Aubenas (France)

Aubenas (French pronunciation: [ob(ə)na]; Occitan: Aubenàs) is a commune in the southern part of the Ardèche department in Southern France. It is the seat of several government offices. The mountainous and rugged countryside is popular for vacation homes. The river Ardèche flows through the commune. Aubenas is the second-most populous communes in the Ardèche department with 12,416 inhabitants as of 2023, after Annonay and before Guilherand-Granges and Tournon-sur-Rhône. Aubenas is the centre of an urban area, composed of 22 towns and villages including Vals-les-Bains, with 41,568 inhabitants (2018). Aside from its long-year commercial activity, it has a good strategic position on the tourist field, at crossroads of a regional natural park, the zone of the Ardèche river canyon and the start of mountains. The chestnut industry is one testimony of the intense agricultural activity earlier in time.