The Grands Sites d’Occitanie | Tarn-et-Garonne Tourism

Major sites !

Wild beauty and architectural beauty

The Grands Sites d’Occitanie collection in Tarn-et-Garonne includes 4 major sites:

Bastides et Gorges de l’Aveyron

Cordes-sur-Ciel et cités médiévales

Montauban

Montauban, town of Art and History

Built of pink brick, it offers treasures such as the 17th century Place Nationale with its splendid arcades and surrounding old streets, its luxury private mansions, the view on the former Bishop’s Palace from the Pont-Vieux (old bridge). The town has managed to keep its identity whilst renovating its architectural heritage, witness of a rich and eventful history. Must to see : the Church of Saint-Jacques, the Ingres Bourdelle museum, the Notre-Dame cathedral, the sculptures by Antoine Bourdelle scattered around the town.

Moissac – Lauzerte – Auvillar

Unesco World Heritage Site and the most beautiful villages

Moissac is one of the prides of the Tarn-et-Garonne. 30 km west of Montauban, this Mecca of Romanesque art in France is also a major fruit centre, bathed in the Tarn and the Canal of the two seas.
Moissac, active city, enjoys an international reputation due to the abbey church of Saint-Pierre and its cloister, listed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Lauzerte and its defensive character can still be seen in the barbican, from which there is a splendid view over the valleys of Quercy Blanc. The town is built around the Church of Saint Bartholomew dating back to the thirteenth century and the Place des Cornières lined with semi-circular arches and houses dating to the fifteenth to eighteenth century.

Auvillar has kept its magnificent triangular square where the covered market-place stands, a circular building whose semi-circular arches are exceptional. This most beautiful village of France is noteworthy for the architecture of the houses with their corbels, mouldings and brackets. Also worth visiting: the Carolingian Church of Saint-Pierre, the Clock Tower, the harbor, the castle square, the old convent of Ursulines.

Bastides and Gorges de l’Aveyron

A wild river and an exceptional medieval heritage

Around Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val, on the beautiful Aveyron River, canoeing-kayaking is the reigning sport. For the more impatient, three hours are required to complete the 9 kilometers descent. Several clubs or associations offer this type of activity. Paddles are also available.

Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val is situated in the north-east of the Tarn et Garonne. The town is dominated by the majestic limestone cliff-face of the Roc d’Anglars, the Roc Deymié and the Pech Dax. People come to enjoy and be amazed here in the heart of the Aveyron Gorges where the river Aveyron wends its way.

Cordes-sur-Ciel and medieval cities

Medieval cities: these perched beauties!

Forget your heels! You don’t drive up to Cordes-sur-ciel in a car either! The climb is on foot, through the steep, cobbled streets. Immerse yourself in the medieval atmosphere: fortified gates, ramparts, sculpted gothic facades and hidden corners. The charm works from the first step. From the top of this medieval town, you can look out over the world and contemplate the history.

Bruniquel is at the crossroads of the Quercy, the Rouergue and the Albigensian territory. It plunges you into its medieval past thanks to its ramparts, the twin castle ruins overhanging the River Aveyron and not forgetting the Maison Payrol, former residence of the Governors of Bruniquel and 12th century storeroom.