Tourist attractions Royat

This volcano at an altitude of 1 465m commands a fine view of the Monts Dômes chain. To the north are volcanoes with craters (Petit Puy de Dôme, Grand Suchet, Puy de Côme, Pariou and Louchadière) and without (Petit Suchet, Clierzou and Sarcouy). To t..

Around 80 volcanoes stretch 40km westwards from Clermont, between the Sioule gorges and Grande Limagne. They are fascinating all year round, beginning with the Puy de Lemptégy (1018m), a fine example of an open-crater volcano. After hiking to the ..

Enjoy a stroll through vieux Clermont admiring the internal courtyards of its delightful townhouses, the Amboise fountain (1515), and the chancel of the basilica of Notre Dame-du-Port , one of the greatest churches in the Auvergne Romanesque sty..

Radiating out from the cathedral, the place de la Victoire, rue Pascal, rue des Gras and rue des Chaussetiers are a typical part of Clermont’s old quarter, with austere lava and basalt houses seemingly devoid of all architectural inspiration, and fin..

The most striking aspect of this cathedral, started in 1248 in a style inspired by the Gothic cathedrals of the Île-de-France, is its black colour, due to the Volvic lava used to build it. Viollet-le-Duc added the two spires in 1866. Note the superb ..

This basilica is the most famous of the Romanesque churches of Lower Auvergne. Its assorted decoration contributes to the overall sense of harmony. Inside, the richly decorated chancel is surrounded by an ambulatory opening onto four radiant chapel..

The renovation of Vieux Montferrrand, involving 80 or so former town houses, means you can now admire façades, balustrades, staircase turrets and arcades in their original splendour. The Volvic stone contrasts with the pale “honey blond”-coloured rou..

Adrien Fainsilber and Claude Gaillard designed the rooms of this museum around a central atrium. Enjoy a pleasant stroll through its galleries admiring Madonnas in the Auvergne Romanesque style, as well as French, Italian and Flemish paintings. The 1..

What do we really know about volcanoes? The drama of Pompey, the spectacular imagery of Haroun Tazieff or Maurice and Katia Kraft, and a few sensational films - very little, all in all, given the complexity and diversity of these natural phenomena. T..

Built in grey volcanic stone, this basilica has a remarkable unity of style. Outside, admire the beautiful but simple chevet, with its four radiant apsidioles. The ironwork on the leaves of the three doors has been preserved. Like many other major Au..

Built at the beginning of the 20C thanks to a legacy left by Jean-Baptise Bargoin, a local pharmacist, this museum houses significant collections of archaeological finds and textile arts on the ground floor and in the basement. A new and dynamic muse..

This owes its name to Jacques d'Amboise, Bishop of Clermont, who had it built in 1515; its an attractive Renaissance work hewn from lava rock...from Volvic! At the top the coat-of-arms of Amboise is carried by a sympathetic (albeit hairy) hirsute He..

Daylight enters from the street through graceful mullioned windows. The elegant front door of this townhouse (opening on to Grande-Rue-du-Languedoc) is decorated with a garland of roses in the Italian Renaissance style. A fine staircase turret serv..

This fine residence was built in Volvic lava stone in the 16C. In the courtyard, surrounded by three floors of galleries, note the staircase turret, its banisters carved with griffins and unicorns.

The huge ground floor arches of this Romanesque house from the 13 C support twin bays. Crowned faces decorate the corbels. So, the elephant, where is it? Certainly it used to appear on a fresco which decorated the tympanum in the central bay. But oth..

The Clermont landscape is dominated by this vast plateau, whose vaguely trapezoid shape stands out clearly from the Limagne plain and Allier valley. It is easily identified by an unusual commemorative monument crowned by a winged helmet. From here, t..

The interior contains some interesting stained-glass windows, in particular (in the first chapel on the right) the delicate 14C Madonna and Child , from the Duke of Berry’s sculpture workshops. Its beauty moved the local butchers, who hid it in a ce..

This fine 16C mansion, the former consuls’ house, has a ground floor adorned with five arches. Two busts depicting women and two of Roman emperors adorn the frieze supported by the windows on the upper floor.

The Hôtel Dufraisse (1740) is home to art collections containing canvases from the 17C Flemish and Dutch Schools, and the 17C and 18C French Schools. Painting from the Riom area is represented by Alphonse Cornet. The Hôtel Desaix exhibits the Richard..

This octagonal clock tower (crowned by a dome) stands on a square base of medieval origin. It is home to the permanent “Riom, city of art and history from past to present” exhibition, which includes a tactile model. 130 steps take you up to the terra..