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Surroundings

At a glance Nearest restaurant:   Saint-Gely (walking distance). Other restaurants nearby:   Cornillon and Goudargues. Nearest village for daily shopping and ATM:   Goudargues (3 km). Markets in the area:   Goudargues: wednesday   Bagnols: wednesday   Uzès: saturday. Tourist Information Languedoc Roussillon: Languedoc Roussillon Gard: Gard Villages Gard Regions of the Gard: Gard Provençal Camargue Cévennes Côte du Rhône Valley of the Cèze Uzège Cities and villages in the area: Aigueze Argilliers Avignon Bagnols-sur-Cèze Barjac Belvézet Carsan Castillon-du-Gard Cavillargues Chusclan Codolet Collias Connaux Cornillon Fons-sur-Lussan Fontareches Fournes Gaujac Goudargues Grau du Roi/Port Camargue Issirac La Bastide d'Engras La Brugière La Grande Motte La Roque-sur-Cèze Laudun Laval-Saint-Roman Le Garn Le Pin Les Angles Lirac Lussan Mejannes-le-Clap Montclus Montfaucon Montpellier Nîmes Orsan Pont-Saint-Esprit Pougnadoresse Pouzilhac Pujaut Remoulins Rivières Rochefort-du-Gard Rochegude Roquemaure Sabran Saint-Alexandre Saint-André-de-Roquepertuis Saint-André-d'Olérargues Saint-Christol-de-Rodières Saint-Etienne-des-Sorts Saint-Geniès-de-Comolas Saint-Gervais Saint-Hilaire-d'Ozilhan Saint-Jean-de-Maruéjols Saint-Julien-de-Peyrolas Saint-Laurent-de-Carnols Saint-Laurent-des-Arbres Saint-Laurent-la-Vernède Saint-Marcel-de-Careiret Saint-Michel-d'Euzet Saint-Nazaire Saint-Paul-les-Fonts Saint-Paulet-de-Caisson Saint-Pons-la-Calm Saint-Privat-de-Champclos Saint-Quentin-la-Poterie Saint-Victor-des-Oules Saint-Victor-la-Coste Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer Salazac Sauveterre Saze Sommières Tavel Tharaux Tresques Uzès Vallerargues Valliguières Vénéjan Verfeuil Vers Pont-du-Gard Villeneuve-les-Avignon

Villa Forza is situated in the South of France, in the departement of the Gard in the region Languedoc-Roussillon. The Gard is undoubtedly one of the most attractive areas of the country. You will find here the Mediterranean and the rugged area of the Camargue to the south. To the west are the forests of the Cévennes whilst the famous Gorges de l'Ardèche are to the north. The Rhône river in the east marks the boundary with the Provence. In the Gard the sun shines more than 300 days a year. Lovers of culture will find much to their liking as well. World famous is - of course - the Pont-du-Gard, one of the most visited monuments of the country. Apart from this impressive aquaduct you can get acquainted with quite a few small medieval towns like Uzès and Sommières and with beautiful charming little villages like Castillon-du-Gard, Lussan and Montclus. Nîmes is the biggest city of the area. The lovely city of Avignon is on the border of the Gard and the Provence. Top The Cèze Valley The Cèze is the most important river in the northeast of the Gard. It's source is on the Mont Lozère in the Cévennes. It seeks its way to Barjac and through Bagnols-sur-Cèze to the confluence with the Rhône river. The landscape of this area is extremely harmonious and consists of green valleys with scattered characteristic villages. In short: a real eldorado for hikers and kayak enthousiasts. The location of Villa Forza is more or less midway between Barjac and Bagnols in the hamlet of Talazargues. This small place has only a few houses. The neighbouring village of Saint-Gely is not much bigger, although there's a restaurant and a real sight seeing spot: La Chapelle St. Saveur. This small 12th century chapel on a hill is the object of a pilgrimage in the beginning of the months of May and August. The town hall is in nearby Cornillon which is more than worth a visit. It stretches out in the shadows of classic fortifications and offers a beautiful vista over the valley. There are also remains of a castle that is owned by the same family for at least four centuries. Two kilometres southwest of Cornillon you'll reach the pleasant and pittoresque town of Goudargues. It gets its nickname of "Venice of the Gard" from the little canal through the centre. In the warm summer months the banks of this canal are full of restaurants and