Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert

Member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France

Cevenol2 (Wikipedia user)Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert CC BY-SA 2.0 fr
Stefi123P1010789 rue de Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert CC BY-SA 3.0
Havang(nl)Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (Hérault, Fr) ancienne Tour-prison CC0
Havang(nl)Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (Hérault, Fr) la mairie CC0
FinoskovSt Guilhem-le-Désert,abbaye de Gellone J.P.Cavaillé01 CC BY-SA 3.0
Henri MOREAU148 Saint-guilhem-le-Désert Eglise et cloître CC BY-SA 4.0
Henri MOREAU153 Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert Eglise CC BY-SA 4.0
Fritz Geller-GrimmAbbey Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert fg03 CC BY-SA 2.5
Fritz Geller-GrimmAbbey Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert fg10 CC BY-SA 2.5
AlbertvillanovadelmoralAntiga església de Sant Llorenç (Sant Guilhèm dau Desèrt) - Absis (dreta)CC BY-SA 3.0
Stefanobasta (Stefan Fink).Bridge and aqueduct over Hérault river near Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert, seen from Pont du Diable, Hérault, France - 200503…Public domain
Martin SouchayBufet orgue CC BY-SA 3.0

Guilhem, Count of Toulouse, founded the abbey of Gellone here in 804, when the valley was almost empty: the desert of the village's name. Houses rise in tiers along the Verdus stream to where it meets the gorge of the Hérault, and a relic of the True Cross made the abbey a great medieval pilgrimage stop. Part of its cloister now stands in The Cloisters museum in New York.

Highlights

Abbaye de Gellone, the Romanesque abbey listed as World Heritage
Walk up the Verdus to the Cirque de l'Infernet, about 1h15 return
Pont du Diable nearby, for swimming and kayaking on the Hérault (FR)
Maison Lorimy, the finest Romanesque façade in the village
Summer concerts in the abbey and the Penitents' chapel

Text adapted from Wikipedia (Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (FR), Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (EN), Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (IT)), Wikivoyage (Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (FR), Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert (EN)). Available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Population: 237

Things to see

Events through the year

Medieval festival Historical · First Sunday of June
Rencontres Musicales de Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert Music and arts · SummerConcerts in Gellone Abbey

Dates follow the traditional patterns in our sources: check locally before you travel.

Adapted from Wikipedia (Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert). Available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Specialities of Occitania

Typical of the region rather than of this village.

Petit pâté de NîmesBread and pasta
Arnaud 25Soupe de poisson à la setoise 1 CC BY-SA 4.0
Fish soup of SèteDishFish cooked with vegetables, white wine and olive oil, served with rouille croutons
traafPain paillasse de Lodève tranché CC BY-SA 2.0
Pain paillasse de LodèveBread and pasta
Seph SwainTourin CC BY 2.0
TourinDishGarlic soup typical of the Dordogne and the Toulouse area
MilhàsDishMaize or millet flour porridge, set and often grilled, eaten in Languedoc
BajanaDishTraditional chestnut soup of the Cévennes