Our take
82°C steaming in the middle of a village, free to access, and a story of geothermal heating that goes back to 1332. You won't see that anywhere else in France.
Water that gushes out at 82°C in the middle of the street: the hottest natural spring in France, the beating heart of Chaudes-Aigues.
In the very heart of Chaudes-Aigues, in a lane above the Place du Marché, water comes out of the ground at 82°C. The Source du Par is the hottest natural spring in mainland France, and the village has always taken pride in it.
You step closer, it steams. You don't bathe in it (at that temperature, nobody even thinks of it), but you come to look, to feel the heat rising, and to understand why the town grew up around it. Access is unrestricted, free of charge and open at any hour.
Then walk down to the wash-house fed by these hot waters, where the locals washed their clothes in winter, bare-handed, while the rest of the plateau froze. As early as 1332, the water was already heating houses through wooden pipes: Chaudes-Aigues was the first town in the world to use geothermal energy.
Why we love it
- Water steaming in the middle of the street, at 82°C
- No natural spring comes out hotter in mainland France
- The wash-house heated by the spring, where washing was done bare-handed when the plateau froze
- A town built around its geothermal energy since 1332
Top tip
Follow on with the steaming wash-house just below and the geothermal museum. In winter, the steam is far more spectacular in the cold air.
Before you go
- In winter, when the steam rises in the freezing air.
- No ticket, no opening times: you walk into the lane above the Place du Marché and the spring is right there.
- No bathing and no touching: the water comes out of the ground at 82°C.
Practical info
- Address
- 15110 Chaudes-Aigues, France
15110 Chaudes-Aigues - Monday24 hours
- Tuesday24 hours
- Wednesday24 hours
- Thursday24 hours
- Friday24 hours
- Saturday24 hours
- Today24 hours
Opening hours
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