What to do and what to see during your trip to Tourrettes-sur-Loup? Panorama of things to do in Tourrettes-sur-Loup!
Small medieval village of 3992 inhabitants troking on a rocky grove, overlooking the foothills of the Regional Natural Park of the Préalpes of the South, visit Tourrettes-sur-Loup offers a magical and relaxing setting in a green setting a few kilometers from Vence and Nice .
Known to be fortified by houses constituting the ramparts, erected on a rocky plateau falling at peak, this village of the Alpes-Maritimes is also known to be the capital of the violet, a tradition high in the rank of local institution. On site, many prehistoric vestiges dating from the Middle Paleolithic (-300,000; -30,000) were identified, including some remains of the hunter-gatherer of the time, the Neandertal Man. The Wanderlix editor has been looking at this picturesque village to find out what to do in Tourrettes-sur-Loup.
1. Visit the medieval village
Photo credit: Flickr – Furfante
Visiting Tourrettes-sur-Loup, it is to explore the narrow alleys with multiple deliveries, with picturesque authentic buildings and vaults, typical of the Midi Provençal as well as old stone facades renovated with meticulousness. It is also a high-colored and flavoured journey. Because the alleys are lined with flowers, including the famous violet, the national emblem of this village that lives all year round at the rhythm of this sweet flower.
In the heart of the village, the Grand’Rue houses no less than thirty workshops of artists, galleries and boutiques of creative artisans – nothing but that! – having gathered there to enjoy an exceptional, sunny climate of life all year round, exquisite, lenifying and enabling creativity to be released. This imbroglio of small paths forming a knot in the heart of the village houses paintings, sculptures, weavings, jewelry and pottery, for the happiness of any visitor. While visiting Tourrettes-sur-Loup, don’t miss the old Château des Villeneuve and its belfry, dating from the 11th and 15th centuries: today the place and place of the town hall, the building traces the history of a powerful and influential family in the village of the 14th century to the French Revolution.
2. Visit the Church of Saint Gregory
Photo credit: City of Tourrettes-sur-Loup
If you are an amateur of religious vestiges and buildings and you ask that you do in Tourrettes-sur-Loup, don’t look anymore: enter the oblong nave of the church of Saint Gregory, a building dating from the 12th century and renovated in 1551, giving it a Romano-Renaissance style. Inside, you can admire a stele dating from the 3rd century dedicated to Mercury – god of commerce, thieves, travels and messengers of other gods in Roman mythology - and a triptych of the 15th century, inspired by the Bréa brothers, Niçois painters famous in their living time.
3. The violet party
Photo credit: City of Tourrettes-sur-Loup
If you can visit Tourrettes-sur-Loup between late February and early March, you will have the unique opportunity to discover, on two weekends, the famous violet festival, a local festivity that does not risk falling into disuse. For the occasion, the Bastides aux violettes – gardens and museum dedicated to the violet – is open to the public from 10am to 5pm without interruption. In the village, a local market is organized from 9am to 5pm and many other animations are on the programme:
- Traditional music concerts,
- Guided tours of the cultural heritage,
- Bal and folk group,
- Evening meal,
- Ass-backed walks,
- Bitch contest,
- Workshops games and fun animations.
In 2017, the village party was held on 25-26 February and on 4 and 5 March.
4. Rafting and speleology in the Wolf Valley
The village of Tourrettes-sur-Loup extends to the edges of the gorges and the Loup valley. Ideal for rafting (water hiking) in the Gorges du Loup or speleology in the Wolf Valley. Two activities that can be booked online.
How to get to Tourrettes-sur-Loup?
Tourrettes-sur-Loup is accessible by road and is about 45 minutes by car from Nice. We have to take Vence to get there. There is a free parking place de la Madeleine (300m from the centre of the village), connected to the village by a free shuttle (open day shuttle hours from 9am to 7pm and public holidays from 10am to 12pm), or a paid parking in the centre of the village around the Place de la Libération.
The nearest airport to Tourrettes-sur-Loup is Nice. To find cheap flights to Nice, you can search our partner's website Skyscanner .
Where to stay in Tourrettes-sur-Loup?
You can find a cheap hotel in Tourrettes-sur-Loup by doing a search on this Compare hotels .
Main photo credit: Flickr – tmorkemo
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