Perched at an altitude of 967 m, Cauterets is a beautiful village nestled in a solitary valley. From the bottom of its valley where icy torrents rush and from which springs of hot water at 55 °C from the granite rocks, this village owes its name to this paradox between the hot (caut) and the cold (ret). This spa has been known since the 16th century, when Marguerite de Navarre, sister of François I, came here in procession to take the waters. In 1766, the construction of a carriage road will give birth to the golden age of Cauterets which will see personalities such as François-René de Chateaubriand, George Sand, Gustave Flaubert or Victor Hugo passing through during the XIXth century. The arrival of these socialites transformed the landscape around them, as well as the face of the village: development of promenades, clear views, original architecture as evidenced by the tall Haussmanian style buildings made of cut stone. With water comes white gold. In the 1960s, Cauterets became a very complete winter sports resort. An alpine ski area, another dedicated to cross-country skiing, hiking trails adapted to the practice of snowshoeing and many infrastructures oriented towards leisure in the village allow to spend active winter vacations. In summer, the magic continues to work at the Pont d'Espagne, one of the great sites of the Hautes-Pyrénées where the lord of the place, the Vignemale massif, reigns supreme. If you have a sweet tooth, don't hesitate to visit one of the many stores where excellent berlingots are made in a traditional way.

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Pictures and images Cauterets

Lac de Gaube. photlook - Adobe Stock
Cauterets. Oks_Mit - iStockphoto
La ville thermale de Cauterets. oksmit  - stock.adobe.com
Cauterets en hiver. oksmit - Shutterstock.com

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