Saint-Maurice-des-Noues

Saint-Maurice-des-Noues brings together riding activities, marked trails, traces of its mining history and rural landscapes. Possible activities range from a carriage ride to multi-day riding tours; there is also a mining site that can be explored independently and historic buildings. When planning, you can choose between a riding activity with a set duration, a longer route and individual cultural themes.

Riding activities and trails through the bocage countryside

Ferme pédagogique de la Garrelière offers rides on horses and ponies as well as carriage rides. Its activities also include riding tours through bocage landscapes and forests, lasting from one day to a week. If you are planning a tour, check the specific options directly with the provider before your trip.

The Chemin des Châtaignes offers another way to explore the area. Saint-Maurice-des-Noues is one of four possible starting points for the large, 76-kilometre loop; the nearly 80-kilometre route, which is fully signposted, also starts here. Information panels accompany the trail through the rolling bocage countryside of the Vendée. You can explore it on foot or by mountain bike. This gives you a choice of different route lengths and ways to get around, while the riding tours have their own timeframe, lasting from one day to a week.

Mining history and historic buildings

The Chevalement d’Épagne is one of the last traces of mining activity in the region. The site is free to access and can be explored independently by individuals and groups. There is a car park, a picnic area and information panels on site. The grounds are open year-round in 2026; check the access conditions before your visit.

The Logis du Fief Mignoux, a historic monument in Saint-Maurice-des-Noues in the Vendée département in the Pays de la Loire region, tells another chapter in the village’s history. This Renaissance house was built around an enclosed courtyard between 1570 and 1580. Such courtyards were typical of the stately residences of the time. With its slate roof, Église Saint-Maurice adds another architectural feature. Its colourful stained-glass windows depict local figures and historic events.

Landscapes, starry skies and local produce

At the edge of the Mervent-Vouvant forest, a wide panoramic view opens across cultivated land and meadows where herds of cattle and horses graze. The landscape thus combines farmland with forest and pasture.

Saint-Maurice-des-Noues is listed in the Pays de la Châtaigneraie as a three-star municipality in the Villes et Villages Étoilés initiative, and is among the award-winning villages where the Milky Way and constellations can be seen with the naked eye. This offers another theme alongside trails, buildings and mining history.

Fournil Les Lumières sells organic farm products, including flour made from heritage wheat varieties and ground in stone mills, as well as rustic wood-fired bread. If you are planning to buy directly, check the arrangements in advance; they may change.

Discover more destinations: Moreilles, Le Perrier, Le Poiré-Sur-Vie, Saint-Julien-Des-Landes, Saint-Michel-En-L’herm, Saint-Martin-des-Tilleuls, L'epine, La Mothe-Achard.

For the regional travel overview: Vendée.