Vichy

Vichy is a town in Auvergne. It's known for two things: its spas (Vichy is one of eleven world heritage-listed European spa towns), and as the headquarters of the pro-Nazi Vichy regime during the Second World War.

Understand
Vichy is a town in the department of Allier, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, in France.

The town is near the centre of France, at the foothills of the Massif Central.

History
The 1860s were a rich period for Vichy, thanks to the stays of Napoleon III which allowed the creation of parks, thermal roads and the arrival of the railway. The tourist activity reached a national notoriety until the beginnings of the First World War then in the interwar period. It is also known for having been the seat of government of Marshal Philippe Pétain from 1940 to 1944.

After decolonization, the projects carried out by the last four mayors (Pierre Coulon from 1950 to 1967, then Jacques Lacarin until 1989, Claude Malhuret from 1989 to 2017 and Frédéric Aguilera since 2017) made it possible to modernize the city, in value from the city centre to the banks of Allier.

By car
The town is accessible by several roads:
 * A71 and A719 motorways to Montluçon and Clermont-Ferrand
 * Departmental road D 2209 from Gannat or Varennes-sur-Allier
 * Departmental road D 1093 from Bellerive-sur-Allier, Randan or Clermont-Ferrand
 * Departmental road D 906 E from Abrest, Saint-Yorre, Thiers, Le Puy-en-Velay
 * Departmental road D 6 from Saint-Pourçain-sur-Sioule

By train
The duration of a train journey is better than by road; Vichy and Clermont-Ferrand are linked in 31 minutes with an intermediate stop in Riom and more rarely another stop in Gerzat, which is only indicated by the TER.

By coach


Possible destinations:
 * regional coaches: Montluçon, Saint-Germain-des-Fossés, Thiers, Ambert
 * departmental coaches: Gannat, Chantelle, Le Mayet-de-Montagne, Maringues

By car
The city has long been isolated from the main roads. The nearest motorway, the A719, is over 3 miles from the city centre.

Zones 30 cover an acceptable perimeter in the city centre, between rue de Paris, rue Georges-Clemenceau and avenue Doumer, as well as on certain streets outside the city centre (main street and not mesh streets!) There are only two meeting areas, where pedestrians have priority over other users: on an access to a car park in the east of the city near the urban boulevard (since 2013) and on the back alley of the boulevard du Maréchal-de-Lattre-de-Tassigny (since 2014).

Not all places in the municipality are always correctly marked. Hotel signage is shown in yellow on dark brown signs and notable restaurants in white on the same signs.

Parking
A paid parking zone - there is no entry or exit sign for a paid parking zone (except on Quai d'Allier) - covers the city centre, from the Parc des Sources to Vieux Vichy and the SNCF train station: places are paid from Monday to Saturday from 09:00 to 12:00 and from 14:00 to 18:00 (free on Sundays and public holidays), within the limit of 3 or 7 hours depending on the zone. The first twenty minutes have been free since 2018 in these areas.

Parking is prohibited in line with the traffic signs on the side indicated and by two continuous yellow lines drawn on the ground (non-regulatory marking).

There are four underground paid car parks (the number of spaces available is displayed at four city entrances. Look for signs directing you to them.

Urban transport
The bus network is made up of eight lines. Line A goes from the Ailes district to the city centre, to the train station and to Cusset with a bus every 20 minutes (and is operated by electric buses). Lines B and C serve the city centre, the station and the hospital, with a bus every twenty minutes; line B continues to Bellerive-sur-Allier and line C to Cusset or the aquatic stadium. Line D, north-south, serves the market and the media library. Line E goes around the parks, but with irregular frequency. Only lines A and B run on Sundays and public holidays.

The information available to travellers is provided on almost all the stops. It is not always kept up to date: at certain stops, it is partially obsolete, or even non-existent (responsibility for the agglomeration).

By bike
Cyclists are particularly vulnerable. If you cycle in Vichy, you must exercise extreme vigilance. There are, however, some cycling facilities, in particular along the Esplanade du Lac d'Allier, on the Quai d'Allier, and the paths along the River Allier on the Napoléon-III and Kennedy parks, or along the 'Allée des Ailes or on the Pont de l'Europe.

The department of Allier has marked out cycle routes (towards Cusset, Lapalisse, Saint-Pourçain-sur-Sioule, Randan by SNCF bridge over the Allier or by the left bank). Partly using busy lanes, it is the cyclists' responsibility to be careful.

In this city, zones 30 have the major drawback, on one-way roads, of being closed to reverse traffic, for obscure safety reasons (with the one and only exception of avenue de Gramont between boulevard Gambetta and rue de la Gare). A simple forbidden direction in zone 30 does not allow you to go up a street and requires you to take a detour.

A bicycle rental service is available in summer:

It is possible, provided you use an app, to borrow one of the city's free-service bikes, a rental service for classic or electric bikes. The first hour is free, the bike can be rented for half a day, a day, two, five days, a week, 1, 3, 6 or 12 months. Self-service bicycles are available through the use of a mobile application. The return of the bike is at the same station. The first 30 minutes are free, then €1 to one hour, €2 to 2 hours, €3 up to 3 hours, €6 up to 12 hours (if not back after 12 hours, the deposit of €200 is taken). Three bike stations (out of the five existing in the agglomeration) are located:
 * SNCF station — at the west exit of Vichy station, on the forecourt leading to avenue des Célestins.
 * Lardy university hub — next to existing bicycle parking lots, behind the Lardy university hub, accessible from avenue des Célestins.
 * Rue Wilson — on a speed reducer on rue Wilson between rue Franckin-Roosevelt and the promenade in Parc des Sources.

