The thermal Dordogne at La Bourboule

Start: Very small car park below the cemetery in La Bourboule, not too far from the railway station.
Please note! This walk is not signposted.

(S/E) From the small car park, go down the street, pass under the railway bridge, ignoring Rue Bouchaudy (street) on the right and continue straight ahead on Rue Cohadon Lacoste. At the end of the street, turn left to join Boulevard Georges Clemenceau at a roundabout.

(1) Follow the boulevard to the right going past a facade decorated with a small tower, then follow the boulevard past shops and restaurants.

Note the beautiful facade of the former Rozier pastry shop in between them, now occupied by the Subirana cheese shop. Also note the Grands Thermes on the left.

Further on, at the Choussy building, turn right into Rue Sedaiges.

(2) Take the stairs. At the top, look for Yellow signs and turn right towards La Roche des Fées. At the next Yellow signs, turn left towards Rocher de la Bourboule. Then immediately, turn right, ignoring the path that continues straight ahead.

You'll come to a rocky lookout, La Roche des Fées, where you will find a bench. Look out for sculptures of Forest Beings on the rocks. Walk up to the bench, then walk down behind it (find another sculpture) and carry on downhill on a well-trodden path. After a steep descent, reach the end of a street.

(3) Walk up to the Rocher de la Bourboule, where you'll find another bench, for a view of the town's rooftops. Walk down from the belvedere and continue down to the right to reach the top of the stairs previously used and walk down again.

(2) At the bottom, turn right on Place Guillaume Lacoste to pass the Thermes Choussy. Continue straight on Rue Mabru, noticing a superb mosaic on Place Choussy on your left, and continue straight on Rue Choussy to reach Boulevard Foch, at a roundabout.

Go around the roundabout, then cross the Dordogne River and immediately turn left onto Quai du Maréchal Fayolle going past the Casino Chardon.

(4) Continue straight on Quai Gambetta. Then turn right on Rue Agis Ledru in front of the Hôtel de Ville (town hall), which also houses the visitor centre and the theater (if this building is open, don't hesitate to enter and admire the staircase leading up to the theater). Then continue along Rue Agis Ledru to turn right onto Chemin de la Suchère.

(5) Cross the Vendeix, a beautiful stream coming of the Dordogne River, and carry on uphill towards some fine residences. Turn left into Rue de Gergovie (street), then left again into Avenue du Général Gouraud, to reach Rue Agis Ledru at the bottom. Follow it to the left for a few metres, then cross over and take the driveway that crosses the Vendeix stream. Walk past the road works offices to enter Parc Fenestre (park).

(6) As you enter the park, turn right along the Vendeix and head towards the southern side of the park, keeping as close as possible to the stream. Ignore a footbridge right. Further on, at the end of the park, continue on the path which bends left and leads to the Chemin du Creux, at the Yellow signs.

(7) Turn left towards La Bourboule. Cross Route de Vendeix and go up Chemin de Fenestre. Pass by an old drinking trough. At the junction of three streets, with an iron cross on the left, continue straight ahead. Pass an old laundry place on the left, for a short detour turn Impasse du Belvédère to the end of this street, for another viewpoint of the village.

(8) Walk back to the road junction, turn sharp right onto Montée de la Chareyre. At the Y-junction, keep left to go down Avenue d'Angleterre, cross it, and go straight on Avenue d'Italie for a few meters.

Turn left between two fine houses to re-enter Parc Fenestre (park). Notice a superb group of redwoods opposite and turn right towards the circular grove. Continue straight ahead to exit the park.

(9) Turn right into Rue Pasteur, left into Rue d'Italie, left into Rue de Reims and then right into Rue de Verdun to bypass the former Hôtel Résidence Métropole. Turn left to cross the Dordogne River, then right into Square Joffre, passing the bandstand.

As you reach Saint-Joseph church, worth visiting, turn right around it. Join Boulevard Georges Clemenceau at the roundabout, cross it with care.

(1) Then continue straight on, then turn right into Rue Cohadon Lacoste to return to the car park by the same route as on the outward journey. (S/E)

Start: Very small car park below the cemetery in La Bourboule, not too far from the railway station.

