Le Relais Alaric:
Motel-restaurant near the Prehistoric Art Park

Le Domaine Fournié:
Bed & breakfast near Prehistoric Art Park

Altides:
holiday houses 4 kms from the Niaux cave

Auberge de Niaux:
this restaurant in the village serves sandwiches and salads in the afternoon


 Order from Amazon.com
or Amazon.co.uk
 

 Order from Amazon.com
or Amazon.co.uk

Other books on prehistory

 

Ariege-Pyrenees


Le Parc de l'Art Préhistorique in Tarascon
and the Niaux cave drawings
 

 
The Prehistoric Art Park's outdoor installations show how caves are formed by water flowing over rock.

Examples of the types of shelters used in magdalenien times have been constructed, and there are demonstrations of flint tool and fire making and spear-throwing.

The cave drawings at Niaux

The "Grand Atelier" of the Prehistoric Art Park contains replicas and photos of drawings and paintings found in other caves, many of which are no longer open to the public. Headsets are provided for narration in several languages. The drawings shown here are found in the Niaux cave (about a 15 minute drive from the park) in the Salon Noir, and have been recreated using laser technology (these are photos of the originals, not the replicas.)  
When you visit the Niaux cave (advance reservation required) you receive a coupon for a reduced admission to the Prehistoric Art Park. However, if you don't speak French it's worth visiting the park beforehand for the background information in English about the cave as there is practically none available on site. In the summer months there is one tour a day in English, at 1 pm. (tour times are given at the bottom of this page.)

Be sure to wear sturdy shoes on the tour as the floor of the cave is wet, slippery and uneven.

Strictly speaking you must book ahead. However, outside the ticket office a sign indicates how many spaces are left (if any) in the day's scheduled tours. If you arrive in the morning you might be able to reserve a spot in a tour in the afternoon. But don't count on this in July and August.

There are several other caves you can visit in the area, including the Grotte de la Vache on the opposite hill from the Niaux cave, and you'll find information on them here.

 
 Visiting the Niaux Cave
 Visiting times:
April, May, June, Oct.
10h30, 11h15, 13h45, 14h30, 15h30, 16h15, 17h
July, August, Sept.:
9h*, 9h45, 10h45, 11h30, 13h*, 13h45, 14h45, 15h30, 16h15, 17h, 17h45 (*in English)
Nov, Dec, Jan, March:
11h, 14h30, 16h15

In July, August and September the 9:00 and 1:00pm tours are in English

 Prices:

Adult: 9.40
Child: 5.70

Groups (20+ pers.):
Adults: 7.80
Students: 4.00

How to book a place in a tour:

(33) 05 61 05 10 10 (leave off the leading zero when phoning from outside France). This is the number for the Parc Préhistorique, which can also handle reservations for Niaux and has an English speaker always available (which is not always the case at the Niaux ticket office.)