Montolieu, Book village in Aude, France.
Located in southern France at 123 meters elevation, Montolieu contains fifteen bookshops specializing in secondhand and antique books across its streets.
In 1990, Carcassonne bookbinder Michel Braibant transformed this French commune into a literary destination, following the model of Hay-on-Wye in Wales.
The village integrates literature with visual arts through five art galleries, three photography studios, and regular exhibitions connecting different creative forms.
Visitors find specialized bookstores, art spaces, and cafes throughout the village, with tourist information available at the local office on Rue de la Mairie.
The Cactuseraie d'Escaïre-Figue garden presents an unexpected collection of cacti within this literary-focused French village.
Location: canton of Alzonne
Location: Aude
Location: arrondissement of Carcassonne
Elevation above the sea: 123 m
Industry: administration publique générale
Shares border with: Alzonne, Aragon, Brousses-et-Villaret, Fraisse-Cabardès, Moussoulens, Saint-Denis, Saint-Martin-le-Vieil, Saissac
Address: 11170 Montolieu, France 11170 Montolieu 11170 Montolieu
Phone: +33468248403
Email: montolieu.mairie@wanadoo.fr
Website: http://montolieu.fr
GPS coordinates: 43.30917,2.21528
Latest update: May 25, 2025 14:57
The region around Carcassonne features an area marked by medieval and Cathar history, with castles, abbeys, and old villages. The Cité of Carcassonne displays its city walls restored in the 19th century by Viollet-le-Duc, while the Canal du Midi has traversed the region for 240 kilometers since the 17th century. The castles of Quéribus and Peyrepertuse overlook the landscape from their rocky spurs at over 700 meters above sea level, serving as the last strongholds of the Cathar resistance in the 13th century. Villages like Minerve and Lagrasse showcase medieval architecture, with narrow streets, ancient bridges, and Benedictine abbeys. The region also includes the four Lastours castles aligned along a ridge, the Saint-Maurice Cathedral in Mirepoix with its 22-meter-wide Gothic nave, and natural sites like Lake Cavayère. These monuments and landscapes form a representative ensemble of the south of France’s historical and natural heritage, accessible from Carcassonne.
Château de Saissac
6.6 km
Abbaye Sainte-Marie de Villelongue
3.9 km
Moulin à papier de Brousses
5.5 km
Château d'Aragon
8.1 km
Arboretum du Lampy
6.8 km
Église Saint-Clément de Fontiers-Cabardès
7.3 km
Manufacture royale de Montolieu
206 m
Château de l'Abbé
7.3 km
Chapelle de la Madeleine
6.3 km
Église Saint-André de Montolieu
201 m
Pierre levée de Picarel
8.4 km
Cactuseraie d'Escaïre-Figue
1.6 km
Croix de cimetière de Saint-Martin-le-Vieil
5.9 km
Croix de Montolieu
40 m
Croix de chemin d'Aragon
8.2 km
Remparts de Saissac
6.8 km
La Coopérative Musée Cérès Franco
334 m
Église Saint-Martin de Moussoulens
3.5 km
Église de l'Assomption-de-la-Sainte-Vierge de Brousses Hautes
5 km
Église Saint-Sébastien de Cazelles
7.3 km
Église Saint-Julien-et-Sainte-Basilisse de Ventenac-Cabardès
7.3 km
Église Sainte-Marie d'Aragon
8.1 km
Église Saint-Michel de Saissac
6.6 km
Église Saint-Étienne de Villaret
4.8 km
Chapelle Saint-Étienne de Villaret
4.5 km
Église de l'Assomption-de-Notre-Dame d'Alzonne
6.8 km
Saint Martin church of Saint-Martin-le-Vieil
5.9 km
Chapelle Saint-Roch de Saint-Martin-le-Vieil
5.9 kmReviews
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