Kabaneko

The Massif Central is a haven for outdoorsy types, with myriad walking and cycling trails criss-crossing the area. One such is the route up Mont Gargan (15 minutes’ drive) to a ruined abbey and awesome views across Limousin’s plains. The fishing at Etang des Pierres du Mas and Mayflower Pool is pretty good too, and for any rainy days there’s an indoor swimming pool at Chamberet (all 20 minutes). If you’re holidaying with the kids, let them run off energy on treetop courses and climbing nets at Montoz’Arbres Parcours Acrobatique (20 minutes), or have an amble around the lake at Arboretum de Chamberet (15 minutes) to meet cuddly alpacas and ponies. Keen on animals of a fiercer kind, including tigers and rhinos? A visit to Parc Zoo du Reynou (35 minutes) should do the trick. For a small slice of Limousin history, tour the Gallo-Roman site at Cars (50 minutes) to see the ruins of a mausoleum, or wander the chapels and cottages in the ghost village of Clédat (55 minutes), deserted in the 1960s.