Located at 1107m high in the stunning Livradois Forest Regional Park in the Puy-de-Dome department of the Auvergne in France
the hamlet of Ardennes is just an hour drive from the city shopping of Clermont Ferrand, skiing at Super Besse, the vineyards of Boudes and the spectacular peaks of Le Puy en Velay. Ideal for walking, cycling, sampling local produce or simply relaxing in the sunshine and fresh air.
GETTING THERE
For those who drive, having tried various different routes, we have found the toll roads/motorways to be the best not only for services but they are the fastest way for what is quite a lengthy journey, unless you have several people who are able to share the driving or you are taking your time to get there. There are several ways you can approach Ardennes, but the most popular would probably involve using the A75, which is quite handy as you can collect your shopping at Carrefour in Issoire (which is just off junction 12 of the A75) and then a little further along the A75 to junction 13 you take the D996/999 all the way to St Germain l'Herm. It's then only a mile or so along the D56 Route de Brioude to Ardennes.
For those who use a SatNav, the postcode is 63630.
If you prefer to use co-ordinates: N 45º 26.246' E 003º 32.132'
If flying, Easyjet fly into both Lyon and Limoges, and they are both similar distances (approx 3 hours) from the farm. Ryan Air flew into Clermont Ferrand just for the summer months in 2007 and there are rumours that this service may resume in the future. Clermont is only about an hour from Ardennes so may be preferable, but for any flights you will need to hire a car to get to the farmhouse as it's rural/mountain location means there are no public transport links. Another airport to consider is Rodez which is only 2 hours from Ardennes but not all services fly to this airport.
The need for a hire car would be the same if you chose to take the train. There are very good links (Eurostar, TGV) all the way to Issoire however.