Overview
The Chemin du Puy, also known as the Via Podiensis, is one of four ancient routes through France that eventually join up with the Camino. Covering an epic 750km, this segment is from Lectoure to Aire-sur-l’Adour, the former classified as one of France’s ‘Villes d’art et d’histoire’ and the latter home to the UNESCO Church of St Quiteria. Walk between 13- 27km per day through the vineyard-filled Armagnac region, passing through medieval villages, visiting ancient places of worship and taking plenty of paysan pauses for thought. Stay in small, comfortable accommodation, with your bags transported for you, and enjoy fine French fare en route.
Highlights
- Camino Le Puy to Aire-sur-l’Adour
- UNESCO World Heritage Sites
- Designated Les Plus Beaux Villages de France
- Collégiale Saint-Pierre, La Romieu
- Church of Saint-Quitterie
- Manciet
Click to view map
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Lectoure
Lectoure is a small town in the Gers département of the Midi-Pyrenees. Lectoure sits high above the Gers River and, as you wander around the town, you have views of the farming landscape below. Visit the famous cathedral built in the 15th century after Louis XI destroyed the previous one, which has a striking tower with a round turret attached to the bell-tower.
- Accommodation: Hotel de Bastard or similar in Lectoure
Day 2: Lectoure to La Romieu | 18km
After a pleasant stroll through woodland and peaceful countryside, you cross the Gers River, leaving Lectoure. Located between Agen in the north and Auch in the south, La Romieu is famous for its UNESCO World Heritage Site Saint-Pierre La Romieu and for being one of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France. It is also known as the village of cats as there is a prolific number of strays living in the ancient streets and alleys.
- Walking for the day: 18km, 4-5h, ↑240m ↓225m
- Accommodation: B&B L’Etape d’Angéline or similar in La Romieu
Day 3: La Romieu to Condom | 13km
Today’s walk takes you to the medieval town of Condom. The more you walk to the west, the more vines you see spread towards the Armagnac area, as well as sunflowers, orchards and fields of melons. On the way, you pass by La Chapelle Saint-Germaine, a restored church with great views over the nearby countryside.
- Walking for the day: 13km, 3h, ↑145m ↓250m
- Accommodation: Hotel Le Continental or similar in Condom
Day 4: Condom to Montréal-du-Gers | 17km
This section from Condom is full of history and interesting architecture. En route, we suggest taking a detour to Larresingle, a 13th-century fortified village located 1km from the GR65 walking trail and another Plus Beaux Villages de France. After Larresingle, you come to Pont d’Artigues, followed by Chapelle de Routgès, the oldest church in the region. Passing a castle, you arrive in Montréal-du-Gers, home to the largest vineyard of Armagnac.
- Walking for the day: 17km, 4h, ↑210m ↓170m
- Accommodation: B&B Carpe Diem or similar in Montréal
Day 5: Montréal-du-Gers to Eauze | 17km
Most of today’s walk is flat across rural landscapes, intersected by minor roads. The first 10km of the trail takes you alongside vineyards and fields to the hamlet of Lamothe with its 13th-century guard tower. The walk then heads down into the valley before a steady uphill trail leads you into the Place d’Armagnac in Eauze, the capital of Armagnac. The town was the capital of the Roman province of Novempopulania and it’s worth visiting the archaeology museum in the heart of Eauze, where you can discover the trails of the ancient city of Elusa.
- Walking for the day: 17km, 4h, ↑125m ↓90m
- Accommodation: Hotel Henri IV or similar in Eauze
Day 6: Eauze to Nogaro | 20km
Walk through the vineyards of Armagnac to the beautiful town of Manciet, a historical point on Le Puy Camino. In the Middle Ages, this was where pilgrims coming from Auch would meet those walking Le Puy route. Tonight you overnight at Nogaro, an Armagnac brandy distillery.
- Walking for the day: 20km, 5h, ↑130m ↓200m
- Accommodation: Hotel Le Commerce Nogaro or similar in Nogaro
Day 7: Nogaro to Aire-sur-l’Adour | 27km
Today you walk alongside farmland and through villages for most of the day. On the last stretch, the landscape changes from that of vineyards and farms to pine, oak and chestnut forests. There is quite a bit of road walking but not much traffic, mainly tractors. Your journey ends in Aire-sur-l’Adour, a quiet market town by the Adour River. A settlement has existed here since Roman times, although it is only a trace of the name that still exists. The Roman name was Atura, which later gave rise to Adour. The town extends south from here along Rue Gambetta and Rue Carnot, where you can find many small boutiques.
