Mayenne

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Mayenne is a small town which sits astride the Mayenne river in the north of Mayenne department. It is on an east-west line between Le Mans and Rennes, south of Caen and north of Angers. To find the town’s first distinguishing feature, you don’t even need to visit, just look on a map. This is the only town in France which has the same name as the river and the department! This interesting fact, as you can imagine, leads to a fair amount of confusion…

The town is known for its castle, and the surrounding area for its cider, its dialect (the French language spoken here causes purists to turn pale!) and its British population.

The town itself has two distinct parts. To the west of the Mayenne river, the Notre-Dame area, named after the impressive basilica, and to the east of the river, Saint-Martin, named after the church. From a tourist’s point of view, the river was quite unfair when it split up the town, because Notre-Dame got the better deal – the basilica itself, the castle and most of the interesting shops. However, many locals prefer St-Martin, which is borne out by the fact that on this side of the river there’s hardly an empty shop to be found.

St-Martin suffered from heavy bombing at the end of the German occupation during World War 2, consequently the buildings have slightly less character than those on the opposite bank.

The castle is Mayenne’s main must-visit attraction. The restoration which had been in progress for as long as most inhabitants can remember has finally been completed, and the long-awaited museum opened in May 2008. And it really was worth waiting for!

The museum is excellent, a modern-style attraction which fits perfectly within the medieval castle. The majority of the information is translated into English, and the lifts make the whole building accessible for those with reduced mobility. A visit to be thoroughly recommended, allow at least an hour to have a good look. Even if you can manage the stairs, don’t miss a trip in the lift with its panoramic view of the river.

Mayenne tourist office is set on stilts on the St-Martin bank of the river, and below it you can hire bikes and motor-boats in season. If you come to visit Mayenne on a sunny day, find time for a stroll along the river. The towpath starts from here, and goes all the way to Laval (30 km south) and beyond.

To get the most attractive walk with the least amount of effort however, drive towards Laval, past the hypermarket. Turn right at the Campanile hotel, and follow the road down and to the left, by the Beau Rivage hotel. If you start your walk from here and follow the towpath downstream away from the town, you can enjoy beautiful countryside views during your peaceful stroll. (The part of the towpath between Mayenne town and this point is much less pretty.) All along the towpath are the old lock-keepers cottages, some of which have been turned into little shops. During the summer months, the locks are manned, mainly by students.

If the weather’s not so kind, you’ll find a good selection of shops in the town, some of the chain variety that you find everywhere, but some far more unusual, such as Monsieur Bizeray’s beautiful home-made chocolate shop. Don’t leave without sampling his wares!

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Mayenne Hotels

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