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Motorhoming in Ardèche
Motorhoming in Ardèche
The Ardèche is a mountainous department in the region of the Rhône Alpes. It takes its name from the river Ardèche which flows through the department, cutting its way through the limestone creating spectacular gorges. The gorges attract lots of tourists and can be explored by using the twisting tourist road which follows the river, a superb route to take if you’re hiring a motorhome in England or hiring a motorhome in France.
The department produces many specialities. The best known of the cheeses is the Picodon, a goat’s milk cheese. Chestnuts have been one of the basic aliments of the region since ancient times, thus the chestnut tree is still known in the Ardèche as l’arbre à pain – the bread tree. The chestnut has various culinary uses and the department is the number one producer in France. The region also has a wine making history dating back two thousand years but the wines produced are not amongst the most well known of France. Find an Aires de Service in Ardèche for a stop over before visiting the village of Largentière where you’ll be able to do a little wine tasting before taking a stroll around the superb village with its 12th century château, its ramparts and its charming little cobbled streets full of architectural treasures. This is just one of lots of wonderful little villages that you can visit all over the territory of Ardèche.
As for visiting the countryside, motorhome travel in France is the ideal way to take in the natural pleasures of Ardèche. You could start off at the waterfall of Ray-Pic at Péreyres in the southern half of the department. The waterfall flows through some impressive volcanic rocks and is accessible by a picturesque staircase which cuts through the surrounding woods. Moving south to Saint-Remèze, visit the ‘Grotte de la Madeleine’. This spectacular grotto, cut out by the water flowing underground was discovered in 1887. It is on the tourist route of the Ardèche Gorges which stretch over 25kms in the south of the department.
The Gorges of Ardèche are Frances ‘Grand Canyon’ and you can follow them by road starting at the ‘Pont d’Arc’, a natural bridge carved in the rock. There is lots of interest based around the gorges. For example, Vallon-Pont-d’Arc, where you will find an ancient wine making village, grottos, wine tasting and even white sandy beaches on the banks of the river in the gorge.
From Ardèche, you can use the Aires de Service in the Drôme, the Aires de Service in Isère, or the Aires de Service in the Rhône before checking out these neighbouring departments.
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