such as crossing suspension bridges.
I loved the zipline descents which allow you to fully enjoy the landscape while getting a good dose of adrenaline.
It is the perfect activity to spend a good convivial moment in a group and enjoy the surrounding nature of Millau.
If you want a longer testimony, here are their feedback on paragliding and via Ferrata in Millau.
If you only want to get information about Aveyron and its nature activities, you may not need to read the following information!
Here is why I came to Aveyron and my opinion on the travel bloggers’ fair?
I went last year to the 2017 edition in Saint Malo and this year was therefore my second edition. So I had different expectations and different objectives.
Last year I had filled my schedule with appointments with exhibitors for example, whereas this year I took none because I preferred contacts outside of appointments.
The schedule is as follows:
- Each blogger has a blog trip day in the Aveyron region which started Sunday or Monday.
- After the blog trip, there is the first official evening of the fair which took place in the Commanderie Sainte Eulalie de Cernon.
- Then every morning, there are conferences and every afternoon is reserved for appointments with exhibitors.
- After the first day of appointments, we went to the Millau viaduct area where we spent the second official evening of the fair.
- After the second day of appointments, which is the last day of the fair, there is a small aperitif then we went to a bar in town.
For each evening, we are taken back by several buses with several slots depending on the bus filling. Needless to say, the first buses fill up quickly and the last buses do too. If you are tired between the two slots, you will have to wait for the next bus to fill up.
- The conferences:
I attended the conferences during the two mornings and went to interesting sessions such as “Facebook groups” where I learned a lot because I myself have a Facebook group of 10,000 people, although it is not in the travel field.
I went to the conference on drone regulations but it discouraged me more from having a drone, although it showed me some possible perspectives.
I was also able to attend other types of conferences like Vlogging and see what is possible in this area. I also attended the coworking conference in Aveyron.
To be honest, the conferences were not my main reason for coming to the fair.
Moreover, when registering for the fair, the conference schedule was not provided.
- The exhibitors:
My goal at Wat18 was not to try to get projects for my travel blog nor to secure new contracts since my other online activities already take up all my time along with traveling.
That is why I met exhibitors outside of scheduled appointments (Gite de France for example).
During these discussions, I was able to talk about their expectations, understand a bit more about the projects they are working on and what they can offer to bloggers to see if it matched my skills and my blog, but I think it does not because although I am mobile and geographically free, I already have a busy schedule of trips and professional activities.
- The evenings or events:
The evenings are one of the main reasons I attend fairs and they are my favorite moments at Wat18 for several reasons; they allow you to meet exhibitors and bloggers in a different setting, to network in a more cordial way.
I preferred to create contacts with exhibitors in the evening rather than during appointments. During the evenings, you forget the official speech and are more genuine.
The evenings are also moments when you can try some local specialties.
During the evenings, I met other bloggers I did not know. Networking during Wat18 was my goal, so I tried to talk with almost everyone.
I also participated for a few hours at Villa Chapka and I would have liked to stay the whole weekend at the villa but I had already bought my train ticket, so I could not delay my arrival in Montpellier. Thanks to Chapka insurance for organizing the barbecue and for picking us up at the station!
My conclusion on Wat18:
I am always amazed by the travel bloggers’ fair because of the organization and the diverse activities, the venues of the evenings and what happens there.
It remains an event I would like to participate in again in 2019 if my schedule allows.
My proposals for Wat19:
During the fair, there were conferences on Pinterest and Twitter but I would like to have a more practical conference “social media techniques or tools for social media” with concrete cases and tips from professionals. Having more concrete examples on monetization because even though I monetize my blog, I still have a rather limited view of the possibilities I can do with my traffic. Maybe I missed the conference on these topics or I did not see it 😀
I thank:
Tourisme Aveyron and their team, for welcoming us so well during these 4 days,
Xavier, Florence and the entire WAT team for organizing the event,
Tourisme Larzac and their team for the blog trip I participated in
I look forward to seeing the exhibitors, the WAT team, and the bloggers at the next travel bloggers’ fair!
And you? Will you spend a few days in Millau, the Larzac region, or in Aveyron in the coming months?
Personally, I plan to come back when I am on vacation for a week in Montpellier where I will advise my friends from Montpellier to take a trip to Aveyron.
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