Gouffre de Padirac
A great chasm in the limestone near Gramat, opening onto an underground river. Visitors go down by stairs and lifts into the pit, then travel by boat through galleries of rock deep below the surface.
- Where
- Padirac, Occitanie, France
- Grade
- Local gem
- Worth
- 10 points collected on site
- Coordinates
- 44.8580, 1.7501
Get the Gouffre de Padirac stamp
Open LOQAH when you are at Gouffre de Padirac. It checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp is yours: confirmed on site in gold and struck with the date. It goes into your Occitanie volume with your photos and a note.
Near Gouffre de Padirac
Lascaux 51 km
A cave near Montignac whose walls and ceilings carry over 600 paintings of horses, deer, aurochs and other animals from the Upper Paleolithic. The original is closed to protect it, and visitors see the art in faithful replicas, the newest of them in a centre at the foot of the hill.
Albi Cathedral 108 km
A red brick cathedral begun in 1282, after the Albigensian Crusade, and built over two hundred years; from outside it looks like a fortress. Inside, walls painted in blues and golds and an ornate carved choir screen make a lavish contrast, and it is said to be the largest brick building in the world.
Millau Viaduct 133 km
A cable stayed bridge completed in 2004 across the Tarn valley near Millau, designed by the engineer Michel Virlogeux and the architect Norman Foster. With a structural height of 343 metres it held the title of the world's tallest bridge for two decades, its masts often rising above the morning cloud.
Puy de Dôme 139 km
A lava dome among the young volcanoes of the Chaîne des Puys, rising above Clermont-Ferrand. A rack railway climbs to the summit, which holds the ruins of a Roman temple to Mercury and looks over dozens of other volcanic cones.
Basilica of Saint-Sernin 141 km
A great Romanesque basilica in Toulouse built over the tomb of Saint Saturnin, the city's first bishop. Its octagonal brick bell tower rises in tiers above a church famed for its Romanesque sculpture, long a stop on the pilgrim road to Santiago de Compostela.
Canal du Midi 141 km
A 240 kilometre canal across southern France from Toulouse towards the Mediterranean, one of the great construction works of the 17th century. Shaded by plane trees, its locks and towpaths are now the domain of slow barges, walkers and cyclists.
Vulcania 141 km
A volcano theme park and museum opened in 2002, 15 kilometres north west of Clermont-Ferrand. It sits among the extinct cones of the Auvergne, and its shows and exhibits explain how volcanoes and the Earth work.
Cité de l'Espace 143 km
A space discovery park opened in 1997 on the eastern edge of Toulouse, the home of Europe's aerospace industry. Visitors walk around a full size model of an Ariane 5 rocket and a replica of the Mir space station, and there is a planetarium.
More hidden gems in Occitanie
Questions
Where is Gouffre de Padirac?
Gouffre de Padirac is in Padirac, Occitanie, France. The nearest other LOQAH stamps are Lascaux (51 km), Albi Cathedral (108 km), Millau Viaduct (133 km).
How do I get the Gouffre de Padirac stamp?
Open LOQAH when you are at Gouffre de Padirac and get its stamp. The app checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp goes into your Occitanie volume, confirmed on site, with the date.
I have been to Gouffre de Padirac before. Can I still have the stamp?
Yes. Add it from Earlier trips in your Occitanie volume, with the date if you know it, or import your Google Timeline and LOQAH matches the places you were.
Collect your first stamp.
LOQAH is free on iPhone and Android, in India and 20 more countries, with more countries on the way. Stand at a place, collect its stamp, and keep every trip in a passport that grows.