* France - Auvergne, Patrimoine Artisanal et Architectural...

Guided tour of the town and citadel of St Flour and the garden of St Martin, where you can sample a variety of tisanes made from plants gathered from all over the rolling hills of the La Margeride region. Dinner. Overnight.

Head for the Auvergne Volcanoes National Park and visit Puy Mary with its unusual landscapes. On then to mediaeval Salers for lunch. In the old days, stone shelters or “burons” were built on the mountain pastures for cheese-making. Nowadays the Salers Buron serves as a local history museum recounting the agricultural traditions of the region, from cheese-making to gentian liqueur. Return via Aurillac and the Valley of La Cere. Dinner and overnight.

Destination Garabit to see the famous viaduct built by Gustave Eiffel. Commentated cruise along the Gorges de la Truyere followed by lunch. Continue to Brioude to visit the famous abbey-church of La Chaise Dieu. Dinner in Issoire. Overnight in the Clermont Ferrand region.

Visit the village of Orcival and its basilica, continuing via Mont Dore, and La Roche Sanadoire to Lake Guery. Lunch then on to Sancy, enjoying panoramic views over the Puy mountain chain. Our route follows Lake Chambon to Saint-Nectaire. The town’s fountains are so rich in minerals that they can transform moulds into stone statues over a 12 month period.  Dinner and overnight.

Guided tour by tourist train of Vichy, the queen of spa towns. Then learn how the traditional mint flavoured Vichy pastilles are made. Lunch and on to Thiers, cutlery capital of France, and a visit to the Knife Museum where you watch a knife grinder at work. Dinner and overnight.

In Riom visit the Marais Glassworks and watch the glass blowers at work. Then on to Volvic known for its mineral water, but also its quarries, and visit the “Maison de la Pierre”, a reconstituted workshop situated in the heart of a lava flow.