Chaudes-Aigues: Holiday apartments and holiday homes

In Chaudes-Aigues, the Source du Par reaches 82 °C and is considered the naturally hottest spring in Europe.

Water and heat

The Source du Par supplies the Caleden thermal centre with a flow rate of 300 litres per minute. It is located in an alley above the Place du Marché.

Those choosing Chaudes-Aigues for a stay centred around the thermal springs may wish to rent a holiday apartment.

Caleden’s thermal leisure area includes an indoor swimming pool, a thermal lagoon, a counter-current swimming area, a large whirlpool, underwater jets, a cold-water pool, bubbling baths, geysers, waterfalls, a sauna and a hammam. The Caleden spa offers massages as well as body and facial treatments.

Géothermia presents the history of the thermal springs of Chaudes-Aigues and their beneficial properties. On board the Nautile, Géothermia also offers an immersive depiction of black smokers and the unusual wildlife surrounding them.

Culture

The Chapelle des Pénitents houses a restored 17th-century altarpiece in the Spanish Baroque style and is used seasonally as an exhibition venue.

The Église Saint-Martin Saint-Blaise has carved wooden choir stalls from the 16th century, which are classified as historic monuments. The church is also heated using geothermal energy.

The hot-water washhouse, renovated in 1999, is fed by the 62 °C Lestende spring. It has two successive basins in which the water gradually cools and recalls that water was once used to treat wool.

In every district of Chaudes-Aigues, a statue of the respective patron saint stands in a glazed niche on the wall of a house.

Trails and history

The “Chaudes-Aigues, de Par en Par” circular route takes visitors through the history of water and to local points of interest at 14 stops.

The Le Couffour hike is an easy 1.5-kilometre circular route in Chaudes-Aigues. It leads to Château du Couffour and offers a viewpoint over Chaudes-Aigues and the Remontalou Valley.

The keep visible today and the residential building now used as a farmhouse are remnants of Château du Couffour, a fortress built in the 14th century that was once flanked by seven towers.

Local life

At the Marché traditionnel de Chaudes-Aigues on the Place du Marché, local producers, market gardeners and fresh-produce traders sell their products.

Saint-Santin-Cantalès, Clavières, Laveissière, Murat, Beaulieu, Virargues, Saint-Gérons and Pailherols.

Cantal