Discover Connerré

Looking for a hotel in Connerré? The town’s attractions range from hiking trails through the countryside to historic buildings and its rillette tradition. To plan your trip, you can first decide whether you’d like to get to know Connerré mainly on foot, by road bike, through its architectural history, or through its culinary heritage. The local routes and sights offer different starting points for exploring.

Hiking among landscapes and points of interest

Both routes are described as hiking trails through the Connerré countryside. The Circuit de la Stèle also takes in the hilltop setting and two named points of interest: the Stèle and the Maison des Résistants. The Circuit du Gué aux Anes also offers a hiking trail through the Connerré countryside. The difference is that the Circuit de la Stèle explicitly features the hills and specific destinations, while the Circuit du Gué aux Anes is described as a countryside hiking trail. If you like to include specific destinations in your hike, this additional point of reference can help you choose. Before setting out, it’s worth checking the current trail conditions, as they can change.

Church and architectural history

The Église Saint-Symphorien et ses retables features architectural elements from the 16th and 18th centuries. At the same time, the lower parts of the main façade and the masonry bases of the nave still point to the 11th or 12th century. These dates refer to different parts of the building and reveal several historical layers. This layering is particularly noteworthy for anyone interested in cultural history: the church bears traces of early building phases alongside elements from considerably later centuries. Its architectural history therefore cannot be reduced to a single period.

Manoir de la Jatterie: manor house and courtyard

The Parc du Manoir de la Jatterie includes a manor house characteristic of the 18th century and a park on a slope with an avenue of hornbeams. A 17th-century gateway with a dovecote encloses the courtyard. This structure combines the functions of a gateway and a dovecote while also closing off the courtyard. Compared with the church, the features highlighted here are later: the gateway dates from the 17th century, and the manor house is characteristic of the 18th century, while parts of the church point to the 11th or 12th century. This makes it easy to distinguish the historical references of the two sites.

Connerré and the rillette tradition

Connerré is considered the birthplace of rillettes. Above all, the Lhuissier and Prunier establishments made the town the capital of Sarthe rillettes. This adds a culinary way to discover Connerré to your trip planning, alongside its trails and buildings. If you enjoy getting to know a place through its regional food culture, you’ll find a specific tradition associated with Connerré here. The establishments named above are at the heart of this culinary history of the town.

Explore by road bike

Another activity to consider when planning your trip is the Boucle n°9, a road-cycling circuit. This gives you a second clearly defined way to get around, in addition to hiking. The distinction is simple: the two circuits are hiking trails through the countryside, while the Boucle n°9 is specifically described as a road-cycling loop. If you’re planning your trip around your preferred activity, you can consider these options separately and choose the theme that suits you best in Connerré.

Discover more destinations: La Bazoge, Flée, Yvré-Lʼévêque, Marigné-Laillé, Vouvray-Sur-Loir, Arnage, Champagné, Le Tronchet

For the wider travel guide: Sarthe.