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| Gard department | |
| Capital | Nîmes |
|---|---|
| Residents | 745.458 (2018) |
| surface | 5,853 km² |
no tourist info on Wikidata:  | |
| location | |
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Gard is a department in the region Languedoc-Roussillon in France. It has the serial number 30 and has a short coastal strip on the Mediterranean Sea to the south. From that border (clockwise) the departments Herault in the southwest, Aveyron in the West, Lozère and Ardeche in the North, Vaucluse in the east and Bouches-du-Rhône in the south East,
places
- Aigues-Mortes, town surrounded by city walls on the edge of the "little Camargue"
- Alès
- Anduze lies on the Gardon and is also called the "gateway to the Cevennes".
- Beaucaire with the castle and the nearby cave abbey of St-Roman, on the Rhône opposite Tarascon located.
- Le-Grau-du-Roi, a lively seaside resort on the Mediterranean Sea (near La Grande Motte)
- Le Vigan
- Nîmes is the prefecture (administrative seat) of the department.
- Remoulins with the nearby Pont-du-Gard
- St. Gilles at the gateway to the "little Camargue"
- Uzes, historical capital of the "first duchy of France" with palace and cathedral
Other goals
- the Cèzewhich runs south of Barjac in a picturesque gorge
- the Gardon (or "Gard"), which rises in the Cevennes and flows into the Rhône at Comps. Tributaries.
- Gorges du Gardon, deeply cut valley of the Gardon in the Cevennes
background
The Department of the Gard extends from the hilly areas of the Cevennes along the course of the river Gardon, also the Cèze runs in the north of the department, along the western bank of the Rhône down to the little Camargue, the river delta area west of the small Rhône in the area bis Aigues-Mortes. It includes the area to the south Nîmes as the capital of the department and borders on the department Herault.
language
French, local too Occitan spoken in the dialect of Provençal, around Nîmes the so-called. Nissart.
getting there
- With the train: from the north is the capital of the department Nîmes for example from Lyon Reachable in 75 - 80 minutes with the TGV, which requires a reservation.
- In the street:
- from the west of Germany, Belgium and Holland via the French A31 to Dijon/Beaunewhere they refer to the from Paris coming from A6 meets. This goes south of Lyon in the A7 / Autoroute du Soleil over (which has notorious huge traffic jams in summer), to Orange further on A9 / La Languedocienne, the after Nîmes - Montpellier continue over Narbonne and to Spain direction Barcelona leads.
- from southern Germany / Bavaria and Switzerland over Geneva, the A41 until just before Chambery, continue on the A43 to La-Tour-de-Pin, then to the A48 to Voreppe and on the A49 to Valence. After the short section of bypassing Valence on a dual carriageway, it is also on the congestion-prone one A7 / Autoroute du Soleil and the A9 south. The motorway from Geneva is practically continuous on this route. Alternatively, you can take the city motorway Chambery - Grenoble - Voreppe - Valence be chosen, only slightly shorter, but more prone to congestion.
Traffic jam on the A7 / Autoroute du Soleil: on summer weekends there is almost always traffic jam on the A7 in both directions, always in the direction in which you are traveling. Traffic information comes up Radio Trafic / 107.7 MHz very reliable. Sometimes the traffic jam on the N7 / National 7, which runs parallel to the Rhone Valley motorway, must be bypassed. Unfortunately, you are usually not alone with these bypass plans, the traffic often flows slowly due to roundabouts and traffic lights, so that traffic jams quickly form on the N7. A possible alternative for approaching the Gardon valley is the D86 on the right-hand side of the Rhône.
- By ship: There are no ports for long-haul ferries on the Mediterranean coast of the department of Gard, but there are numerous marinas for yacht owners on the Mediterranean.
mobility
The road and public transport network in the department is well developed, and the bus network will be enhanced by the merger Edgard operated, under Plan des Lignes> Plan touristique a map is provided with the bus routes to the main attractions.
Additional information in the local articles.
Tourist Attractions
- 1 Pont du Gard.
Part of a Roman aqueduct that was built around the turn of the ages and served to supply the city of "Nemausis" (Nîmes) with water. It crosses the valley of the Gardon three-story, is almost 50 m high and has a length of 275 m. In 1985 the structure was included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site recorded.
activities
The spectrum in this holiday region of Provence, bordering the Mediterranean, is extremely wide-ranging, from bathing and water sports to hiking, visiting ancient sites and culinary delights.
kitchen
The Provençal cuisine with lots of fruits and vegetables is enriched with more or less fish and seafood, depending on the proximity to the sea.
nightlife
If you are looking for an active nightlife, the big city is for you Nîmes and the Mediterranean coast around Grau-du-Roi recommended, the bear dances here (during the summer season) ...
security
The security situation in the south of France is unproblematic, especially in the season it comes to places with a large number of tourists (Mediterranean coast Grau-du-Roi and further southwest) to increased pickpockets and vehicle break-ins / thefts. Since the parking spaces behind the dunes and protective fences are often not visible from the beaches, no valuables should be left in the vehicle, drivers of new cars from German luxury manufacturers are somewhat disadvantaged here.
climate
Especially in the southern sections there is an arid Mediterranean climate with only occasional thunderstorms in summer, in the Rhône Valley the Mistral often blows from the north, which sweeps the sky bright, can be a nuisance on the beach or when cycling.
