Discover Mamers: culture, architectural history and trails

When choosing a hotel stay in Mamers, your specific interests are a good starting point: the town combines sacred art and architectural history with a rillettes tradition, exhibitions, trails and bodies of water. This can help you decide whether to include historic buildings, the spring rillettes event or outdoor activities in your travel plans.

Churches, buildings and exhibitions

The Church of Saint Nicolas has building phases dating from the 12th, 14th and 15th centuries; its portal dates from the 17th century. Notre-Dame church contains a Renaissance depiction of the Assumption of Mary. It also has a 17th-century pulpit and choir stalls with 18th-century backs. Notre-Dame thus brings together a Renaissance artwork and furnishings from later centuries, while Saint Nicolas is distinguished above all by its building phases and portal.

The Halles on Place Carnot in Mamers is a 19th-century grain market hall. The still-operating Italian-style theatre has a different architectural history: it is housed in a former grain market hall, built in 1851 and converted into a cinema in 1936. The Couvent de la Visitation was established in 1630 and is associated with the Davoust family. A smaller, craft-related detail adds to this architectural and cultural history: the Tour Eiffel de Mamers is a model built to a scale of 1:100. A plumber built it in 1889; he had worked on the construction of the Paris Eiffel Tower.

The Office de Tourisme Maine Saosnois hosts temporary exhibitions at its premises in Mamers throughout the year under the title “Un mois, une Expo”. The exhibitions change. If you are planning to visit a particular exhibition, it is best to check the dates in advance.

The rillettes tradition in Mamers

The Confrérie des Chevaliers des Rillettes Sarthoises was founded in Mamers in 1968 to promote Rillettes Sarthoises and raise awareness of them as part of the local gastronomic heritage. Every spring, the brotherhood holds the “Concours National des Meilleures Rillettes” here. This makes it a recurring event in the town’s culinary tradition. If you want to plan your trip around the competition, check the exact date before you leave.

Trails, water and activities

The Base de loisirs de Mamers is within walking distance of the town centre. It covers three hectares and has two bodies of water. Activities include swimming, fishing, mini golf, horse riding and hiking. If you are planning to use a particular facility, check its operating conditions before your visit.

The Voie Verte Maine Saosnois follows a 12.2-kilometre former railway line between Mamers and Les Mées. It can be used on foot and by bicycle, and is accessible to wheelchair users. Check local surface conditions before setting out. The “Mamers au fil de l’eau” circular route is approximately five kilometres long and can also be travelled on foot or by bicycle; check the route information before setting out.

The “Mamers au fil de l’eau” circular route focuses on the town’s relationship with the Dive. Bridges, locks, a washhouse, ponds, fountains and a mill illustrate this connection with water. The two routes differ in both theme and length: the Voie Verte follows a former railway line between Mamers and Les Mées, while the circular route takes in water-related features of the town. The stated distances also offer a concrete comparison: approximately five kilometres versus 12.2 kilometres.

Discover more destinations: Aigné, Jupilles, Le Grand-Lucé, Courcelles-la-Forêt, Coulombiers, Saint-Christophe-Du-Jambet, La Suze-Sur-Sarthe, Lavernat

For the regional travel overview: Sarthe.