After Bordeaux - any suggestions?

Old Jul 29th, 2015, 04:03 PM
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After Bordeaux - any suggestions?

I will be in Bordeaux for a conference October 3-9, and would love to spend another week visiting other parts of France. I have spent a lot of time in Paris, so I do not need to include that in my itinerary. Ideally, I would like to visit either the south of France or another area of the country that is recommended. I enjoy the outdoors, museums and food, and enjoy traveling by train. (However, I will rent a car if that is the best way to get around.) Do you have any suggestions for a 7-day itinerary starting from Bordeaux? I am not sure where I will fly home from, so I am open as to where the 7 days will end. Thanks so much!
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 04:41 PM
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The Dordogne? Some of the most astounding prehistoric art anywhere, some beautiful scenery and gardens, incredible food.... But you would almost certainly need a car to see the area's highlights.

Or, if you prefer to stay with public transportation, Toulouse, Albi, etc.?

You might want to consult the Michelin Green Guides -- I found them VERY useful in planning my time in these areas.

Enjoy!
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 08:10 PM
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I agree with KJA - the Dordogne is ideal for a week from Bordeaux...but you will definitely need to hire a car to make the most of it. It's full of medieval chateaux with interesting histories, gorgeous perched villages and bastides (many on the list of "Most Beautiful Villages of France"), fascinating caves with prehistoric art, and great gastronomy. Not sure where you are flying home to afterwards, but Toulouse-Blagnac is an international airport,and only a couple of hours easy drive southeast of the Dordogne.

Most first-time visitors to the Dordogne tend to go to the area known as Perigord Noir, and you will have no trouble finding suitable accomm within an hour of famous Sarlat. In mid October you should also be able to find a nice small gite (rental cottage) to use as a base for your stay, or there are plenty of small hotels & chambres d'hotes to choose from.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 01:05 AM
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Cahors makes for a good base, small town on a river bend, great wine, lots of sites all around
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 03:22 AM
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It seems to me that most first time visitors make the same mistake I did, (several times in my case)and plan to spend too much time traveling and not enough time visiting. Think about spending two nights in the North, Nontron-Brantome area, two nights in the east of the Dordogne, Sarlat-Rocamdour, and two nights in the west,Lalinde-Bergerac, before your 7th night in St. Emilion with its easy access to the Bordeaux Airport or Libourne TGV stop.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 03:29 AM
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Come down into the Deep South west. Trains go to Biarritz, Pau, Tarbes, Lourdes and Toulouse, and lots of little wee places too. It will fit your bill and be less touristy than Dordogneshire
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 06:27 AM
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I think Sheila's post is somewhat misleading. To get from any of the places on her list to any of the others by train, one would have to return to Bordeaux. Aside from connections between the larger cities, and limited lines such as Bordeaux-Sarlat, there is very little local passenger train traffic in the southwest. And, it generally takes longer than driving. Bordeaux to Sarlat is about a two hour drive, and the train rarely makes its 2:45 schedule. In all the times that I have taken people to or picked them up at the train stations in Bergerac and St. Foy le Grande, I think the train has been on time less than 25% of the time.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 07:15 AM
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Another big vote for the Dordogne - along with Provence, our favorite region in France. Here is the opening paragraph of my 20+ page itinerary for the Dordogne. If you would like the entire itinerary, e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach it to the reply e-mail. I've sent my various itineraries to over 5,000 people on Fodors - 4-8 each day (5 just this morning).

The Dordogne is the perfect mix of natural beauty, picturesque villages, astounding historic sites, and, not unimportantly, marvelous food! Taken individually, each would warrant a visit to the area, but together they make the Dordogne one of my very favorite regions in France.

Touring the Dordogne, the rolling hills with the meandering lazy rivers and Cinderella castles beg for pictures at every turn. The deep greens of the hillsides soothe your senses, and the towns and villages with their fairy-tale houses complete the pastoral scene. Life seems to be on ‘relax’ setting here, mirroring the gentle pace of the Dordogne River itself.

Interestingly, this gentle backdrop is in sharp contrast to the aggressive nature of the Dordogne’s history. Huge medieval castles impossibly perched on sheer rock cliffs attest to the centuries of fierce battles fought between the English and French, as neighboring castles changed hands frequently. The castles adapted their defenses to the changing nature of warfare and later evolved into pleasure castles. There is a reason why a popular restaurant here is named the “Relais de Cinq Chateaux” – 5 impressive castles are readily visible from the dining room and magically lit up in the evenings.

But, the appeal of the Dordogne doesn’t stop at ground level! – the area is riddled with subterranean caves/’grottes’ of two main varieties – those with geological formations and those which sheltered prehistoric humans. Each is captivating in its own way. The millions of years required to form the geological caves astounds the mind – the mathematics of the elapsed time required to form a 2-foot long stalactite (one centimeter a century) ensure that you will appreciate the magnificence of what you’re seeing.

The ‘human shelter’ caves have their own story – or actually, more intriguingly, have no known story. The caves did not provide living habitats, and the rituals resulting in the cave drawings have never been truly understood. Standing in a dimly lit cave 1 foot from astoundingly accurate animal drawings created 30,000 years earlier elicits an awe that is hard to describe.

The geological caves, the shelter caves and the castles each with their long histories (from millions - to tens of thousands - to thousands of years) force you to reconsider the concept of ‘time’ in all that you see and do in the area.

