Le Mans: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

Le Mans features the Cité Plantagenêt, a 20-hectare historic district: cobbled lanes, half-timbered houses and Renaissance town palaces lie within a Roman wall. The Cathedral of Saint-Julien combines Romanesque and Gothic architecture; it is 134 metres long and covers 5,000 square metres.

Renting a holiday apartment in Le Mans can be part of your personal travel planning.

Culture

The Musée de Tessé, near the Cité Plantagenêt, displays Italian, Flemish, Dutch and French paintings from the 15th to the 19th century, as well as furniture, sculptures, works of art and an Egyptian gallery. Since 2001, this gallery has included life-size reconstructions of the tombs of Queen Nefertari and the Theban governor Sennefer. The Musée M24 offers themed tours of its collections lasting 1.5 to 2 hours, focusing on the 24 Hours of Le Mans, motorsport and highlights of the collections.

History

The Roman wall forms an irregular quadrilateral measuring 450 metres in length and 200 metres in width. Twelve towers, one gate and three posterns are visible. In the Cathedral of Saint-Julien, Geoffroy Plantagenêt, Count of Anjou and Maine, married Matilda the Empress on 17 June 1128. The Maison de l’Eau has been a listed monument since March 2024.

Discoveries

The Petit Train du Mans offers a 40-minute guided tour through the Cité Plantagenêt, the pedestrian streets of the city centre and across the Place de la République. Visitors can explore the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans independently with a free companion app; guided tours for the public are also offered throughout the year.

The Maison de l’Eau is located in a former drinking-water production facility and displays steam and hydraulic machines, waterwheels and a Bollée wind turbine. There are also interactive modules on the water cycle and life in the river, including large aquariums with freshwater fish.

Nature

The Jardin des Tanneries is a garden on the banks of the Sarthe and offers views of the Roman wall and the Cité Plantagenêt. The remains of the medieval city wall and the last pillar of the former X Bridge can also be seen there. The Arche de la Nature in Le Mans has signposted mountain-bike trails.

Other destinations: Lavernat, Surfonds, Fercé-Sur-Sarthe, Saint-Germain-D'arcé, Loué, Neufchâtel-En-Saosnois, Saint-Mars-D'outillé, Marigné-Laillé

To the higher-level travel overview: Sarthe.