France – Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux (En)

The capital of the Tricastin, a historic region in the Rhône Valley, Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux is an ancient fortified town in Provençale Drôme. It possesses a magnificent medieval heritage represented mainly by its remarkable 12th and 13th-century cathedral.

Where to stay

We stayed near the tourist office in the town’s free motorhome area (44.34726, 4.7698 lat, long). It is a closed area for 13 motorhomes, emptying and filling of grey and black water is located outside in the car park. You can explore the entire town on foot. We recommend it to see the city, we spent two days there without problems. Arrive in the morning as it gets busy in the afternoon. Thanks to the municipality for thinking of us and providing a free area.

What to see

We entered the historic centre from the tourist office. We wandered along the cobbled streets with Renaissance-style mansions and relics from Roman and medieval times until we reached the Cathedral from the 12th and 13th centuries. A marvel of the Provençal Romanesque style, its choir contains a mosaic from the same era depicting the city of Jerusalem. The 17th-century high altar of gilded wood, the carved decorations in the nave, and the pipe organ from the early 18th century complete this harmonious interior.

Opposite the cathedral chevet, the House of the Truffle and the Tricastin a major centre for black truffle production, has a fun and interactive exhibition telling the story of this unique mushroom, the region’s black diamond. The entrance to the truffle house is 3 euros. We didn’t go in because we had Asha with us.

Going up some stairs you find the square where the town hall is.

We continue walking through the streets and exit through one of the doors of the historic centre and find a square with restaurants and the town’s Protestant church.

What to eat

We decided to have lunch in one of the restaurants in the square, we ate the dish of the day for 12.50 euros with a jug of white wine for 7 euros. I ate hake with zucchini, asparagus, potato, fish pâté and a cheese sauce, everything was delicious except the pâté which I didn’t like and I gave it to Ben. Ben ate the chef’s stew, with white beans, chorizo ​​and chicken, which was also very good.

Our next stop is Tournon-sur-Rhône, bordering the Rhône, in front of the Tain-l’Hermitage vineyards and dominated by the silhouette of the imposing castle from the 10th, 15th and 16th centuries, which you can see in the next blog!