Talking about ‘food’ seems almost inconsequential after such weighty subjects as architecturally impossible medieval chateaux and cave art galleries created mysteriously by humans in millenniums past. But, in my opinion, the Dordogne is ‘food heaven’ characterized by robust/flavorful food choices enhanced by sophisticated and complex preparations and presentation……duck, foie gras, chestnuts, truffles, wild mushrooms.

The Dordogne is truly a treat to the senses: visually, intellectually and gastronomically!

Stu Dudley
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 07:45 AM
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Thank you so much for your insights kja, rosemaryoz, bilboburgler, Jeff801, Sheila and especially StuDudley for your thoughts about the Dordogne. StuDudley, I will take you up on your offer of the itinerary. I'll email you shortly. And I will take all of your thoughts under advisement as I develop an itinerary. Again, thanks very much!
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 07:59 AM
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Forget the north of the Dordogne. If splitting the time, spend three nights in the Brantôme area and four nights in the Sarlat area. But spending the whole time based in the Sarlat area is also OK, especially if one decides to visit some the of the "plus beaux villages" such as Collonges-la-Rouge in the nearby Corrèze.

As for being touristy, there is a reason for it. Moreover, a mid-October visit is more likely to find empty villages than overcrowded ones with tourists.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 11:22 AM
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Sorry, Jeff, but that's not right. You can get the TGV from Bordeaux to Tarbes, but local trains fill in all the gaps.

In our patch, you can dismount anywhere between Biarritz and Toulouse, depending on which train you're on.

The Pyrenees are much less twee (I don't actually mean that disparagingly) than the Dordogne, but there are super easy bad tides, and the mountains are wonderful. As is the food
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 11:49 AM
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sheila

Although I'm 1/4 Scottish (Lindsay) - I don't understand your .....slang????

What is "our patch"? Twee??? Are there really tides in the Pyrenees??? What do you mean by "super easy bad"

We've spent 9 weeks vacationing in the Pyrenees, and except for the Pays Basque and near Perpignon - we did not find an abundance of restaurants - especially in the Haute Pyrenees. We've dined at about 5-6 good ones - but we kind of exhausted the supply.

Stu Dudley
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 12:53 PM
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Based on the advice of several Fodorites above, we have planned a 4-wk trip in Southern France for September. After Bordeaux, from where we will visit Medoc and St. Emilion, we are heading to Sarlat. Overwhelming advice states to base your trip here. From it, you can see Rocamadour, and head south to St. Cirq Lapopie & Pech Merle without staying in Cahors. For just one week, you will find PLENTY to see/do. We are moving southerly with overnights in Albi, Toulouse and finally Provence, but we have 4 weeks, not one.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 01:36 PM
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Sorry, Stu, I'm posting from Hautes Pyrenees, where we've had a shared place for the last 12 years. Twee just means cute and pretty.

The next bit is bloody predictive text. It was meant to say "super bastides"!

There are lots of good places to eat- I can think of half a dozen within 30 minutes of us, and two of them are VERY good.

But then, I think what is ordinary, here, is pretty good.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 06:16 AM
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Sitting in Blagnac airport on the way home, stappit fu' after a fantastic lunch at the Cerf Blanc in Aurignac
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 06:53 AM
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Sheila - I'll be in Pau and Bayonne for a few nights later this year - any restaurant recommendations? (Sorry for the hi-jack, but I agree with Sheila that the French Basque area is worth consideration.)
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 07:06 AM
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Sheila,

Wish I'd known that, I'm about 20 minutes from Aurignac. I like that restaurant and also the hotel restaurant unless it's changed hands (again).

Am not about to get in a p-----g contest about the Dordogne versus the far Souhwest but do want to back you up about the train service. One route with no or little backtracking would be Bordeaux to Toulouse then either onward to Albi, Carcassonne, etc. or Toulouse to Tarbes (Lourdes if you wish), Pau, Bayonne, Biarritz then back to Bordeaux.

Personal preference I wouldn't both with Tarbes or Lourdes unless the OP wants to go up the Pic du Midi.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 07:09 AM
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Pays Basque

Our "top 2" on the French side

- L'Auberge Basque just outside of St Pee - surrounded by pretty countryside. It also has rooms - so I would consider staying there. The restaurant is a Michelin 1 star. http://www.aubergebasque.com/

- Table et Hostellerie des Freres Ibarbourne in Bidart - in fact, this was #1 on both of our trips to the Basque area. Also a Michelin 1 star

We also dined at Les Rosiers in Biarritz, le Moulin de Ulia in Arcangues, and Auberge du Cheval Blanc in Bayonne.

On the Spanish side:

We dined at three restaurants in Spain. Our two favorites were Alameda in Hondarribia, and Zuberoa in Oiartzun. Both are Michelin 1 star restaurants. We dined at Kokotxa in San Sebastian too - it was fine - but not as good as the others.

I've only had lunch in Pau.

Stu Dudley
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 09:37 AM
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In Pau, the Majestic. Very old fashioned looking, but the food is majestic...

Not been to Bayonne... YET.

Cathie, sorry to have missed you. Are you there often?
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 10:55 AM
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Sheila and Stu - thanks. Have been to Pau and Bayonne before, am hoping for views in Pau this time.
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