Breathtaking spaces, nature, the great outdoors, medium-sized but dynamic towns… Building a house in Ariège offers many advantages. Between Toulouse, Carcassonne and Andorra, discover a region anchored in the Pyrenees and very close to Spain. Maisons SIC, builder of individual houses in Ariège for 50 years, presents this land of nature and history.
The construction of his house in Ariège, in the heart of unspoiled nature
In Ariège, 60% of the territory is in a Natural Park. Choosing to build your house in Ariège is therefore choosing to live within a particularly preserved nature. Especially if you find land close to the Regional natural park of the Ariège Pyrenees. The latter represents 40% of the department of Ariège and it is rich in a very varied fauna and flora: izards, capercaillies, bearded vultures, marmots, ibexes... In all, 1700 plant species are listed throughout the Natural Park, some of which are remarkable for their rarity and endemic character.
A nature to experience in 3D, paradise for athletes
In Ariège, nature is full of ups and downs: its landscapes unfold from the rolling hills of the foothills to the peaks of 3000m altitude. It is then possible to practice many different sports. Take advantage of the 5000 km of marked trails to explore Ariège on foot, on horseback, by bike. Or discover new activities allowing you to play with the elements: paragliding, rafting, canyoning, canoeing, kayaking, climbing, via ferrata, skiing, snowshoeing...
And hikers will have all the pleasure of trying their hand at GR107 Way of Bonshommes, on the road to Liberty, or on the Cathar trail...
Building your house in the authentic terroir of Ariège
Ariège is rich in its history, its culture and its know-how anchored in time. On the heritage side, the vestiges are numerous and there to tell all the richness of the past. Like these natural and prehistoric caves with cave paintings: Niaux cave, Mas d'Azil cave, Cave of the Cow, Lombrives cave, underground river of Labouiche, the Tarascon Prehistory Park... In the Middle Ages, the Cathar period strongly marked the history of Ariège, a period of inquisition when Catholics went on a crusade against heretics and during which the Cathars took refuge in castles to resist: Montségur castle, Foix castle, castle of Roquefixade, castle of Lordat, the Bastide of Mirepoix…
Gastronomy: a great strength of Ariège
Who says terroir in France says gastronomy and Ariège has no shortage of treasures to discover, whose age of know-how is well established, such as the Fontès de Mazères charcuterie which has existed since 1922, or the Savignac cutlery... Taste the typical dishes in the many restaurants of Foix, Pamiers or Saint-Girons. Or pick up 100% Ariège products directly from the farm or at the open-air markets: Gascon meat, charcuterie, goat's cheese, cow's cheese, sheep's cheese, seasonal fruit and vegetables, honey...
Ariège, a booming economic area, ideal for building a house
Ariège is one of the most industrialized territories in the South-West, rich in the establishment of many high-tech industries in sectors of activity such as aeronautics, renewable energies, agri-food, electronics, chemistry , extractive industries…
A highly connected territory in every sense of the word, Ariège benefits from high-speed internet and is very accessible, geographically speaking. Indeed, Ariège is a "link" between Toulouse and Barcelona, on the European axis E9 linking Rotterdam to Barcelona. We appreciate its motorway accessibility, the proximity of major airports (Toulouse/Blagnac, Carcassonne) and the daily SNCF connections...
The different dynamic economic territories of Ariège
Within the Ariège-Pyrénées, take advantage of territories with very different economic characteristics:
- The Pays d'Olmes, in the east of the department, is changing. After having been one of the first French centers of textile production, the Pays d'Olmes is moving towards developing companies (MECAPREC, MTCO, Cuxac, etc.) and the development of a new tourist policy based on cultural assets and of the Cathar Pyrenees
- The land of Haute-Ariege reoriented its economy towards green and white tourism, around winter sports, well-being (hydrotherapy, hot springs, etc.) and outdoor sports.
- Foix and the Land of the Portes d'Ariège are rich in a flowering of subcontracting companies in the Toulouse aeronautics industry (Aubert and Duval, Recaero, Mapaero, etc.), which the motorway already drains towards Pamiers, Verniolle or Foix.
The Couserans, to the west of Ariège, benefits from a highly diversified employment pool, with approximately 4 companies, most often small-sized, spread over all sectors of activity: agro-food, hotels, transport… with an important place in the health sector.
