Discover Nueil-Les-Aubiers

Nueil-Les-Aubiers offers leisure activities at Parc de loisirs du Val de Scie, cycling routes, and historic sites. When planning your stay, you can decide whether to focus on time in the park, a cycling route, or architectural and railway history.

Leisure at Parc de loisirs du Val de Scie

The 13-hectare Parc de loisirs du Val de Scie is located in the town centre. There are paths for walking and cycling covering a total of 2.5 kilometres. You can explore the park on foot or include it in a cycling trip.

Bike Park du Val de Scie can be accessed both from Parc du Val de Scie and from the Voie verte towards Mauléon. Children aged 6 to 9 have a practice area where they can get acquainted with the sport and learn. Older visitors will find three downhill trails of varying difficulty. The disc golf course is free and open to all players. It has 18 baskets, as well as tees for beginners and experienced players. As the condition of the facilities depends on local maintenance, it may be helpful to check before your visit.

Cycling routes with different characteristics

The Voie verte follows a former railway line and connects Nueil-les-Aubiers with Bressuire over approximately 20 kilometres. Construction work or changes to the surface may affect the route, so check current route conditions before setting off. The Vélidéale cycling route runs from Nueil-les-Aubiers to Mauléon along a road through the landscape typical of the Bocage: trees and hedges line the fields.

The routes themselves can help guide your choice: the Voie verte follows the former railway line and connects two places over an approximate distance. The Vélidéale is characterised by its direction towards Mauléon and the fields bordered by trees and hedges. For both routes, alignments may change, so it is advisable to check for up-to-date information before your ride.

Churches and railway heritage

The parish church of Saint-Hilaire has three naves. It dates from the 12th century and was extended in the 15th century. In Les Aubiers, Saint-Melaine Church was rebuilt after a fire between 1865 and 1868; its 51-metre-high spire was completed in 1886. The different construction periods offer two specific points of reference if you are interested in the town's historic architecture.

Three information panels at Clos des Erables recall the time when the Nantes–Vichy train stopped in Nueil-les-Aubiers. The “Chemin de Faire” exhibition, created through the work of five artists, also brings Nueil-les-Aubiers' railway heritage to light. Together, these sites draw attention to the railway's former importance, while the exhibition and the panels convey different things: the former was created as an artistic project, while the latter recall a stop on the rail connection.

Walking and Tèrra-Aventura

Mémorial du Bois des Chèvres is the starting point for a short walk. If you prefer following clues, you can try the Tèrra-Aventura geocaching trail “Le temps nous est gare” in Nueil-les-Aubiers. The trail uses a completely free app, with which you solve clues to find the treasure and the Poïz “Zart.” As the app's availability may change, check it before your trip.

Visiting Château de Tournelay

Château de Tournelay is a private estate. The current building was created in 1820 by extending an earlier pavilion; the entire complex is listed in the supplementary inventory of historic monuments (ISMH). Self-guided visits are possible: visitors receive a leaflet at the entrance, and a signposted route takes them through the built-up part of the estate.

Access is seasonal; check the visiting arrangements before you travel. In the park, paths run alongside the river l’Argent, through woodland, and past two ponds. The estate's visitor regulations also apply to these paths. This makes it possible to distinguish when planning between the route through the built-up part and the paths through the parkland.

Discover more destinations: Villiers-En-Plaine, Germond-Rouvre, Saint-Vincent-La-Châtre, Lezay, Rom, Gourgé, Sepvret, Combrand.

For the overview of the wider region: Deux-Sèvres.