Halfway between Lyon and Avignon, Valence is located in a plain in the Middle Rhône valley on the edge of the pre-Alps.
The city is sometimes referred to as La La Porte du Midi de la France (The southern gateway of France), and you feel the Mediterranean influences creeping into the architecture and streets of Valence. You’ll have enough on your hands for a weekend break, especially if you include the town of Romans, Valence’s close neighbor on the Isère right before it feeds into the Rhône. You can learn about life in the western Alps at the Musée de Valence, or head to the banks of Rhône and Isère to cycle and drive through vineyards, forests and pastoral villages. Discover the best things to do in Valence.
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1. Musée de Valence
Starting with prehistory, this superb museum deals with life in the Middle Rhône Valley in the course of 4,000 years. There are more than 20,000 items in the collection, with interesting pieces from almost every stage of Valence’s evolution.
From Roman times there are altars on which bulls would have been sacrificed and a room full of mosaics. For something really strange there’s a taxidermied goat kid with two heads in the natural history section.
The fine arts galleries meanwhile have paintings by Camille Corot, Hyacinthe Rigaud, and the Dutch Golden Age artist Gerard van Honthorst.
2. Maison des Têtes
An especially ornate building to draw your attention on the Grande Rue, the Maison des Totes was completed in 1532 and is named after many of the sculptural heads that decorate its facade. These figurative images symbolize the winds, fortune, time, law, theology and medicine.
While above the corridor leading you from the street to the courtyard are busts representing the Roman emperors.
3. Parc Jouvet
Unfurling on a slope next to the river, Parc Jouvet opened in 1905 and is named in honor of the man whose donation made it possible for the city to buy this land. At the top of the park is a platform where you can lean on the railing and ponder the lovely views of the cliffs on the opposite bank of Rhône.
4. Peynet Bandstand
On the Champ de Mars next to the park is a small spectacle that contributed greatly to French popular culture in the 20th century.
This 19th-century stand inspires illustrator Raymond Pennet to create his two Amoureux (Lovers) characters in 1942. They succeeded after one night and even appeared on the French stamp in 1982. The bandstand dating back to 1890 and is an artistic style with pretty arches and iron railings.
5. Center du Patrimoine Arménien
In Valence University’s former law faculty is an institution preserving and showcasing Armenia’s rich culture.
If you’re wondering why this should be in Valence, this neighborhood in the middle of today’s pedestrian center was settled by a large Armenian population in the early-20th century.
There are many multimedia media at the museum, including accounts filmed by men, women, and children about the genocide of 1915-17.
6. Valence Cathedral
Working on what is now the oldest monument in Valence dates back to the 1000s. But like many religious buildings in France, Saint-Apollinaire Church was partially destroyed during the Huguenots' Religious War in the 1500s.
Over the following decades, the building was completely restored to its original Roman appearance and still has many enchanting clues that point to its antiquity. One is the unusual polygonal apse and ambulatory, which resembles the famous Romanesque churches of Auvergne to the west.
As you look around you may notice that many of the stones have Roman inscriptions as they were recycled from ancient buildings around the town.
7. Place des Clercs
On a square like this, in the middle of Vieux Valence, of ancient streets, like ravines, you will realize that you are on your way to southern France. The houses enclosing the square are painted in pastel colors with terracotta roofs and the outdoor restaurant tables are shaded by plane trees.
Being next to the cathedral, this is also one of the oldest locations in Valence, that was first laid out in the 400s and was for a long time a venue for public acts of justice. Today, the only major public gatherings are for the real market. on Saturday!
8. Parc Jean-Perdrix
Your motivation to go to the eastern suburbs of Valence is to witness an award-winning urban artwork.
The Château d’Eau here is made up of two titanic helical structures measuring 52 and 57 meters and was installed in 1969. The work is often listed as one of the country’s best public sculptures and is protected as a piece of 20th-century heritage.
The park around it is the largest in the city and a quiet location for a gentle amble, with cedar groves and a pond with water lilies and ducks.
9. La Maison Mauresque
Here, a building highlights the obsession of the 19th century with all things Eastern. La Maison Mauresque (Moorish House), commissioned by industrialist Charles Ferlin in the 1850s.
You’ll only be able to see the facade, but it merits a detour on Rue Gaston Rey. The architect used cast cement to achieve a noticeable trompe l’oeil effect on the outer walls, with less hassle than he carved the stone motifs by hand.
Therefore, in that sense, it is a classic example of how historical design was reassessed in the 19th century with modern construction methods.
10. International Shoe Museum
Take a short trip to Romans-sur-Isère and you can drop by this museum to honor footwear unlike anyone else, in a town long respected for its leather and shoe trade. The location is very beautiful, on the grounds of the Convent of the Visective in lovely gardens, and the attraction is more attractive than the sound.
In what used to be a cell nun is a large store of footwear dating back to 2,000 BC and a few thousand. You can see a pair of Musketeers and a medieval crakow with long, pointed toes.
There are also pieces collected from around the world, like a boot worn by a Chinese woman with her legs tied.
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