Auvergne volcanoes: Puy de Dôme to Puy Mary
The Chaîne des Puys, Romanesque Orcival, crater lakes and the high road over the Cantal to Salers.
- Distance
- 135 km (84 mi)
- Driving
- 1 h 52 min
- Suggested days
- 4
- Stops
- 7
- Countries
- France
- Updated
- August 24, 2026
At a glance: 4-day road trip of about 135 km (84 mi) with 7 stops, from Clermont-Ferrand to Salers. About 1 h 52 min of driving in total.
Route description
Clermont-Ferrand’s black lava-stone cathedral looks out towards the Chaîne des Puys, a line of some eighty volcanoes. Take the Panoramique des Dômes rack train up the Puy de Dôme, since the summit road is closed to cars.
Drive south through the volcano field to Orcival, a Romanesque basilica in a green valley, then over to Lac Chambon and Murol castle. Near Besse, Lac Pavin is a round, deep crater lake circled by a woodland path.
The road then crosses the Cézallier plateau into the Cantal, the largest volcano in Europe, now worn into deep glacial valleys. The D680 climbs to the Pas de Peyrol below the Puy Mary, where stairs lead to the top, and descends to Salers, a town of dark volcanic stone known for its cheese and red cattle.
The Puy Mary road is closed from about November to April, and summer days bring heavy traffic near the pass. Spring flowers and autumn colours make May–June and October the best times.
Stop-by-stop itinerary
In driving order. Distances are estimates between consecutive stops.
- 1Start
Clermont-Ferrand
France - 212 km
Puy de Dôme
ViewsOrcines, FranceThe 1,465 m volcano above Clermont, with a Roman temple on top and a view along the whole Chaîne des Puys. The road is closed to cars: take the rack train or the mule path.
- 317 km
Orcival
France - 418 km
Murol castle
HistoryMurol, FranceA dark volcanic-stone fortress on a basalt knoll above Lac Chambon. In summer costumed guides bring the medieval castle to life for children.
- 512 km
Lac Pavin
NatureBesse-et-Saint-Anastaise, FranceA perfectly round crater lake about 90 m deep, ringed by beech woods. A flat path circles it in an hour.
- 658 km
Puy Mary
ViewsLe Claux, FranceA pyramid-shaped peak at the heart of an old volcano. From the Pas de Peyrol, the highest road pass in the Massif Central, stairs lead to the summit in about 30 minutes.
- 718 km
Salers
France
