Le Puy-en-Velay
France
A town built on volcanic needles, with a chapel on top of one, and the start of the oldest pilgrim road to Santiago
Photo by Burkard Meyendriesch on Unsplash
Photos by Carnet de Voyage d'Alex, Carnet de Voyage d'Alex and Carnet de Voyage d'Alex on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of France
May to September (the pilgrim season, with the Renaissance festival at the end of summer)
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 85mm in May
Where it is
45.04°N, 3.88°E Open in Google Maps
Things to do
A week easily- Climb to Aiguilhe in the morning, before the heat and the groups
- Go to the early mass in the cathedral, to see the pilgrims sent off
- Walk the first stage of the Way out of town for an afternoon, without needing to go to Spain
- Eat lentils three ways in a day, which is not hard here
- Come for the Roi de l’Oiseau festival, when the town dresses as the sixteenth century
Le Puy-en-Velay travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget France
Good valueEuros, and cards nearly everywhere; a few gîtes on the pilgrim road and the smallest village cafés along it still prefer cash.
ATMs & cards
Bank machines in the lower town round the Place du Breuil. Draw cash here before walking out on the Way, because the villages ahead have few machines. Use a bank’s own machine and refuse the offer to convert.
Avoid these
- independent machines that offer to charge you in your own currency
Use these instead
- Crédit Agricole
- Banque Populaire
- Caisse d’Épargne
- La Banque Postale
Cards work in town; take some cash before walking out on the Way.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of France
Very safeA very safe small town. The hazards are the climbs: the cathedral steps, the 268 to Aiguilhe and the Rocher Corneille are steep and polished smooth, and slippery in rain. The town is at 630 metres and the plateaus round it are higher — winters are cold, and snow closes the high roads to the Mézenc. Walkers setting out on the Way in early spring meet snow on the Aubrac.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (7 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
- the upper town — the old streets below the cathedral
- Place du Breuil
- Aiguilhe
- the Jardin Henri Vinay
Worth more attention
- the steps to Saint-Michel d’Aiguilhe — steep, worn smooth and slippery in rain
- the Rocher Corneille — an exposed climb, and the top is windy
- The high plateau roads in winter, when snow and ice close the way to the Mézenc and the Gerbier
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa France visa rules
No visa needed
Freedom of movement — no time limit, and no visa. Bring a passport or national ID card.
Other passports
No visa neededup to 90 days
90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not per country. ETIAS, a paid online authorisation, is being introduced for these passports — check the official link for whether it applies to your travel dates.
Visa required in advance€90 (Schengen short-stay visa)
A Schengen short-stay visa is applied for before travel, at the consulate of your main destination.
How to get it: Apply at the consulate or visa centre of the country you will spend most time in, typically 15 working days ahead and no more than six months before travel.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of France
Excellent and cheapRequired to enter
No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Routine vaccinations up to date
Getting treated
EU/EEA and Swiss visitors are treated on the same terms as residents with an EHIC or GHIC card; UK visitors use a GHIC. Everyone else pays, and travel insurance is worth having for the repatriation cover rather than the treatment.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
GoodPuy lentils are the small green ones with their own appellation, and here they come with sausage, in salad, and in everything else. Verveine du Velay is a green herb liqueur, sweet, and served after dinner whether you asked or not. The cheeses are Auvergne’s — Bleu d’Auvergne and Fourme d’Ambert are both made within an hour.
Travel tipsGetting around
Limited- UberWorks here
- BoltWorks here
- G7Works here
- FREE NOWWorks here
G7 the taxi fleet, by app
- Against a taxi
- Much the same. The flat airport rate is a taxi rule and the apps price against it.
Time zone and your working day
Europe/Paris — 6 hours ahead of you
2 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–11:00 your time, 15:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 03:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 03:00–11:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for France, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolutIn the app
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
French
- HelloBonjourbon-ZHOOR
- PleaseS'il vous plaîtseel voo PLEH
- Thank youMercimer-SEE
- Yes / NoOui / Nonwee / non
4 more phrases
- Excuse meExcusez-moiex-koo-zay MWA
- How much is it?C'est combien ?say com-BYEN
- The bill, pleaseL'addition, s'il vous plaîtla-dee-SYON
- Cheers!Santé !son-TAY
Open with bonjour before anything else. Launching straight into a question without it reads as rude, and explains a lot of reputed French coldness.
Travel tipsReligion
Catholic, and strictly secular
Laïcité is a constitutional principle: religion is kept out of public institutions, and conspicuous religious symbols are banned in state schools. Cover shoulders in cathedrals.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Say bonjour before anything else, every single time you enter a shop
- Keep your voice down in restaurants and on public transport
- Keep both hands visible on the table while eating, wrists on the edge
- Dress a notch smarter than you would at home — it changes how you are treated
Don't
- Do not ask for a doggy bag or substitutions; the dish arrives as the kitchen intends
- Do not start with English without at least attempting bonjour, parlez-vous anglais
- Do not tip more than rounding up — service is included by law
- Do not eat while walking; it reads as slightly uncivilised
Where to stay in Le Puy-en-Velay
No Holistay rentals in Le Puy-en-Velay yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Le Puy-en-Velay on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Lyon Saint-Exupéry LYS
2h 15mfrom the airport· 121 km as the crow flies
A little over two hours by hire car, through Saint-Étienne; by public transport the tram into Lyon and the train on, nearer three and a half.
Also worth pricing: Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne CFE — about two hours by road, with fewer flights.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
