← Marathon de Millau·Day trip

Roquefort-sur-Soulzon: The Cheese Caves

The village against the Combalou cliff where every Roquefort cheese is aged, with cave tours and tastings indoors and underground, half an hour south-west of Millau.

DurationDay trip
TransitAbout 30 minutes by car from Millau
DepartsMillau

After the Marathon de Millau: Roquefort-sur-Soulzon

The Route: Millau → Roquefort-sur-Soulzon → Millau Logistics: About 30 minutes each way by car, roughly 25 km. Cave visits are guided and should be booked. Marathon Month: September Duration: Day trip

Millau ──(≈30 min drive)──> Roquefort-sur-Soulzon ──(≈30 min drive)──> Millau

Roquefort is the other famous name in this corner of Aveyron, and it makes a short, easy outing the day after the marathon. The village is built against the Combalou, a limestone cliff whose collapsed rock creates natural caves with a steady flow of cool, damp air. Every cheese sold as Roquefort must be aged in those caves. A visit is indoors, underground and cool, which suits legs that have spent the previous day on the Tarn valley roads.

The Caves

Several producers open their cellars to visitors, with guided tours that explain how the ewe's-milk cheese is made and aged, followed by a tasting. The main houses in the village include Société, Papillon and Gabriel Coulet. Book ahead, check opening times for late September, and bring a layer: the caves are cold. Tours involve stairs and uneven floors, so take them slowly.

The Village

Roquefort-sur-Soulzon is small and steep, with the cheese houses along its main street. After a tour, buy cheese to take home, and look up at the Combalou above the village.

Getting Back

Drive back to Millau, about half an hour. The road north passes close to the Millau Viaduct, so the trip combines easily with a stop at the viaduct visitor area on the way home.