Marie brings together a 450-kilogram Marian statue, an annual procession, medieval buildings and sweeping views across the valley. These offer a range of ways to explore: religious and architectural history, landscapes, hiking, gravel and mountain biking, and shared festive traditions.

Church, castle and chapel

Église Saint-Pons houses a 450-kilogram polychrome olive-wood Marian statue. It was carved in Genoa and arrived in Marie on 16 April 1777. Since 1780, eight men have carried the statue through the village streets each year during the patronal celebration. If you would like to include the procession in your travel plans, check the dates in advance.

The church’s history has a different degree of certainty: based on its sloping floor, orientation and other architectural features, it is thought to have existed since at least the 14th century. While the statue’s arrival is dated to a specific day, the church’s early existence remains a well-founded assumption.

Marie Castle was built in the 14th century by the GRIMALDI counts of Beuil and served purposes that were more representative than defensive. The dating of the pointed-arch gateway is less certain: the medieval gateway is thought to probably date from the same period. Saint-Roch Chapel was built on the former royal road from Nice. Its painting, dated 1637, depicts Saint Roch, Saint Pancras and Saint Christopher.

Views and trails through the landscape

The viewpoints on Marie’s rocky promontory offer views of more than 180° across the valley. They stretch from the Gorges du Bancairon and Mont Vial to the peaks of the ski resorts and Mont Mounier. These broad valley and mountain views provide a different focus from the individual historic buildings.

Hiking trails in Marie pass through former farmland and woodland, cross ridgelines and lead to the Vacherie de Marie and its mountain pastures. This variety of landscapes is useful when planning: alongside trails through former farmland and woodland, ridgelines and the mountain pasture areas mentioned above are also part of the hiking options.

There are also several options for cycling. The Piste de la Clamia offers gravel and mountain bikers a variety of routes. FFC Gravel Circuit No. 11, “Le Tour de Valdeblore,” passes through the village of Marie and over the Col de la Clamia. The piste offers a variety of routes, while the circuit has a specific name and named points along its route. If you plan to ride it, confirm the route details before setting out.

Festivals and local traditions

Marie’s communal bread oven is fired up every year for the Fête du four. The people of Marie bake bread and prepared dishes there. Unlike the procession, this festival puts the shared oven at its heart. If the Fête du four is important to your travel plans, check the dates in advance.

Marie’s historic economy included chestnut groves, forests and olive groves, as well as livestock farming and the cultivation of wheat and grapevines. This agropastoral tradition adds another historical perspective to the hiking and cycling options. The traditional oil mill is also part of this local heritage: it is a mill in the Genoese style and was later powered by water through a waterwheel. Together, the buildings, festivals and landscape offer different sides of Marie, so you need not limit your trip to a single focus.

Discover more destinations: Chateauneuf-Villevieille, Saint-Martin-Dʼentraunes, Spéracèdes, La Penne, Valdeblore, Bairols, Tende, Auron.

For the regional travel overview: Alpes-Maritimes.