Ferrassières combines lavender landscapes with an annual lavender event, a botanical trail and a cycling route. It is also home to Château de la Gabelle, the Church of Saint Julien de la Brioude and farm shops selling lavender products and other goods. This gives you several options when planning your trip: a festival date, nature and landscape, or architectural heritage.
Experience Lavender: Festival and Trail
The Fête de la Lavande takes place in Ferrassières every year on the first Sunday in July. As the calendar date changes, it is best to check the exact date for your travel year. The programme includes walks or mountain bike rides through lavender fields, a Provençal market and an exhibition about lavender cultivation and distillation. Individual activities may vary from year to year. Visitors can also meet experts at the event who help them pick their own bunch of lavender; this hands-on activity may also vary depending on the year.
The Sentier botanique des lavandes runs around lavender fields and offers two route options, 3.3 km and 4.6 km long. The information panels cover lavender varieties, cultivation and yield, as well as the difference between lavender and lavandin. The trail thus connects the landscape with specific topics that also feature in the Fête exhibition, although the two offer distinct experiences.
A Cycling Route and a Distinctive Landscape
For cyclists, La route de la Lavande leads to Ferrassières, where lavender fields line the route. The marked circular route is 126.35 km long and rated very difficult. It is therefore quite different from the two shorter options on the botanical trail: the cycling route is a separate, challenging option, while the trail focuses on lavender knowledge and the landscape.
Ferrassières’ lavender landscape also includes almond trees, jas, sheepfolds and dry-stone bories. Bories shelter shepherds and sometimes their flocks as well. These rural features add other forms of regional architecture and cultural landscape to the view of the lavender fields.
Castles, a Church and History
Château de la Gabelle is a 13th-century Provençal castle and a rare architectural feature. It is associated with the Protestant history of Dauphiné. Its name also points to the past: it recalls the salt tax once levied in the region. Those interested in architecture will find several distinct points of interest here—the castle’s age, its architecture and its historical associations.
The Church of Saint Julien de la Brioude in Ferrassières dates from the 17th century and has Romanesque influences. Together with the Château, it adds a second historic building to the outing, with a different stylistic reference. You can therefore consider the two buildings as distinct cultural interests without attributing the same period of origin or architecture to them.
Farm Shops and Visitor Experiences
Château de la Gabelle combines organic cultivation of lavender, lavandin, einkorn wheat and honey production with an on-site farm shop. Ho! Bouquet de Lavande also has a farm shop. It sells lavender and lavandin products, immortelle, honey, einkorn, chickpeas and eggs produced directly on the farm.
At Ho! Bouquet de Lavande, the visitor experience also includes a tour through the lavender fields, with explanations about the work of a lavender grower, different lavender varieties and their uses, as well as a distillation demonstration using a model still. If you would like to plan this visit, check in advance whether it is available on your travel dates.
Plan Your Stay
If you are looking for a hotel in Ferrassières and want to experience the Fête, plan around the first Sunday in July and check the exact date before finalising your stay. If your trip is centred on the visitor experience at Ho! Bouquet de Lavande, it is also a good idea to check availability in advance. The other attractions—from the botanical trail to the historic buildings—offer different ways to choose a reason for your trip.
Discover more destinations: Mornans, Montrigaud, Piégon, Montguers, Saint-Rambert-D'albon, La Bâtie-Rolland, Bathernay, Étoile-Sur-Rhône.
See the wider travel guide: Drôme.