terraces. Goudargues offers a distinctly Provencal atmosphere with century old platans, a fountain and a church. This is also the place to buy your English newspaper. The village of Verfeuil, 7 kilometres southwest of Goudargues is well known because of the rare lavendel essence that is produced locally. About 5 kilometres northwest of Goudargues is another quaint village: Saint-André-de-Roquepertuis, where the houses bask in the shadow of the massive belltower of the church. Montclus, 5 kilometres further away, is a charming village in a loop of the Cèze. Towering over the village is the donjon (tower) of the ruined castle. If you continue your way in northwestern direction you'll arrive in the somewhat bigger town of Barjac (1500 inhabitants) near the Gorges de l'Ardèche and the Gorges de la Cèze. The 17th century castle, the church and the old houses form a beautiful ensemble. Not far from Barjac you can also visit Orgnac l'Aven, the most famous caves of the country. Driving from Cornillon in the other direction, to the southeast, you will soon reach La Roque-sur-Cèze, a collection of old houses in a beautiful setting on a hill. You have to leave your car outside the village on the parking lot. A very nice place to stroll through the narrow winding streets. Saint-Gervais a bit further on has nestled itself at the foot of steep hills between vineyards and has a beautiful 12th century church. A further 4 kilometres away is the nearest "big" town: Bagnols-sur-Cèze with about 20.000 inhabitants. This town has an interesting centre and lively small streets in the old part. Top North of the Cèze Valley Directly north of the Cèze Valley you will find the famous Gorges de l'Ardèche: secluded small canyons where the emerald green Ardèche river finds its way through the sun warmed rocks. The Ardèche river constitutes the boundary with the departement of the same name. It seeks its way through a rugged landscape over a distance of about 35 kilometres. A fantastic view! For people who love hiking, kanoeing and kayakking this is paradise on earth. Top East of the Cèze Valley East of the Cèze Valley the Rhône river streams from north to south. Here vineyards bask in the sun on the low hills. In this area there's a plethora of cooperative and private wine cellars. Interesting towns in this Côte du Rhône area are Roquemaure, Tavel (famous for its rosé), Lirac (another famous wine village) and the lovely village of Saint-Laurent-des-Arbres that has retained its medieval character. More to the south you will find the beautiful city of Avignon. Top South of the Cèze Valley There are plenty of vineyards south of the Cèze Valley as well. This region is called Uzège, deriving its name from the most important town of the area: Uzès (9000 inhabitants). This medieval town is extremely beautiful and charming with many 17th and 18th century houses. North of Uzès you will find the villages of Saint-Victor-des-Oules (famous for the quartz quarries and the strange sandstone rocks) and Saint-Quentin-la-Poterie (yes, largely devoted to ceramic pottery). A real pearl is the fortified village of Lussan, 18 kilometres northwest of Uzès, possibly the finest hilltop village in the South of France and an authentic version of a Provencal village. East of Uzès (in the direction of Avignon) a visit to the Pont-du-Gard should not be excluded in your itinerary. Top A bit further away The city of Nîmes (140.000 inhabitants) is about 25 kilometres south of Uzès. You can still feel the Roman influence here. Nîmes is definitely worth a visit on a day trip, just as the city of Montpellier further south. Sommières is a lovely authentic little village in the vicinity of Nîmes. The region Petit Camargue south of Nîmes attracts many visitors. It takes a bit more than an hour to drive from Villa Forza to the Mediterranean Sea where you can enjoy the beaches of Les Saintes Maries de la Mer, the twin villages Grau du Roi/Port Camargue or the futuristic La Grande Motte. Further westward you can make lovely day trips to the Cévennes while to the west, at the other side of the Rhône river the temptations of the Provence await you. Top