Echologia

Clearly there’s much to do on site, but it’s worth taking some time to explore the surrounds as well. It’s said that there are two cows for every person in the dairy-producing Mayenne region, so this is a particularly appealing area for cheese fiends. Get the lowdown at the Lactopôle museum in Laval before poking around the town’s fromageries for local treats. Also in Laval are the 12th-century château, where you can take a guided tour of the dungeon tower and see the low chapel used as a prison during the French Revolution, and the Jardin de la Perrine, filled with colourful blooms and home to a small menagerie of goats. Half an hour away is Jublains, a well-preserved ancient Roman town for wanders around the amphitheatre, baths, temple and fortress. If you fancy going back further, it's also half an hour to Saulges, where some 150 prehistoric caves have been unearthed in the midst of a canyon surrounding by cracking views and walks. At present a pair of caves plus their Palaeolithic interior wall paintings are open to the public, and if rock art doesn't appeal there's rock climbing to be had in the area too.