La Chapelle-Montligeon: Basilica, hiking trails and horseback rides

La Chapelle-Montligeon offers several ways to plan your stay: the Basilique Notre-Dame de Montligeon, the Église Saint-Pierre, several named hiking trails and an equestrian centre. If you’re looking for a hotel, you can start by considering whether you’d rather spend your available time visiting the buildings, hiking or going on a guided horseback ride. Three routes list both their distance and average walking time, making it easier to plan a possible hiking day based on specific time and distance figures.

The basilica and church architecture

The Basilique Notre-Dame de Montligeon was built in the Neo-Gothic style between 1894 and 1911. Its monumental entrance staircase offers views over the Perche countryside. By decree dated 28 December 1978, the basilica was listed as a historic monument. A virtual tour offers 135 points of interest in French and English, allowing you to explore the building digitally.

The Église Saint-Pierre is a typical Percheron parish church with two timber-vaulted naves. Its baptismal fonts date from the 15th century. The two naves describe the layout of the church interior, while the baptismal fonts provide a feature whose period can be identified. Those interested in church architecture can thus focus on two different aspects: the overall form of the building and one element of its furnishings.

Compare hiking trails by distance and time

Several routes with specific distances are available for different hiking plans. The “Le Gîte Les Bruyères” hiking trail is 3 kilometres long, with an average walking time of 50 minutes. “La Chute de Beillard” is 6 kilometres long, with an average walking time of 1 hour and 45 minutes. The route starts in Saint Mard de Réno or La Chapelle-Montligeon. “La Ligne du Tram” covers 9 kilometres and has an average walking time of 2 hours and 30 minutes. For these three routes, the distance and average time increase together. You can compare both figures when planning how much time to set aside for a hike during your stay.

For a circular walk, consider the “Grand Tour du Massif Réno-Valdieu”: the loop is 22 kilometres long, and there is also a 17.5-kilometre variant. This gives you two specific distances to choose from when planning a tour.

Horseback rides and scenery

For a different kind of activity, Les Ecuries du Shamrock is an equestrian centre and pony club on Route du plan d'eau in La Chapelle-Montligeon. Guided horseback rides of one to two hours are offered to riders at Galop 3 level or above. Both the duration and the required riding level are important factors to consider if you’d like to include a ride in your stay.

Mont Ligeon reaches an elevation of 223 metres and overlooks the Huisne Valley. This connection between the hill and valley adds a distinct landscape feature to the churches and hiking trails that can be compared by distance.

Discover more destinations: Ceaucé, Champeaux-Sur-Sarthe, Mortagne-Au-Perche, Saint-Cyr-La-Rosière, Nonant-Le-Pin, La Ferté-Frênel, Boëcé, Montabard

For the broader travel overview: Orne.