Eighteen kilometres south of Foix, near Tarascon-sur-Ariège, this excellent museum-park provides a useful primer on the area’s prehistoric past. The centrepiece is the Grand Atelier , which uses film, projections and an audio-visual commentary to explain the story of human settlement. There are also many animal skeletons, including a cave bear and a mammoth, as well as a full-scale reproduction of the Salon Noir in the Grotte de Niaux .
Outside you can follow a trail around the park’s grounds, explore a selection of prehistoric tents and learn how to use an ancient spear-thrower.
