Discover Belmont-De-La-Loire

Belmont-De-La-Loire combines marked hiking trails with a leisure area by a lake and river, as well as Chapelle Saint-Claude. When choosing a stay, you can weigh up different interests: longer routes, a stage with a stated duration, nature at the arboretum or a visit with historical significance. The waterside setting offers a different focus from the trails and chapel.

Hiking trails: compare route types and durations

Belmont-De-La-Loire has five marked hiking trails bearing the Loire department’s Sport-Nature label. The Chemin de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle passes through the town on Stage 4, between Proprières and Le Cergne. This stage is listed as 19 kilometres and five hours. You can therefore factor both the distance and the stated duration of this section into your daily plans.

En passant par la Croix Bleue - PR 5 is a 15.5-kilometre circular route starting in Belmont-De-La-Loire. The route passes through the arboretum, where you can discover twenty tree species common in the region as well as other, rarer species. Here, a clearly specified route type combines with natural features along the way.

Jusqu'au Bout du monde is a 12-kilometre hiking trail awarded the FFR label. It ends in the Aaron Valley at a lake with facilities. At 12 kilometres, this route is shorter than the 15.5-kilometre En passant par la Croix Bleue circular route; its stated destination is the lake in the valley.

The Parcours Trail Belmont is ten kilometres long, easy and marked in green. It starts at the car park for the Plan d’eau de Belmont-De-La-Loire, where there are changing rooms, showers and toilets. This gives you the shorter distance, a difficulty rating and facilities at the starting point to compare with the longer hiking trails. If these details are important to your plans, check the trail and facilities on site before you travel.

Lake, river and leisure area

Another option centred on water is the Base de loisirs du plan d'eau. It is set in a wooded area around a lake and the Aaron River. Facilities and activities include fishing, picnic areas and sports equipment. You can focus your plans on outdoor and waterside activities without making a hiking route the main focus.

The lake at the end of Jusqu'au Bout du monde and the Base de loisirs grounds are separate landmarks to consider. For the route, the endpoint in the Aaron Valley is specified; for the Base, the focus is on its setting by the lake and river, as well as the fishing, picnic and sports facilities.

Chapelle Saint-Claude: history and visiting

Chapelle Saint-Claude was built in 1632 over a mass grave of plague victims. Inside the chapel is a fresco eight metres long and two metres high. It depicts the 17th-century plague epidemics that devastated Lyonnais and Beaujolais. The building’s history and the subject of the fresco give a visit a specific historical connection to the region.

The chapel can be visited free of charge every day from 1 May to 31 December, by prior reservation. Guided and unguided visits are available for individuals and groups. When planning, take into account both the stated visiting period and the reservation requirement; check both before your visit. This makes it easy to combine a visit to the chapel with your interest in history and the other activities in Belmont-De-La-Loire.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Bonnet-Des-Quarts, Saint-Haon-Le-Vieux, Roisey, La Valla-sur-Rochefort, Chandon, Les Salles, Malleval, Saint-Julien-D'oddes

For the regional travel overview: Loire.