Sablé-sur-Sarthe is a city of Sarthe, Pays de la Loire region, 50 kilometers south-west of Le Mans, near the Mayenne.
The common territory that crosses the course of the Sarthe and its tributaries, the Erve and Vaige, is located on the borders of the former provinces of Maine and Anjou.
Today populated with about 13,000 inhabitants, the city develops from the Middle Ages around a fortress that plays a strategic role during the Hundred Years War. Seat of a marquisate under the Ancien Régime, the city experienced an economic boom in the eighteenth century while a new castle for residential purposes is built on the foundations of the old walls. A refuge time for the Chouans, Sablé-sur-Sarthe became famous in the 19th century for its marble quarries and the prosperity of its river port. In the heart of a verdant and hilly region, metallurgy and the food industry still contribute to the development of the city in the 20th century, which also becomes a cultural and leisure center that combines, with its heritage and the riches of its traditions gastronomic (the famous shortbread...) to its attractiveness. Classified green station since 1964, it is always a popular stage.
A discovery of Sablé-sur-Sarthe can begin with the visit of its downtown and the medieval lanes still lined with many half-timbered houses of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, adorned with decorative ironwork. For example, in the Faubourg Saint-Nicolas, the birthplace of Dom Guéranger, founder of the renovated Benedictine order.
Regarding the listed or inscribed sites, to see, the manor of Gautret, built in the fifteenth century and whose interior decor was redesigned in the eighteenth. After this private property, an old tower walls dating from the fourteenth is visible from the rue Saint-Denis.
But it is the classical style castle built on the foundations of the old fortress which is the jewel of the city. Commissioned by Colbert de Torcy, the work ends in 1750 and the magnificent ensemble has French gardens designed by a nephew of Le Nôtre. The castle now houses a technical center of the National Library of France specializing in the restoration of ancient works. Visit Thursday in summer by reservation at +33 2 43 95 00 60. Price: 4 euros.
In terms of religious architecture, a detour is needed by the church Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption, built in the neo-Gothic style in 1891. It houses an exceptional set of stained glass windows of the late fifteenth. century. They were the first stained glass windows to be classified as historic monuments in 1888!
In the heart of the city, always, real "green lungs" await the visitor. Like the park of the castle, which no longer has its original appearance but is a set of 16 hectares of lawns, old trees, dotted playgrounds. This is also the case of the public garden Michel Vieille where alternate on ten hectares of lawns, wooded or flowered massifs, games and mini-golf. Some paths overlook the Sarthe. Information on +33 2 43 95 00 60.
For hikes including the main historic sites of the city, but also its parks, the banks of the Sarthe and the marina, or mountain bike tours from the city, documentation and information +33 2 43 95 00 60.
Enriching visits can also enhance a stopover or a stay, such as the "A l'homme volant" museum, housed in an old half-timbered house dedicated to conquering the air. It is thus evoked the figure of the locksmith Besnier who invented in Sablé in 1678 a flying machine! Entry: 3.50 euros. Book at +33 2 43 95 00 60.
In a different register, the Atelier Malicot allows you to discover the development of a photography studio of the nineteenth century. Open on Friday in July and August and by reservation the rest of the year at +33 2 43 62 11 10. Price: 2 and 3.50 euros.
Finally, the marble ecomuseum traces the history of Sablé's marble activity and its region from the 17th to the 20th century, which employed more than 2,000 employees. The black marble of the city was used in some areas of the exterior of the Palace of Versailles. Information on +33 7 63 16 49 84.
For athletes, the aquatic center has three covered pools, playful amenities and, in summer, there are outdoor beaches, where you can play volleyball or badminton, and a solarium. Price: 4 and 5,10 euros. Information on +33 2 43 92 92 22.
On the banks of the Sarthe, the space Henri Royer includes places of relaxation and facilities with playful vocation (boats, pedal boats...). Open every day in July and August, Wednesdays and weekends in June and September.
For amateurs, the nautical base proposes the practice of the canoe-kayak, another way of discovering the city... Information on +33 2 43 92 58 30.
The city also has a famous racecourse. To attend the races, program +33 2 43 92 42 39. A complex adjoins the tracks including football fields and rugby but also training tracks for amateur riders. Information on +33 2 43 95 39 01.
In an exceptional environment, the Sablé-Solesmes golf course offers specialists or beginners several courses of 18 and 9 holes. Information on +33 2 43 95 28 78.
Finally, for those who wish, book a tennis court is easy by contacting +33 2 43 95 02 02.
We will not forget finally, during a stage in Sablé, to take advantage of the rich programming of the cultural center Joël Le Theule, which has a room for shows, an auditorium and a gallery for exhibitions. All information on +33 2 43 62 22 22.
In January, the city hosts in various locations several shows and concerts decentralized Folle Day Nantes dedicated to classical music.
The third weekend of July, the festival Rock Here Mômes program in the castle park in the afternoon concerts of contemporary music specially dedicated to children and adolescents. In the evening, the festival of the Night of Summer takes over with concerts of rock, reggae, world music...
In the fourth week of August, the internationally renowned Baroque Festival of Sablé will be performing concerts with leading artists of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
On a completely different level, a market is held on Mondays and Saturdays morning in the Place de la République and on Friday morning in the Place de la Mairie: the opportunity to discover the rich terroir of the region and the famous shortbread, several pastry artisans of the city allowing besides visits of their factories.
