Albi

Colourful, gastronomic and a bustling market town, Albi welcomes you into a relaxed way of life that is almost Italian. The main town in Tarn, it houses two celebrities: the Cathedral of Sainte-Cécile and the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum, renowned throughout the world. Must-see attractions of the Midi-Pyrénées region that are waiting to be explored!

Clad in orange-coloured bricks and russet tiles, the Archdiocese of Albi, candidate for classifi cation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, will captivate you with its Tuscan style, love of art and elegant way of life.

The old centre, spreading out from the Cathedral of Sainte-Cécile, deserves your full attention. The very lively “Old Albi“ is at the heart of the bustling activity that prevails in this town of 52,000 inhabitants. With its heritage from the Middle Ages, it is a vast and delightful labyrinth waiting to be explored. Its narrow streets are lined with timber-framed houses, exquisite shops, beautiful private hotels built during the Renaissance period and other treasures of Albi’s rich heritage.

The Cathedral of Sainte-Cécile is the centre of attention and towers authoritatively over the town. Surrounded by shops and restaurants, it is a genuine southern Gothic masterpiece. You will be impressed by its brick construction and its turreted bell tower, brought to life with tremendous enthusiasm. Inside the atmosphere is heavily spiritual and the décor is amazing, with the largest “Last Judgement” of the Middle Ages and the greatest collection of Italian paintings amassed in France at the beginning of the Renaissance.

Adjacent to the cathedral, and almost as important, the Palais de Berbie (Berbie Palace) was once the residence of the most powerful bishops in Albi. Today the palace houses the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum, dedicated to the famous painter born in Albi in 1864. Here you will discover the unique personality of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and his world of cabarets, brothels, circuses and racecourses. With over 1,000 canvases of his early work, major portraits, drawings, posters and lithographs, the Albi museum oversees the greatest collection in the world dedicated to this extraordinary artist.

Entirely renovated and refurbished, the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum is one of the greatest contemporary museums in France. It opens out onto the French gardens of the Berbie Palace, created in the 17th century. Strolling through the gardens admiring the sculpted box trees is pure pleasure. Laid out in terraces above the Tarn, it offers you an unforgettable view of the river and the town.