Advice needed/Carcasonne to Dordogne
 

Need help deciding whether we (2 adults, love wine & food) should drive from Carcasonne on 9/25 to The Dordogne or train. We need to be back in Paris on 9/30 for our flight on 10/1.

Other suggestions are welcome, we could travel to another area. We love small, not interested in going to larger towns as we will have been in Barcelona and Paris before hand.

Our last stop should be convenient for dropping off the car and taking a train back to Paris for our last evening.

Suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Lizz

I would definitely go by car. There is really no convenient, direct train connections for that area, and driving from Carcassonne to the southeast corner of the Dordogne would take approx three hours or so, depending on where you want to stay. Once in the Dordogne (a large region) you also really need a car to visit the various sites, as public transport is very minimal. Sarlat is probably the most famous Dordogne destination, and in late Sept the town will not be too busy. But if you prefer smaller villages with all services, then consider St Cyprien, Montignac, Belves, Monpazier, or even smaller Limeuil, Cadouin or Tremolat (all are in that southeast quadrant) but there really are so many options, it's best to read some guidebooks/tourism websites to see what suits your particular needs. Have a look at northofthedordogne.com or francethisway.com which give you info on many villages across the entire region to consider. Pretty much all the spots I suggested will require a drive to get to the train station for your Paris return - either via Brive to the north, or Bordeaux or Libourne to the west, or even Perigueux in the centre. Just check which train station has a depot to drop off your hire car.

Thank you so much for that. We are thrilled that it is so doable. Now for the fun of picking our destinations and accommodations.

Regards,

Lizz

Agree with everything Rosemary said. And get good guidebooks and maps and study them.

If interested in wine, stop for lunch or dinner at Le Balandre in Cahors. It has a 50 page wine list of only Cahors wines.

We love wine so La Belandre sounds fab, do not know much about Cahor wines but willing to learn!
Does anyone have suggestions of wonderful small hotels or 4-5 star B&Bs….I think biking in the region would be lovely, wondering if any of the places offer bikes to their guests?

Lizz

Cahors wine is about the closest thing you can get to what the Romans drank.

The star-rating system in France is nothing at all like ours in the USA, so I wouldn't even think about stars.

You can rent bikes from almost any campground in the Dordogne, there are numerous private bike rental outfits, and the tourist offices can also steer you to rental places.

<i>Cahors wine is about the closest thing you can get to what the Romans drank.</i>

Really? I would think that with the modern methods of temperature control, etc. the wine should be better than what the Romans drank. Moreover "in February 1956, Cahors was hit by frosts which wiped out almost all the vineyards of the region, which thus needed to be replanted en masse. In this replanting, Malbec became more dominant than it had been before." (Wikipedia)

Yes, I'm familiar with the frosts and the phylloxera blight in 1880, and of course modern methods have changed it, but there was a concerted effort 1960-1970 to reconstitute the remaining old vines, mostly by grafting.

http://www.floressas.com/vignoble/histoire.htm

I think I have found a spot….Chateau Feely which is a Wine Lodge & Cottage in Saussignac. Looks well located as a base and quite private with a small village within walking distance. They are a vineyard and offer their wine to guests.

We will try the Cahors…..the Romans lived well, at least some of them did.

Thanks again….

The concept sounds good, but you really want to be in the Périgord Noir to experience the Dordogne, not near Bergerac, which isn't anywhere near as interesting and has none of the prehistoric sites, gorgeous riverside villages, rolling hills, cliffs, and hill towns. You want to be within about a 30-km radius of Sarlat, to the north, west, and east preferably.

I recommend Les Petit Versailles in Beynac. My wife and I spent five wonderful nights there. There is so much to do in the area but a visit to Josephine Blake's castle is a must.

<i>It has a 50 page wine list of only Cahors wines.</i>

As I think of it, it might be only a 15 page list of wines going back 50 years.

lizzz, I read a bit about Saussignac wine, and it seems to be a "vin liquoreux," not what I would want to drink, given all the other possibilities, though everyone has different tastes of course. Anyway, as I said, that location is definitely not ideal.

Saussignac is similar to Monbazillac

I'm not so fond of Monbazillac, though it seems to work well with foie gras. Better for me than Sauterne.

It's probably heresy, but I actually like Cahors with foie gras.

The Dordogne (specifically, the Perigord Noir) is a wonderful part of France - we've been twice, and would love to return.

I agree with StCirc that to be able to easily see the most interesting / significant sites/sights that the area is known for, and eat very, very well, you want to be closer to Sarlat.

In terms of the size of village or town you are looking for, consider whether you prefer to eat there, and drink without having to worry about who's going to stint on wine and be the after-dinner drive, or whether you're willing to drive to your dinner. We stayed once in Domme, a gorgeous walled town, and ate one night at our hotel (very fine dinner), and drove elsewhere for the other meals. The other time we stayed in Sarlat, which I actually preferred. I love walking around towns in the evening, when they're quieter and more just the people who live there, but with cafes open for sitting outside with a glass of wine. We had three dinners in town (including a very informal one at a cafe), and two dinners elsewhere.

So where you stay depends a lot on your preferences, and what you want to do during the day.

Oh, and getting to Paris from Sarlat by train is relatively easy. The best way to do it is to have food from the twice-weekly Sarlat market to have as a picnic lunch on the train!

My gosh…you are all so generous with your advice….Lexma90….there is much wisdom in your comments….still looking at accommodations but with more of an understanding of location with a touring perspective. Will post final decision….

Regards to all,

Lizz

It's WAY easier to get to Paris by train from Brive than from Sarlat, which involves taking a slow, multi-stop train to Bordeaux and then the TGV. It's only about 45 minutes to Brive from Sarlat, then a 4-hour train trip to Paris. Leaving via Sarlat, you're looking at least an hour more.

Lizz, I know Chateau Feely, and they are really welcoming hosts in an organic vineyard, mainly producing dry whites, a couple of reds and the obligatory semi-sweet dessert wine. Sounds like you're really into your wines, so you could make Saussignac your last stopover, and do a day tour of the Bergerac & Monbazillac vineyards with Caro Feely (who is excellent & lots of personality), then stay overnight before you head to Bordeaux or Libourne (closer to Saussignac) for the TGV to Paris. You could also have dinner at La Tour des Vents, a Michelin star restaurant at Monbazillac, with beautiful views across the vineyards below. Before that, you could spend four nights in the Perigord Noir, exploring those famous sites on the eastern side of the Dordogne, as per StCirq's earlier suggestion.