Abbaye Notre-Dame des Gardes

Abbaye Notre-Dame des Gardes is a Cistercian monastery in Maine-et-Loire built at one of the region's highest points. The buildings feature stone architecture, and cultivated gardens surround the complex, where the community tends to their daily tasks and maintains the grounds.

The monastery was established in 1818 when ten religious women from Forges settled on the ruins of a former Augustinian convent. This founding occurred during the period following the French Revolution, when many religious communities were being rebuilt.

The nuns who live here follow a daily rhythm of prayers and quiet moments rooted in centuries of Cistercian tradition. Visitors sense this measured, ordered way of life when walking through the gardens and observing how the community maintains the grounds.

The monastery welcomes visitors for overnight stays and offers a chance to participate in religious services and find quiet moments on the grounds. Guest quarters are simple and comfortable, allowing people to experience the rhythms of monastic life.

The nuns produce jams, jellies, and fruit preserves themselves, selling them through an on-site shop and their online store. These handmade products show how the monastery blends its spiritual tradition with practical craft work.