Itineraries for visiting Angoulême

Itinerary 1 — The 24-hour essentials

Arrive by TGV or the evening before. This walking route concentrates the best of Angoulême into a full day, without a car.

1. Morning — The station and the climb to the plateau

   Start at Angoulême station (place de la Gare) and ascend to the plateau by TACO bus or the pedestrian ramp des Remparts. Along the way, pass the Hôtel de Ville and its medieval towers (Tours Lusignan and Valois). Stop at place de l'Hôtel de Ville for a first panorama of the plateau. Then make for Saint-Pierre cathedral: the 12th-century Romanesque façade, with its four sculpted registers, is one of the finest on the Atlantic arc. Allow 30–45 minutes to take it in properly.

2. Mid-morning — The ramparts and the Beaulieu panorama

   From the cathedral, follow the boulevard des ramparts south-west to the rempart Beaulieu: you will discover an exceptional panorama over the Charente valley, the tiled rooftops and, in clear weather, as far as the vineyard slopes. This ramparts walk, accessible by pushchair and wheelchair on most sections, is free and takes around one hour.

3. Lunch — Place du Palet or rue Marengo

   Head back to the centre of the plateau for lunch. Place du Palet and the adjacent streets (rue Marengo, rue de Genève) concentrate several traditional Charentais and contemporary bistro restaurants. Budget around €12–20 for a plat du jour with a drink. In summer, terrace seating is plentiful.

4. Afternoon — The Comics museum and the Charente banks

   Descend from the plateau (20 minutes on foot or by bus) to the Charente banks to reach the Cité internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'image (CIBDI). The building itself — the Vaisseau Mœbius — is a remarkable piece of contemporary architecture. The permanent collections trace the history of comics worldwide. Allow 1.5–2 hours. On leaving, stroll along the Charente quay before returning to the plateau.

5. Evening — Les Halles and dinner in the upper town

   End the day around Les Halles (the covered market), where bars and restaurants liven up the square into the evening. The upper town has a good concentration of restaurants for all budgets. This is also the ideal moment to stop by the Tourist office (if still open) to pick up the painted-walls map for the following day.

Itinerary 2 — A full weekend

This route takes the 24-hour essentials and spreads them over two days, with more time for museums, the Saturday market and excursions to the surrounding area.

1. Saturday morning — The Halles market and the upper town

   Start early at Les Halles, busy on Saturday mornings, to discover local producers — Charentais cheeses, mogettes beans, walnuts, charcuterie. Then explore the upper town at your own pace: medieval lanes, Renaissance townhouses, place du Minage. Stop at the Tourist office to pick up the painted-walls map and the weekend guided-tour schedule.

2. Saturday afternoon — Cathedral, ramparts and painted walls

   After lunch, dedicate the afternoon to Saint-Pierre cathedral (façade and interior), then the full ramparts circuit along boulevard de la Résistance to the Beaulieu viewpoint. Along the way, spot two or three of the major painted-wall comics murals — Corto Maltese, the Smurfs, Asterix and others watch you from the facades.

3. Sunday — The Comics museum and the Angoulême museum

   Dedicate Sunday morning to the CIBDI (open Wed–Sun). In the afternoon, visit the Musée d'Angoulême (fine arts and archaeology museum, on the ramparts) before a final stroll through the pedestrian streets of the upper town before departure.

Itinerary 3 — Family with children

Angoulême lends itself well to family visits: the ramparts are pushchair-accessible on most sections, comics speak to children, and Les Halles and the Jardin Vert provide space to let off steam.

1. Gentle start — Les Halles and the Jardin Vert

   Start at Les Halles for breakfast or an early market browse, then head to the Jardin Vert (place du Jardin Vert, upper town) where children can play in a safe green space right in the heart of the plateau. The garden is two minutes on foot from Les Halles.

2. The painted-walls treasure hunt

   Turn the walk into a game: armed with the Tourist office leaflet, children hunt for the painted-wall comics murals scattered through the streets. Spotting Tintin, Lucky Luke or the Smurfs on a five-metre-high facade is both educational and highly engaging for 5–12-year-olds.

3. The Comics museum — workshops and collections

   The CIBDI regularly offers creative workshops for children (drawing, colouring) alongside the permanent collections. The children's area is particularly well designed for under-12s. Check the programme on the CIBDI website before your visit, as workshops sometimes require advance booking.

4. End of day — The ramparts and sunset

   Finish with a short section of the ramparts — from rempart Beaulieu to rempart du Midi — accessible by pushchair, with views over the Charente. Sunset from these heights is one of the memorable moments of a family stay in Angoulême.

Itinerary 4 — The grand comics circuit

For enthusiasts of the ninth art, Angoulême is an open-air library. This full-day circuit combines the landmark venues of the city's comics heritage.

1. The CIBDI — collection and architecture

   Start at opening time (10:00) at the Cité internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'image. The permanent collections cover the world history of comics from its origins: 19th-century illustrated press, Franco-Belgian ligne claire, Japanese manga, American comics, contemporary artists. Temporary exhibitions regularly renew the experience.

2. The painted-walls circuit — 15 murals in the city

   After the CIBDI, ascend to the plateau and follow the painted-walls circuit using the tourist office leaflet. The murals are spread across the plateau and the lower districts; the full loop takes two to three hours on foot. Not to be missed: Hugo Pratt's Corto Maltese mural, Peyo's Smurfs wall, and the large compositions by prize-winning authors from the Comics Festivals of the 1980s–2000s.

3. The comics bookshops and the Magelis hub

   Angoulême has several specialist comics bookshops in and around the upper town. In the afternoon, those interested in the animation and image industry can visit the Magelis district, the agglomeration's image hub, where animation studios and digital creation schools are clustered.

4. The Comics Festival — past, present, future

   End your comics day passing by the venues that have hosted the International Comics Festival over the decades: the Parc des Expositions de Moulins (outside the plateau), the Espace Franquin, and the speech-bubble sculptures and comics markers dotting the pavements. Note: the 2026 festival edition was cancelled following an institutional dispute; the city held 'Le Grand Off' as a replacement, and a new edition is expected for 2027.