|
 The pleasures of the Vichy region.
Health, culture, sport and refinement have  already done the reputation of Vichy. Patients taking the waters come to enjoy the know-how of this queen of spa resort and simultaneously, to discover a luminous town with its peaceful paths in a hundred-year-old parks and its many amazing architectural styles. There is no reason to get bored there. In a luxury and delighted atmosphere, this conference town attracts visitors with its rich cultural programm proposed by its opera. Furthermore, there are numerous festivals around like the unmissable“The Cultures of the World“ (les Cultures du Monde)in Gannat
A trip through time around Vichy -
The trip could begin with the magnificent opera  convention centre of Vichy built in 1865 by Napoleon the 3rd. Magnificently restored, this listed building offers a fabulous variety of luxurious atmosphere through the Second Empire, the Edwardian Period and the modernism. If you push the gates of Vichy, you will discover the marks of olden times through the Romanesque masterpieces of the land of the Sioule. This trip naturally ends at Rhinopolis with a fascinating play oriented discovery of the palaeontological site of Gannat.
At the origin of Vichy’s water -
Present in bottles, in the famous “Pastille Vichy“ (the well-known traditional mint-flavoured sweet) or used in mud applications,  Vichy’s water has its origins at the foot of the volcanic massif of the chain of the Puys, gushing from the numerous springs bored at the end of the 19th century around Vichy. Close to Hauterive, Abrest and Bellerive-sur-Allier, a digestive walk will lead you to the origins of these springs with names, like the spring Roger, the spring of the Dôme or the spring of the Lys.
An astonishing environment - In Vichy, the water is not only therapeutic. The soul of the town is also the large transformed area of 500 acres (120 ha) of the Allier lake which welcomes every year many high-level sporting events and which is adapted for the practice of watersports, from canoeing and rowing, as well as the observation of salmons that transit in the river. Above the calm waters of the lake, the 18 holes golf course of the Sporting Club is also a must for every amateurs, with its 18150 ft (5500m) of play area located in the heart of a rich arboretum composed of 300 essences. To practice during an afternoon or for a few days with a touristic pass.
 A name that rhymes with a thousand and one specialities - From the water of Vichy Célestin or Saint-Yorre, renowned for high content of soduim, to the refreshing hexagonal mint-flavoured sweet “Pastille“and the well-known checked material, there are many specialities that make the town’s name famous. The pork scratchings pie makes an exception to this rule but remains a specialities of the region. Every self-respecting baker proposes this salted brioche of which great originality lies in its grattons : gently cooked small browned fat dices.
|
