Museums, parks and gardens

Textile and horn comb museum

Lavelanet

The Textile and Horn Comb Museum presents the stages in the manufacture of a cloth and a horn comb in the atmosphere and ambience preserved from the 1st cloth factory in Lavelanet.

It’s an invitation to travel, to the heart of materials and eras, from the Middle Ages to the 21ᵉ century.

The visit can be self-guided or guided. Theguided tour is fascinating, punctuated by demonstrations, using hand tools and of how machines work, in production.

You’ll have the chance tointeract with craftsmen who run demonstration areas, and the opportunity to take part in introductory workshops as well as creative spinning, medieval weaving, tapisserie and felting techniques.

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Montsegur Museum

This museum exhibits the discoveries from excavations on the castle’s historic site. You can discover boulets, scissors, weapons, and objects of daily life from the XIIIᵉ century.

It’s also a permanent exhibition on catharism in Ariège.

A vision of what was the everyday lifestyle of the men and women who lived through the ages on the site of Montségur castle.

In addition to the exhibits, models and other reproductions, there are the emouvantes sépultures (the only ones found to date on the pog) of a man and a woman who died during the siege of 1243 – 1244.

Open from May to October, Wednesday to Sunday. Closed Tuesdays.

For further information:

05 61 01 10 27 or mairie.montsegur@orange.fr

Bar Expo de Vals

The first museum in Vals was created by Abbé Julien Durand in 1964 in a house belonging to the Evêché de Pamiers. This house now belongs to the commune of Vals. The new museum, inaugurated on July 4, 2009, is completed which makes it a place of life and exchange, co-managed by the municipality and the Association des amis de Vals.

The exhibition space presents the archaeological material discovered on the Vals site, around the church from prehistory to the early modern period. Here are preserved the objects found during the first excavations carried out by Abbé Durand in the vicinity of Montségur.

The desire of the association and the municipality of Vals is to maintain free access to this reception area and the church. The church can be visited all year round (generally from 10am to 5pm). The bar-expo is open from June to October, between 11am and 7pm. Outside this period, it is open on request for groups.

The extraordinary garden

Lieurac

Irène and François, the owners, have teamed up with a group of artists to design a balade punctuated by artistic creations, flowers and vegetables of forgotten varieties. Between rivers, trees and the valley’s hills, visitors will find themselves on playgrounds and places of artistic questioning.

The walks are completely autonomous and free.

Some concerts mingle with the stroll for a sweet musical moment with Latino tones.

Beverages and refreshments on site, but you can also bring your own picnic.

The little garden is open from Thursday to Sunday from July 20 to August 17

The big garden from Thursday to Sunday from August 17 to 27

Bamboo Park

In a magnificent green setting, the Parc aux Bambous invites you to come and discover a jardin labellisé remarquable since 2006.

Over its five hectares, it boasts one of the premier collections of bamboos in France.

In a spirit of discovery, calm and serenity, this little corner of paradise ensures a total change of scenery. Between a thousand and one kinds of bamboo, a labyrinth invites youto get lost!

The park also features a flower garden, an orchard of apple trees of ancient varieties, remarkable trees, a collection of ferns, a collection of grasses, a pond with water lilies, sculptures hidden in the park….

The visit is part of aself-guided tour, with explanatory panels, or as a guided tour for groups (by reservation).

Open from April to October.

Buffalo Farm

Bison Farm is a animal park 1,500 meters long, where you can visit and observe numerous animal species (bison, aurochs, watussi, highlands, emus, rheas, deer, fallow deer, Patagonian hares…).

A family outing suitable for young and old. Pets are accepted on a leash.

Mini farm visitable on foot, walking trail and tractor tour.

Open from April to October.

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