There are sufficient parking spaces for bicycles, including: Saint-Louis church, rue de Paris, Darragon stadium, boulevard du Maréchal-de-Lattre-de-Tassigny, ten places north of Napoleon III park, 40 spaces south of Kennedy Park, rue Jean-Jaurès, rue Wilson.

On foot
Rue Montaret, one of the pedestrian streets of Vichy, in June 2020 Rue Montaret is one of the many pedestrian streets in downtown Vichy. The city is made for foot traffic in the city centre.

Like some of the city's shopping areas (Paris, Georges-Clemenceau, Foch), these pedestrian streets are characterized by a special coating.

Pedestrians, and only them (except derogation), may use the following lanes: passages between rue Georges-Clemenceau and rue Wilson (Giboin, Opéra, rue Roosevelt, Amirauté, rue Sornin), rue Montaret, rue de l'Hôtel-des-Postes, rue du Commerce, passage de la Comédie, passage du Sélect.

See
Museums are mostly concentrated in the city centre. The neighbourhoods on the outskirts are irrelevant.

Do
The priority for tourists to the city of Vichy is to take advantage of the banks and the promenade along the river for pedestrians and cyclists. Via Allier and loops - 27 km long, linking Saint-Yorre to Billy via Hauterive, Bellerive-sur-Allier and Saint-Germain-des-Fossés, along the Allier river as closely as possible. The route is signposted from start to finish. In addition to this greenway, three loops have been created, two of which pass through Vichy:
 * the loop of the Lake (6.3 km), circling the river via the banks developed between 2007 (along the boulevard du Maréchal-de-Lattre-de-Tassigny), 2014 (banks of Allier on the right bank) and 2019 (banks of Allier on the left bank, in Bellerive-sur-Allier),
 * the Isles loop (12.7 km), between the Bellerive bridge and Hauterive via Abrest, the SNCF footbridge, Bellerive-sur-Allier and its banks renovated in 2019.

Parks
Since July 2015, access to the parks on the banks of Allier has been marked with signage to help you find your way around.

Learn
Vichy has a range of establishments where you can study French. A specialized school has been present since 1964:

Shopping
Due to its status as a spa and tourist town, many shops are open on Sundays.

Other stores on the outskirts:

Eat
Restaurants are mainly concentrated from the city centre to the SNCF station. Some traditional restaurants also offer take-out.

Mid-range




Sleep
The hotel offer in the city remains substantial; there is a five-star hotel in the spa district.

Campsites
The campsites are located mainly on the edge of Allier, in Bellerive-sur-Allier, Abrest or Saint-Yorre, in the immediate vicinity of Vichy.

Mobile network coverage
Vichy is well covered by mobile networks; you can browse the Internet with a 3G connection, if your plan allows it and if your phone is compatible.

Internet access

 * Wi-Fi (WIF4EU-VICHY). The city offers a Wi-Fi connection between the station districts and the city centre.

Some bars and restaurants offer Wi-Fi provided by a mobile operator or an independent provider.

Stay safe
If you feel insecure, or in case of theft, contact the police or the gendarmerie.


 * National Police 35, avenue Victoria, +33 4 70 96 11 11 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - If you have lost or have been stolen identity documents.
 * Municipal police 14, place de l'Hotel de Ville, +33 4 70 30 17 28 - In the event of loss of various objects in the municipality (for passports, contact the civil status department at the town hall).
 * National Gendarmerie 16, avenue de Gérardmer, +33 4 70 30 42 50

In addition, the city has a video protection system, particularly in the city centre, around the station and at city entrances (bridges over the Allier and the Ailes district).

Go next

 * Cusset (3 km by D 2209) - A neighbouring town of about 12,800 inhabitants, with many vestiges of the medieval period in the city centre. The urban boulevard, built by the urban community, marks the passage from the city of Vichy to that of Cusset, mainly via the D 2209.
 * Bellerive-sur-Allier (to the west on the left bank of the Allier) - From Vichy, crossing the Bellerive bridge (D 2209) or the Europe bridge (D 6 E and D 6), you enter in the town of Bellerive-sur-Allier. This small town, populated by 8,500 inhabitants, also offers a good standard of accommodation and restaurants.
 * Abrest (follow the D 906 E (direction Thiers), 3.5 km) - This town of2,900 inhabitants, halfway between Vichy and Saint-Yorre, whose name means "tree", is located on both banks of the Allier. Through the Dollots district, see the Chaussins castle, the only building listed as historical monuments.
 * Saint-Yorre (follow the D 906 E (direction Thiers), 8 km away) - It is in this town of nearly 2,600 inhabitants that Saint-Yorre is known for its mineral water rich in bicarbonates.
 * Lapalisse (more than 20 km north-east on the D 2209 and D 907) - Lapalisse is on the historic route of the national road 7. Castle.
 * Montagne bourbonnaise (after Cusset via the D 25 (Châtel-Montagne), D 62 (Le Mayet-de-Montagne) or D 995 (Ferrières-sur-Sichon)) - As soon as you climb up Cusset, especially via the route de Molles, panoramic view on the agglomeration.
 * Clermont-Ferrand (more than 50 km to the southwest) - The former regional capital complements what Vichy has to offer. It takes an hour by car to reach this city of 142,000 inhabitants within an urban area of ​​nearly 500,000 inhabitants; you can also take a train which is twice as fast.