Discover Aurillac: culture, street art and local history

If you’re looking for a hotel in Aurillac for a cultural trip or an event, you can get to know the city through a range of themes: its abbey history, a museum in former stud buildings, street art and a festival featuring numerous performances. There are also guided tours, excursions and a liqueur-making tradition. When planning your trip, it may help to decide what interests you most: architecture and history, performing arts or outdoor activities.

Cultural history between the museum, abbey and garden

The Musée d’Art et d’Archéologie is in the centre of Aurillac, in the buildings of the former national stud farm. It has held the “Musée de France” designation since 2001. This brings together two distinct aspects of the museum: its location in the city centre and the buildings’ former use. Those interested in history will also find an important testament to the city’s past in the Abbatiale St-Géraud abbey church. It is one of the last surviving traces of the abbey founded by Count Géraud in the 9th century.

Square Vermenouze is another notable cultural feature of Aurillac. The garden is laid out in the English style and was designed by Jean Alphand. Thus, sacred architectural history and landscaped garden design sit alongside the history of the museum and the city. You can take these different themes into account when deciding what you’d like to explore during your stay.

Guided tours and a special view from the tower

The Bassin d’Aurillac tourist office offers a series of guided tours throughout the summer. They explore the city’s past, activities and trade. The summer programme therefore brings together several aspects of Aurillac in a guided format. If you’re interested in taking one of these tours, the time of year is an important part of your planning.

A different experience was documented for Heritage Days in September 2025: on that occasion, a tour of the tower at Château Saint-Étienne was offered. From the top, visitors enjoyed an exceptional panorama over Aurillac and the Jordanne Valley. If you’d like to visit the tower on a future trip, check access arrangements in advance.

Festival and street art in Aurillac

The Festival d’Aurillac welcomes nearly 2,000 artists and offers 3,000 performances. This makes the festival a distinct event highlight alongside the city’s historical and architectural attractions. If the festival is the reason for your trip, check the dates for your planned stay.

The 10ème Art Festival showcases a collection of around fifty street art works, which can be seen throughout the city of Aurillac and the département. Street art offers another way to experience Aurillac through works in public spaces; its reach extends beyond the city into the département. Together with the Festival d’Aurillac, it offers a different experience from visiting historic buildings, with performances and artworks at its heart.

Craftsmanship and a local liqueur-making tradition

Maison Piganiol holds the “Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant” designation. On a guided family tour, visitors learn about the different trades involved in making a Piganiol umbrella. The tour offers a practical insight into the work behind a handcrafted product. The available tour details do not include its duration.

Another local tradition is upheld by Distillerie Louis Couderc, which makes liqueurs from wild plants of the Cantal. The distillery also offers a sensory tour entitled “À la Rencontre de la Fée Jaune”; product tastings and guided tours are also among the activities listed. This provides a distinct focus for trip planning alongside architecture, art and the festival: a combination of visits and regional liqueur-making traditions.

Walking excursions and the Bassin d’Aurillac

There are enjoyable excursions in Aurillac on foot, on horseback or by car. The Bassin d’Aurillac is also a destination in its own right for hiking and mountain biking, with a shared network of 600 kilometres of trails. These options offer different ways to explore, from excursions in Aurillac to the Bassin’s hiking and mountain biking trail network. If you’d like to combine outdoor activity and culture when choosing your stay, you can include both as separate priorities in your plans.

Discover more destinations: Chalvignac, Mandailles-Saint-Julien, Les Ternes, Chaussenac, Drugeac, Saint-Constant, Boisset, Saint-Jacques-Des-Blats.

For the broader travel overview: Cantal.