Vallon-Pont-d'Arc

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Vallon-Pont-d'Arc
Commune
Coat of arms
Location of Vallon-Pont-d'Arc
Vallon-Pont-d'Arc Show map of France Vallon-Pont-d'Arc Show map of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Coordinates: 44°24′28″N 4°23′40″E / 44.4078°N 4.3944°E / 44.4078; 4.3944
Country	France
Region	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department	Ardèche
Arrondissement	Largentière
Canton	Vallon-Pont-d'Arc
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Guy Massot[1]
Area 1	28.62 km2 (11.05 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]	2,443
• Density	85/km2 (220/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	07330 /07150
Elevation	60–434 m (197–1,424 ft) (avg. 118 m or 387 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Vallon-Pont-d'Arc (French pronunciation: [valɔ̃ pɔ̃ daʁk]; Occitan: Valon) is a village in southern France in the Ardèche Department.

The village is a gateway to one of the most beautiful tourist sites in France, the Ardèche Gorges, where the Ardèche river has carved a dramatic canyon through a limestone plateau. The village is named after the Pont d'Arc, a natural rock arch, which has been classified as a Great Site of France.

Vallon-Pont-d'Arc is also the location of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the decorated cave of Pont d’Arc, known as Grotte Chauvet-Pont d’Arc., and its replica, Chauvet Cave 2. The cave contains some of the earliest known prehistoric paintings in the world and constitutes an exceptional testimony of prehistoric cave art.

In the center of the town is a château built in the 17th century, now the town hall, which is decorated with Aubusson tapestries, as well as the place couverte or old grain square, and the place du Verger.