9 Old Ruins to Explore in Occitanie

The Alyscamps is a large Roman necropolis, which was consecrated in the 3rd century by Saint Trophime, the first bishop of Arles, as a burial ground for Christians. They were famous in the Middle Ages and are referred to by Ariosto in Orlando Furioso and by Dante in the Inferno. Christians from far up the river Rhone river would send corpses down the river on rafts with a coin in the mouth to pay for burial in this necropolis.

The Amphitheatre of Nîmes is a perfect illustration of the degree of perfection attained by Roman engineers in designing and constructing this type of extremely complex building. it measures 133 metres long and 101 metres wide, with an arena of 68 by 38 metres. It was one of the best preserved amphitheaters from the roman world.

The Château de Foix is a castle in the French département of Ariège. An important tourist site, it dominates the town of Foix and was once a Cathar Castle. It is listed as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture. It was the home of the celebrated family of counts who became the viscount of Béarn, then kings of Navarre and kings of France.

The castle of Peyrepertuse is a so- called "Cathar" castle located in the department of Aude in the Occitanie region. It sits on a limestone ridge at an altitude of nearly 800 m, at the top of a hill that separates Duilhac from the village of Rouffiac-des-Corbières, overlooking garrigue and vineyards. The strategic position which allows you to see far into the various valleys which surround it, to control the passes or to communicate signals to the castle of Quéribus a little further south.

Maison Carrée or “square house” is an ancient Roman temple located in Nîmes in southern France. It is an extremely well preserved ancient Roman building and represents a nearly textbook example of a Roman temple as described by the architectural writer Vitruvius. This temple was Inspired by the temples of Apollo and Mars Ultor in Rome and it measures 26 metres long by 15 metres wide and 15 metres high.

The Palace of the Kings of Majorca is a palace and a fortress with gardens overlooking the city of Perpignan in Pyrenees-Orientales, Occitanie, France. A fortified palace in the Gothic style organized around three courtyards 60 m square. One of the majestic buildings which is famous among tourists.

Pech Merle is one of the most striking cave art sites which was open to the public. A large cave with over two kilometers of underground tunnels and caverns which was decorated with prehistoric paintings. The walls of seven of the chambers at Pech Merle have fresh, lifelike images of a woolly mammoth, spotted horses, bovids, reindeer, handprints, and some human figures. One of the nice location which is famous in this area.

The Pont Neuf is the oldest bridge in Toulouse which links Gascogne to the Languedoc. It was commissioned by the King of France, François I. The Pont Neuf has largely preceded the other bridges built over the Garonne such as the Pont Saint-Michel in 1836, or the Pont Saint-Pierre in 1852. It is one of the famous landmarks in this area and also it attracts a lot of tourists.

Pont Valentré is a 14th-century six-span fortified stone arch bridge crossing the Lot River to the west of Cahors, in France. This massive bridge took 70 years to complete from 1308 to 1378 and never saw combat, although its arduous construction lead to a legend of a deal with the devil. The bridge was classified in 1998 as a world heritage site and it can only be crossed by foot.