- Walking for the day: 27km, 6-7h, ↑160m ↓185m
- Accommodation: Hotel N’Atura or similar in Aire-sur-l’Adour
Day 8: Departure
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before departure. Extra nights available on request.
What to expect
Accommodation
Accommodation on this tour includes a mix of welcoming B&Bs and simple, comfortable hotels, with private rooms and en-suite bathrooms. Accommodation along the Camino route are usually stopover places, and unfortunately, we sometimes have a limited choice. They have been carefully selected based on a variety of criteria including their location, warm hospitality, fine local food or commitment to responsible tourism. Extra nights can be booked at any of the locations along the way. If you choose a double or a twin room, we will do our best to book this, but it will not always be possible to confirm the requested room type.
Please note: We aim to book you into each town listed on the itinerary. However, in case of low availability, we may book you at nearby places.
Click to view default hotels
- Hotel de Bastard (Lectoure)
- B&B L’Etape d’Angéline (La Romieu)
- Hotel Le Continental (Condom)
- B&B Carpe Diem (Montréal)
- Hotel Henri IV (Eauze)
- Hotel Le Commerce Nogaro (Nogaro)
- Hotel N’Atura (Aire-sur-l’Adour)
Hotels are subject to availability. In the event of a particular hotel being fully booked for your chosen dates, we will replace it with a hotel of equal value and quality level. We will provide exact accommodation details to you upon booking confirmation.
Meals
Breakfast is included (usually a simple buffet breakfast/coffee and toast/bread/croissant) on all days. When no restaurant location is available on the route, lunches and snacks should either be bought from local shops, or packed lunches can be pre-ordered from your hotel the night before. There are many local restaurants available near to hotels for dinners.
Difficulty and terrain
This walk is graded moderate to strenuous and includes walks of up to 27km a day with some of the walks being fairly strenuous with steeper ascents/descents. A reasonable level of fitness is required. This route can be challenging for those with little walking experience (read more about difficulty grades). Le Puy Camino follows a mixture of farm/dirt tracks, minor roads and footpaths. The route is marked with yellow painted arrows, but please take care at intersections. There are sections on the route where you will divert to follow the red and white stripes of the GR routes. There will often be other walkers around in case you are looking for help. We strongly advise you to follow only marked trails and never try to shorten the path through unknown and unmarked terrain. We provide you with maps, and you can call our local assistance phone number anytime.
When to go
This trip is available from the beginning of April until the end of October.
The weather in southern France is varied. In general, you can expect a mild warm climate and pleasant temperatures for walking from 19C and up to about 26C in summer months. Summers in the south of France are hot, dry and sunny. Late spring and early autumn are less hot but usually still very pleasant and typically warm enough to spend your evenings eating outside.
The flexibility of self-guided walking holidays means that there are no fixed dates, and you can start your trip on any date during the season.
Getting there
Click to view travel options
Arrival in Lectoure: From Toulouse airport (Blagnac) or Bordeaux airport (Mérignac), you can take a train to Agen and Lectoure.
Departure from Aire-sur-l’Adour: As Aire-sur-l’Adour does not have a train station, you have to take a taxi to Mont-de-Marsan (approx. 30mins). At Mont-de-Marsan you take the train to Bordeaux (approx. 1h30mins). From there you can easily reach different various points in France. You can also take a shuttle bus at the end of your trip to reach a train station or to travel back to the starting point. For timetables and further information check the website of SNCF for all French national trains.
Inclusions
Included
- 7 nights in private en-suite rooms
- 7 breakfasts and 5 dinners
- Digital route description and maps
- Luggage transfers from hotel to hotel on all walking days (one piece up to 20kg per person)
- 24/7 phone assistance by our local office/representative
Excluded
- Airfare and connecting land transfers
- Lunches and dinners, drinks and snacks
- Additional luggage
- Travel insurance (required – get a quote online)
- Personal expenses
- Local tourist taxes and entry fees (payable on the spot)
- Any items not explicitly listed as included
Options, extras and supplements
- If you’re travelling in a group, a supplement applies to group members who would like to have a room of their own
- This holiday is available for solo travellers; a supplement will be charged as accommodation and luggage transfer costs are not shared (we never mix and match – solo travellers will be accommodated in single rooms)
- Extra nights
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