The 2020 Michelin Green Guide crowns Commarque Castle

The stars of the Green Guide are to places of tourism what the macarons of red bring to restaurants: a label of excellence. "Since the beginnings of the Michelin Guide in 1900 and the Green Guide in 1926, our methodology has been based on two key words: independence and expertise," says Philippe Orain, director of the Green Guide. "We guide travelers from city to city, from castles to churches, from museums to extraordinary natural sites by the allocation of stars intended to better guide their choices," he continues. Three stars means “worth the trip” , an unforgettable experience. ” Nine criteria motivate the classification, from zero to three stars - "zero is not zero, but insufficient compared to expectations" - from the first impression to the experience of the visit, including notoriety, the inventory of what there is to do and see, or beauty, visible harmony and intimate charm.

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Filling them all, four new sites will be added to the shortlist of 3-star places in 2020, bringing their number to 255 out of a total of 30,000 stars on all of the Green Guides covering the world. Exclusively, before the official launch on March 1 of the new vintage, Le Figaro reveals their name to you. The cathedral of Le Mans (Sarthe) is rewarded for the enhancement of its gothic chevet (detail which was already triple-starred), its Romanesque nave and its stained glass windows among the oldest in France. The Musée des Confluences, in Lyon (Rhône), receives a third star for its lively architecture, the quality of its exhibitions and its roots in the metropolis as well as in the region. The customs trail of Ploumanac'h, in Perros-Guirec (Côtes-d'Armor), is rewarded for the development and preservation of the surroundings of this legendary segment of the GR34, acclaimed without being overcrowded.

These three mainstream sites could expect to be rewarded. But the fourth winner, in Dordogne, creates the surprise, because it is a site in the middle of nowhere (but not far from Les Eyzies), that it belongs to a family devoted for more than fifty years and which has managed to bring in 40,000 visitors a year, already a victory, even if it's nothing compared to the 450,000 people who go to Lascaux nearby: the Chateau de Commarque.

Raw Beauty

The Musée des Confluences in Lyon (Rhône), receives a third star for its architecture, the quality of its exhibitions and its roots in the metropolis as well as in the region. Olivier GUERRIN / Musée des Confluences

“Twenty years ago, the Green Guide dedicated three lines to it, because it was a ruin that barely emerged from the vegetation from which a tower emerged. A mini-Angkor, ” recalls Philippe Orain. Built between the 12th and 14th centuries by the Commarque family, it gradually fell from the 17th century onwards into a lost valley, occupied by humans for 100,000 years. Nature has taken back its rights. Vegetation has grown, brought soil. “Then, in 1968, Hubert de Commarque came across this place that bore his name, bought it and set out to free it. In doing so, he discovered a medieval village at the foot of the castle and, below, troglodyte caves with unique sculptures, which are only visible on request, ” continues Philippe Orain. The fantastic atmosphere of the estate inspired Robert Merle to frame his novel, Melvil . And Ridley Scott used it as the setting for his film Duelliste , shot on the spot in 1976.

"Upon arrival, it's magic ," continues the publisher, who has made the trip again. You start from Eyzies, where there are a lot of people, take a small road, and there, you already have the impression of arriving in an extremely preserved nature, with horizons on the Périgord, a few farms, no electric wires . A very beautiful impression of France as we can imagine it. ” He notes: “The car park is well laid out, a ten-minute walk (in the shade) from the entrance to the castle. And the access road is accessible to people with reduced mobility, like the author of this guide who is in a wheelchair. ” Carried away by his story, he continues: "The approach path plunges you into the medieval foliage, into the forest and, all of a sudden, you come across this! I who had not seen it since the time when this was that ruins, I was speechless. For five minutes on the small bridge spanning the river, I listened to the people arriving: "wow, this is crazy!" They said. "

The customs trail of Ploumanac'h, in Perros-Guirec (Côtes-d'Armor), is rewarded for the development and preservation of the surroundings of this legendary segment of the GR34, acclaimed without being overcrowded. Flickr CC

The small reception hut makes the best impression on him. In front of the castle, a large meadow stretches for a picnic or to take a step back on the landscape. The editor continues: “You cross the village when you see everything that has been brought to light. And you enter the castle, whose floors have been restored, with an interpretation center on prehistoric art. You climb to the top of the tower, and there, overlooking the lost valley, you expect to see the English arriving on their horses as during the Hundred Years War! And everything is reversible, so that nothing is distorted, that in two hours any installation can be dismantled ...

Aude de Commarque has tears in her eyes. Sparkling thirty-something, the daughter of Hubert de Commarque discovers the news. “These 3 stars are an extraordinary gift. A reward for all the work my father and mother did. Because it is a life of sacrifice. But these stars which reward our offer of cultural mediation, she insists , we would not have had them without my brother, Jean, who joined my parents by duty, before I did it myself, by choice. ” Grateful, she continues: “My father did not know his own, who was taken to Buchenwald in a deportation camp. In this place were found aligned his passion for the great heritage and the traces of a transmission which he had not received. ” What she likes to Commarque: "Her nudity," she says. “For me, it's raw beauty, not just a castle. It is a fortress, an archaeological site, a place submerged in vegetation, but also a place that lives again. Architecturally speaking, nothing has changed since its origins. ”

In search of identity

The cathedral of Le Mans (Sarthe) is rewarded for the enhancement of its gothic chevet (detail which was already triple-starred), its Romanesque nave and its stained glass windows among the oldest in France. Michelin Guides

With a cheerful voice, Hubert de Commarque said in turn : “The site was a place of adventure and first love for the locals. So obviously, buying it back, I changed the romanticism to which they were accustomed by favoring the walls over trees. Then by being led to close it, to open and secure it. But our goal has always been to respect the magic and integrity of this exceptional place. ” The labels multiply there. “The valley is classified as World Heritage, but also Ecological Interest Zone, Biosphere Zone, Natura 2000, and it has just been classified as a Grand Site of France, like Mont-Saint-Michel. The castle is also classified as a Historic Monument, and it is surrounded by five sites also classified and a source, a magic source from where it all started. ” And sixteen meters of peat contain the "archives". Hubert de Commarque specifies: “By making cores, we can go back in time. The flora and fauna are hidden there. ” So the excavations continue. Merchant in search of identity has not finished revealing his secrets.