Parking: In La Bourboule, park in a very small car park below the cemetery, not too far from the railway station. If the car park is full, you can also park near the railway station, but the description starts from the parking lot near the cemetery.

Waymarkers : Please note! This walk is not signposted.

Terrain: No difficulty for this semi-urban walk, but good shoes are still required on the trails around Roche des Fées.

The first traces of thermal activity in La Bourboule|https://www.sancy.com/patrimoine-culturel/architecture-thermale-et-belle-epoque-la-bourboule/|français] date back to the 15th century: Jean Lacombe's rudimentary bathhouse with wooden tubs is mentioned as early as 1463. The hamlet took the name 'La Borbola', derived from the Celtic god Borvo. Interest in the future spa grew in 1604 with the discovery of a new hot spring. Treatises on the waters of La Bourboule were published in 1670 and again in 1734. The baths seemed to acquire a local reputation: 'La Borbola' was renamed 'Bains de Murat-Le-Quaire' in the 17th century. Urbanization of the future spa began in the early 19th century, in 1875. The town stretched out on either side of its central axis: the Dordogne River.

Between (1) and (2) L'ancien salon de thé de la pâtisserie Rozier. Built in 1920 by Clermont-Ferrand architect Louis Jarrier. The first floor housed a patisserie and tearoom; upstairs, a dance hall with a stand for an orchestra, opening onto a loggia. Wide variety of materials. Art Deco façade. Listed as a historic monument since 2001, abandoned for a long period, now occupied by the fromagerie Subirana.

Les Grands Thermes. In 1875, the Compagnie des Eaux Minérales de La Bourboule undertook to build a spa on the same scale as Le Mont-Dore. The project was entrusted to Agis Ledru, an architect from Clermont-Ferrand. It opened to the public in 1879. The materials used were tuff, known as La Bugette stone, trachyte and andesite. The building is topped by four small domes at the corners and a larger one at the north entrance.

(2) Petite boucle de la Roche des Fées. Sculptures of fairies and other goblins on the rocks; lookouts.

Between (2) and (6) L'établissement Choussy. The establishment was built in 1821 by Jacques-Guillaume Lacoste, on the site of La Bourboule's first bathhouse. The baths and their springs were bought by Guillaume-Gabriel Choussy in 1828. The Choussy family gave the establishment its importance, and its name. Beautiful Place Choussy mosaic.

Le Casino Chardon. This majestic edifice is the result of several construction campaigns. The left wing (the oldest part) dates from 1892. Expansion work began in 1928: symmetry was maintained, a balcony supported by columns was added along the entire length, and the elevations were decorated with gold-trimmed mosaics featuring floral motifs. The current slot-machine room is the best-preserved original room: stuccoed decorations, column capitals, pilasters... representing 17th-century-inspired motifs.

L'Hôtel de Ville. This former Casino des Thermes (1891), known as the Cariatides, in reference to the Greek goddesses on the balcony and façade, houses the town hall, tourist office, post office and theater. It features Italianate towers and a two-tone tile roof. Inside, the cast-iron grand staircase rests on a complex interplay of trachy-andesite pillars and basket-handle arches. The ornate pediments of the first-floor landing doors are topped by a set of door tops painted on canvas in 1893.

Between (6) and (7) Parc Fenestre. A pleasant stroll along the banks of the Vendeix.

Between (9) and (1)'' La Résidence Métropole''. Built from 1891 to 1895 by Clermont-Ferrand architect Jean-Joseph Teillard. From the moment it opened, it was considered a grand luxury hotel, catering to a wealthy clientele. Facade of tuff, Bugette stone, trachyte, andesite, speckled rendering and imitation plaster. The facade is enlivened by a play of projections, different shapes of openings and a play of polychromes and materials. It's a pity that the transformation of the facade when the apartments were created has distorted the ensemble.

Le Kiosque à musique in Square Joffre. Originally installed in the Parc Fenestre at the end of the 19th century. In the 20th century, the bandstand was dismantled and reassembled in May 1920 under the direction of architect Louis Jarrier. Renovated around 1990.

Église Saint-Joseph|https://www.lamontagne.fr/bourboule/2015/03/06/leglise-saint-joseph-au-fil-du-temps_11353694.html|français], its capitals and its enameled lava Stations of the Cross.

Other walks along the Dordogne ici