Bouafle is a commune in the Yvelines department, in the Île-de-France region, 16 km southeast of Mantes-la-Jolie.
Its territory of nearly 7 km² is located in the Seine valley, on the left bank, just a few kilometers from the river.
It is an island of rural and green landscapes in an otherwise very urbanized area, the locality bordering Flins and Les Mureaux. Bouafle is covered with agricultural land (54% of its surface area) and wooded areas (22%). On its "southern" quarter, the town includes part of the Alluets forest.
Served today by the road linking Paris to Caen and the Normandy motorway, Bouafle has been occupied since Antiquity. Shortly before the year 1000, the abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés established a priory there. Then the locality and its lands retain an agricultural vocation. Although the vines have disappeared, market gardening remains alive and well at the start of the 21st century.
Residential commune with some 2,200 inhabitants, Bouafle can be a stopover of interest between the Paris region and Vexin.
The Saint-Martin church is the main heritage site of the small town. It was rebuilt in the 17th century in place of a Romanesque church (12th century). Only rare evidence of the latter remains on the "west" wall, which previously constituted the main facade of the original building. We thus notice what formed the arcature of a portal flanked by small columns topped with capitals. These are the only remains of this primitive church then built by the monks of Jumièges. The current building is made up of a single nave ending in a flat apse. It is entered through a quadrangular porch bell tower adjoining two chapels. Buttresses are visible at the corners. On the sides of the nave, the semi-circular bays benefit from a noble stone frame. Recently restored, the church houses several paintings evoking the Passion and modern statues and stained glass windows.
A stadium, tennis courts, a city stadium and even a skate park are also accessible to visitors. Information at the town hall on +33 1 30 95 51 18.
For sports enthusiasts, note that two associations regularly schedule "outings" which visitors can join: the walking club (contact +33 6 28 27 14 21) and that of Trail (running in the countryside): information on +33 6 29 07 13 45.
However, with friends or family, it is also possible to discover the countryside surrounding the town, but also, via safe hiking trails, to reach the banks of the Seine whose landscapes so seduced painters in the 19th century or, to the south, to venture into the Alluets forest. Covering 2,000 hectares, it is hilly and includes several sensitive areas for their biodiversity (small marshes, moors, old quarries now home to bats). But we also obviously appreciate its large forests where the nobility loved to come and hunt under the Ancien Régime.
Maps and information on +33 1 30 74 60 65.
The first weekend in July, municipal festival with fun activities, gourmet evening, fireworks.
The first Saturday in September, association forum.
The second weekend of December, Christmas market.
Every Sunday morning, the market on Place Erambert highlights local products and perpetuates the town's market gardening tradition.
