Valprivas: Château History and Circular Walks

Valprivas combines cultural history and architecture with challenging circular walks and a viewpoint overlooking the town. If you are looking for a hotel in Valprivas, these themes can help guide your plans: the buildings appeal to travellers interested in history and sacred architecture; the two circular walks can be compared by length, difficulty and route features. The landscape perspective is complemented by the viewpoint at Les Trois Croix.

Views and Landscape

Valprivas overlooks the Andrable Valley. The Table d'orientation de Valprivas is located near Les Trois Croix and offers a 360-degree panorama of Valprivas. This identifies two specific views: the panorama looks out over the town itself, while the location description highlights the Andrable Valley. If you would like to get your bearings first, you can use this information to distinguish the viewpoint from the town’s setting in the landscape.

Château and Chapels

The Château de Valprivas was remodelled in the 16th century in the style of the Italian Renaissance. The château’s chapel was classified as a historic monument by decree of 18 July 1994. These two details concern different aspects: the architectural remodelling of the château and the classification of its chapel. This links the château’s building history with a specific designation for the chapel, without conflating the two.

The Chapelle Saint-Agathe-de-Catane offers a different architectural accent. It has a square floor plan and a ribbed vault in the Flamboyant Gothic style. The chapel also contains wall paintings depicting the Resurrection and Hell. This chapel therefore brings together its form, vault style and pictorial themes: the architecture describes the space, while the paintings portray religious themes.

Guided visits to the Château de Valprivas are available only by prior appointment via email. Before your trip, check whether this option is currently offered.

Compare Circular Walks

The PR659 Autour de la Bloue is a difficult, 10.1-kilometre circular walking route starting in Valprivas. Along the route are watering troughs and crosses by the Bloue stream, a bread oven, a farrier’s stand and the home of a Béate. The route description can therefore be understood not only in terms of distance and its circular format: it also lists several small heritage features along the way. These individual features are specific to the PR659.

The equally difficult PR681 De Chomont aux Côtes is a 23.0-kilometre circular walking route in Valprivas. It crosses the Andrable and the Bloue, offers views of the Loire Valley and follows the GR® 3 for part of its route. Its description therefore highlights the river crossings, the views and the shared section with the GR® 3; by contrast, the details for the PR659 concern features along the Bloue.

The difference in length is clear when comparing the two routes: at 10.1 kilometres, the PR659 is less than half the length of the 23.0-kilometre PR681. However, both routes are rated difficult; the shorter distance does not mean the PR659 is described as an easy hike. Alongside distance, you can compare the route features listed for each: small heritage features by the Bloue on one route, and river crossings, views of the Loire and a section on the GR® 3 on the other. Check the condition of your chosen route before setting out.

Discover more destinations: Bellevue-La-Montagne, Tailhac, Salettes, Saint-Paulien, Saint-Julien-Chapteuil, Saint-Austremoine, Saint-Julien-Molhesabate, Saint-Christophe-D'allier.

For the regional travel overview: Haute-Loire.