Saint-Georges-de-Baroille: Holiday apartments and holiday homes

The Chapelle de Baroille was once the municipality’s main parish church.

Anyone choosing Saint-Georges-de-Baroille as a travel destination wants to rent a holiday apartment there.

Culture and history

Today’s Chapelle de Baroille was rebuilt around 1850 after being partially destroyed. Since the 12th century, a pilgrimage to Notre-Dame de Baroille took place every year on 8 September; the pilgrimages continued until 1952 and resumed in 1997. The history of the place also includes the polychrome, relief-decorated lead statue of the Virgin of Baroille from the 12th century, which was sold to the Louvre and exhibited in the Richelieu Pavilion.

The Chapelle de Baroille is closed; the garden surrounding it can be accessed year-round. The grounds of the Chapelle de Baroille are independently accessible by wheelchair.

Local crafts also have a documented history. Saint-Georges-de-Baroille was once home to around 25 pottery workshops operating along the local clay deposits. The historic pottery workshops produced household goods such as pots, plates, milk pans and bowls. Vases with a highly decorative appearance were made from locally sourced clays of varying colours by layering the different earths.

Another distinctive structure is the Viaduc de Chessieux. It is S-shaped, 272.7 metres long and 27.4 metres high, and consists of twelve semicircular arch openings, each with a span of 20 metres.

Nature and trails

The Le Bois des Ardilliers circular hiking trail has a high proportion of unpaved sections: 59 percent of the paths are unpaved. The hike leads through an oak forest characteristic of the Forez plain.

On the way back to Saint-Georges-de-Baroille, the route initially follows the course of the Aix and then the course of the Loire. In the area of Le Bois des Ardilliers, temporary ponds and wet ditches provide a habitat for species such as the palmate newt and the agile frog.

Further destinations: Sail-Sous-Couzan, Cuinzier, St. Alban Les Eaux, Chevrières, Saint-Marcellin-En-Forez, Saint-Priest-La-Prugne, Malleval, Neulise.

For the broader travel overview: Loire.