Salers: Townhouses, Cheese and Tours

Salers combines a distinctive townscape with cheese experiences and opportunities to explore the surrounding area on foot or by e-bike. When planning your stay, you can decide whether you would prefer to see historic architecture, discover regional cheese offerings or include a tour in your trip.

Townhouses and Church Architecture in Salers

Salers is one of the “Plus Beaux Villages de France.” Its townscape is shaped by houses with turrets, a belfry and town walls. The old townhouses preserve architecture from a long period: their forms reflect the centuries from the 14th to the 18th. The village therefore offers not just a single historic building, but a variety of architectural styles spanning several eras.

At the Église Saint-Mathieu, late Gothic architecture meets Romanesque features. The bell tower, portal and porch are Romanesque; the church itself is late Gothic. The interior also contains several historic furnishings: a Entombment of Christ from the late 15th century, Aubusson tapestries from the 17th century, altarpieces and paintings. This allows visitors to distinguish between different periods and art forms within one building.

Another example of the architecture is the Maison du Commandeur, a Renaissance townhouse with a Gothic-style gallery. It houses the Musée de l'histoire de Salers et de ses traditions populaires. The museum has been closed for construction work since 2022. Those interested in the building can distinguish its architecture from the museum’s status: the Maison du Commandeur remains part of the townscape as a building, while the museum is closed.

For a view of the surrounding landscape, the Esplanade de Barrouze offers a good vantage point: from there, you can look out over the landscape and into the valleys of the Maronne and the Aspre.

Hike or E-Bike Route

For a shorter outing, La Montagnoune is an easy, blue-marked hike. The route is 4 kilometres long and takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The e-bike route from Salers to Puy Violent through the Maronne glacial valley is considerably longer: it covers 37.5 kilometres and 1,240 metres of elevation gain, takes about 2 hours and is considered fairly easy. The two options therefore differ in distance, time required and elevation gain.

You can make your choice based on these specific details: La Montagnoune takes less time, while the e-bike route covers a longer distance with a stated elevation gain. The details for the hike and cycling route apply to the named routes. As trail conditions and markings can change, check them before setting out.

Cheese Experiences and Tastings

The Cave de Salers has a tasting room and a shop offering five cheeses with protected designations of origin: Salers, Fourme d’Ambert, Saint-Nectaire, Bleu d’Auvergne and Cantal. Guided tours combine a visit with a tasting. They begin in the ageing cellar, where Salers cheese at different stages of maturation is rubbed and turned by affineur Dominique. Check the visit arrangements before your trip.

The Maison du Fromage et de la Vache Salers also offers several ways to explore the subject of cheese: a video presentation, tastings and cheese sales. At the Maison de la Gentiane SALERS, Salers is available for tasting and purchase. Together with the ageing cellar at the Cave de Salers, these venues offer different focuses: a visit may include a tasting, sales, a video presentation or a look at how the cheese is aged and handled.

A Look at the Surrounding Area

Outside the village, in the area around Salers, the Maison de la Salers is dedicated to the Salers cow. It has a museum, tastings and a shop. A buron at Les Burons de Salers was rebuilt in 1996. These stops complement the village’s architecture and cheese offerings with other aspects of Salers and its regional character.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Martin-Valmeroux, Ally, Montsalvy, Carlat, Saint-Étienne-Cantalès, Ruynes-en-Margeride, Le Claux, Vic-Sur-Cère.

For the broader travel overview: Cantal.