Around Tourbes

This circular route around Tourbes is not particularly difficult and offers varied landscapes, mostly in the undergrowth. Take care when crossing the D39. The entire hike is marked in yellow. The beautiful village of Tourbes is well worth a visit.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.92 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 420 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 417 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 351 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 164 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Tourbes (34120)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 43.445887° / E 3.380218°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 2644OT, 2645ET
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

There are two parking options: a small car park at Place de l’Église or a large car park on Avenue de la Gare, 200 m from the church.

(S/E) With your back to the church, take Rue Tour des Caves on the right for 20 m, then turn right at the first street, Rue du Verdier. Follow this street, which becomes a wide path, for 1 km.

(1) When you reach a building materials yard on the right-hand side of the track, take the track on the left and you will come to a junction.

(2) Turn right at the next path (large stone in the middle of the path) and continue to the junction with a road.

(3) Take the road on the left and, 100 m further on, turn right onto a wide track. After 200 m, take the track that veers off to the left. Another 200 m further on, follow the track that heads into the woods, veering off to the left, until you reach a road.

(4) Turn left downhill.The yellow trail marker is painted on a stone lying on the ground and, due to the vegetation, the marker is barely visible. If you turn right, you can take a short detour to see, a few metres away ,a metal artwork by Xavier Veilhan and, a little further on ,a monumental driftwood sculpture , ‘Driftwood’, created by Danecia Sibinco of the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London. Then retrace your steps. At the bottom of the descent, take the path on the right.

(5) Take the path on the left to cross the bridge over the Ruisseau La Vivarelle. As soon as you’ve crossed the bridge, turn right and follow the path between an old vineyard on the left and a wood on the right. The path leads into a wood. Continue straight ahead. As you leave the wood, continue straight ahead across a meadow.

(6) At the edge of a woodland, take the path on the right and walk alongside the woodland on your left. (Do not follow the signposting on the left, which takes you directly to Tourbes).

(7) Enter the woods via a path on the left. At a fork in the path, stay on the path on the right and join the D39 (signposted).

(8) Follow it to the right for about thirty metres, taking care (busy road), then turn onto the path on the left. Pass a path on your left and continue straight on into the woods. When you reach a vineyard, turn left and go round the vineyard, keeping the woods on your left. At the end, take the path on the left and enter the woods. When you emerge, you’ll come out onto a wide path; follow it to the right until you reach a fork.

(9) Take the path on the left. After 30 m, leave this main path and follow a small path on the left, which runs alongside a dirt track.

(10) Shortly afterwards, turn onto a path leading downhill to the left and head into the woods. As you emerge from the woods, follow another off-road motorbike track alongside a woodland on your left until you reach a vineyard.

(11) Do not go up into this vineyard, but take the small sunken path through the woods on the left. Walk through the woods following the yellow markings for about 200 m, turn right and climb a very short but steep slope. Continue through the woods, still following the yellow markings. You’ll emerge onto a wide path, which you take to the left. A little further on, it passes below a vineyard and joins a main path.

(12) First turn right then left and, after the Croix du Sorbier, take the path on the left which leads to a very large oak tree.

(13) Immediately afterwards, turn onto the path on the left. Go straight on, past a riding school, and you will reach Avenue d’Alignan du Vent (D39).

(14) Head down to the right to return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 184 ft - Place de l'Église
  2. 1 : mi 0.64 - alt. 236 ft - Storage of building materials
  3. 2 : mi 0.78 - alt. 262 ft - Junction
  4. 3 : mi 1.09 - alt. 272 ft - Road junction
  5. 4 : mi 1.71 - alt. 230 ft - Sculptures
  6. 5 : mi 2.12 - alt. 171 ft - La Vivarelle stream
  7. 6 : mi 2.43 - alt. 220 ft - Edge of the woods
  8. 7 : mi 2.57 - alt. 213 ft - Entrance to the woods
  9. 8 : mi 3.23 - alt. 240 ft - D39 road
  10. 9 : mi 3.99 - alt. 282 ft - Junction
  11. 10 : mi 4.12 - alt. 249 ft - Junction
  12. 11 : mi 4.31 - alt. 230 ft - Sunken path
  13. 12 : mi 4.55 - alt. 266 ft - Croix du Sorbier
  14. 13 : mi 4.73 - alt. 246 ft - Large oak tree
  15. 14 : mi 5.49 - alt. 292 ft - Route d'Alignan
  16. S/E : mi 5.92 - alt. 184 ft - Place de l'Église

Notes

After heavy rain, the paths in the woods can be muddy.

Worth a visit

Finish with a visit to the village of Tourbes: beautiful church, garden of 100 herbs next to the church (1 April-30 October) and old houses in the village.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 3 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
Manue SESMA
Manue SESMA

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 11, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely, shaded hike with varied trails.

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Gero34
Gero34

Hello. Thank you for your comments. Indeed, at point 4, the marker on a stone has been knocked over and a post with another marker has been pulled up and is missing. No doubt the work of a vandal; yet it’s on a local footpath… I’ve just gone and fixed it. Keep an eye on it.

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bertrand des bartassaïres
bertrand des bartassaïres

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 28, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very accessible walk offering great variety (woodland, a plateau with views, the edge of vineyards), and easy to walk on (stony-free terrain). The signposting is good, but at point 6 there was a sign pointing in the wrong direction which misled us; we ended up back in the village but managed to reach point 8 – no doubt a joke. At point 4, the first artwork—which looks like giant stakes for tomato plants—is worth a detour and it’s fun to walk through it (guaranteed to amuse), whereas the other one made of driftwood isn’t very accessible and, in the end, we couldn’t get close to it as it’s fenced off on private property; moreover, it wasn’t to our group’s taste, though the art is evocative. We were delighted to see a multitude of irises at this time of year, and also a whole field between points 3 and 4 before taking the path on the left which climbs up to your right after 500 metres, a large field of magnificent blue irises. In the village, the herb garden next to the church makes a fitting end to this walk.

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1949legay
1949legay

Hello
I’ve just completed this ‘Around Tourbes’ walk
I’d like to point out an error in the signposting at point 6.
This point is marked with an arrow indicating to turn left, whereas you should turn right
The path on the left is an alternative route that leads directly to Tourbes
Also at point 4, the yellow line is marked on a stone lying on the ground and, with the vegetation, the marker is barely visible
Kind regards

Machine-translated

pascal.forbin
pascal.forbin

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 09, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Nice, moderate walk, well marked except for a slight difficulty at points 11/12.

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