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LE PAYS CATHARE, THE BRAND OF AUDE'S QUALITY

Initiated in 1988 by the Conseil Général de l’Aude, the programme Pays Cathare aims to favour a process of local development based on a unique territorial quality approach. It highlights the historical heritage of the department, through the sites of the Pays Cathare, as well as the human heritage, through local know-how.

During your escapades in Aude, rely on the brand Pays Cathare. It guarantees the authenticity and the quality of the services offered by Aude's professionals. This brand regroups 900 actors from varied domains, such as tourism, viticulture, craft, food.... It breaks down into four lines of services and products :

To prepare your stay, as a couple, a family or a group, and depending on your taste and your budget, the brand Pays Cathare® presents a selection of Aude's best addresses...

Hotels,
Ranked between 2 and 4 stars, these are charming places where the owners will welcome you in a warm and personalised way. They will give you relevant advice on what to do and discover... the best products to taste... and make your stay unforgettable.

Camping sites
Enjoy the quietness and the comfort, discover a rich heritage as well as the best products of the Pays Cathare.
The owners will welcome you in a warm and personalised way, amongst a team of skilled professionals, and will offer you comfort, cleanliness and site maintenance, in sites of quality, respecting the environment.

Gites and Guest Houses
With comfort guaranteed by the brands Gîtes de France®, Clévacances and Accueil Paysan, the owners of Pays Cathare  gites and guest houses welcome you as a privileged guest. Ambiance, decoration, character, make all the difference to give you unforgettable holidays amongst friends or family.

The art of good reception, is one of the things you will discover in these craftsmen and winegrowers, who will lead you warmly in their workshop or wine warehouse to tell you with passion about how they create, whether it's an art object or wine.

Art craftsmen
Art craftsmen of the Pays Cathare are talented professionals, holders of a unique know-how and passionate designers. Their enthusiasm along with their perfect command of their art, lead to truly authentic and original pieces of art.
Strongly attached to their territory and their trade, they are as ambassadors who will know how to welcome you and share with you a privileged time in their workshop.
Painter of popular pictures, jewellery designer, stylist, ceramicist, woodworkers, stone cutters, they all share common values, dear to the quality approach of Pays Cathare, the quality, the origin and the authenticity of know-how. 

Wine tasting cellars
Winegrowers share with you their culture, their art of living and secrets of their territories. Their wine tasting cellars are the expression of a diversity of lands, of the quality of a know-how. The ambiance that you will find there, is part of the history of these men and women, passionate about their trade, who elaborate season after season, wines of great quality. They welcome you in the heart of their lands.

Whether you have a thirst for culture, a need for nature, a taste for thrill, the will to go back to earth, the Pays Cathare offers you a wide range of activities and visits to fullfil your expectations.
As a couple, among friends or family, in the company of a skilled guide, you can live a new life experience. The guides mission is to ensure that you understand this land, its history, its landscapes, its culture, its know-how, its traditions.

The « Sites Pôles » (Pole sites) of the Pays Cathare
The Pays Cathare's heart is deep in the South : its identity is a patchwork, a contrasted land, shaped with History, which invites you to multiple journeys.
Medieval castles and Romanesque abbeys are the witnesses of the conflict which opposed, 800 years ago, hunted cathars with orthodox holders.
These exceptional monuments, as an ensemble or as unique pieces, embody the Pays Cathare and represent its past, its present, and of course, its future.

Natural and Cultural Tourist sites
Caves, windmills, museums, promenade boats, tourist trains, are as many activities and sites that invite you to discover an exceptional nature, and this land's history and culture. You will meet passionate professionals who will share with you the treasures and beauty of the sites. Playful and adapted services are offered to families with children.

Outdoor activities
The river Aude constitutes a natural space which offers to nature's lovers, a wide range of white water activities, in a preserved environment. On a path of 170 km, from the Pyrenees to the mouth of the Mediterranean, the integral descent is a paradise for white water activities, in the sites of the gorges of Saint Georges and of Pierre Lys. In its bustling waters torrents, many activities are proposed : canoe, kayak, rafting, white water swimming (hydrospeed). These varied landscapes also offer a great subterranean and aerial playground for activities such as via ferrate, climbing, adventure paths and cavities dedicated to speleology. Professionals are skilled and experienced, aim at a quality service, and they will share their know how and knowledge to make this discovery fabulous and full of surprises.

Guides and Lecturers of the Pays Cathare®
What about discovering Aude, Pays Cathare, with a guide ?
The Pays Cathare and its magnificient landscapes, between sea and moutains.The Pays Cathare with its castles and abbeys. The Pays Cathare with its gastronomy and its wines... It's even better with a lecturer guide of the Pays Cathare !
Guides and lecturers with the label Pays Cathare, are certified ambassadors to Aude's history secrets and heritage.