Back from France
 

Returned yesterday from a wonderful 3 week trip. Want to thank all those who helped make this itinerary work for us. Some of the highlights.

Tarn Gorges drive- Beautiful scenery with added thrill of a hailstorm (up to walnut size) on the Mejean Causse. Rental car undamaged.

Beynac- Stayed at wonderful B&B- Residence Versailles -with magical views from our room.Great dinners at La Petite Tonnelle.
One day spent canoeing the Dordogne.
Sarlat Market was fantastic but we went back to see the town without the market crowds. Beautiful. The whole Dordogne region was a joy.
Caves at Rouffignac. Were unable to see others because of a strike.
Lot River drive also makes a great day. Stopped in at St Cirq Lapopie.

Pays Basque- Stayed in Sare. Very pretty and quiet. St. Jean de Luz very vibrant.

Carcassonne- Enjoyed it but were glad for the advice from Fodorites to only spend one night. All that was needed.

Collioure- This was our vacation from our vacation. A beautiful town with great ambience and completely relaxing. The view from our room was fabulous.

St.Remy-de-Provence- Our second visit and just as pleasant as the first.

All in all wonderful memories. Now to get over the after trip slump :(
Next trip planning.;;)

Oh lucky you! How wonderful. I loved the concept, "a vacation away from our vacation".

Please tell us more about Collioure!

I felt the same way about Collioure! Where did you stay?

Hi Grimmy...wonderful report so far! residence Versailles is where we will be staying in Beynac next month...glad to know that you liked it. I would love to know more details (restaurants, towns, etc.) about things you suggest/or not in the area. Also, we will be overnighting in Collioure. Where did you stay? We have reservations at the Casa Pairal.

Wren ,
I know you will like Residence Versailles. Make sure you ask for a room with a view.(They have 5 rooms, 3 with views.The green room is the best)
The hosts are great and the home beautiful. Breakfasts outstanding.
While based in Beynac besides Sarlat we enjoyed La Roque Cageac, Domme , Castelnaud (we love to walk so we walked to Castelanaud. May not be fun if its too hot).
Our hosts suggested we visit Montpazier which we were unaware of and that turned out to be a really nice day. We took all of the back country roads. Montpazier is a bastide town and worth the visit.
The day of canoeing was great. We used Copeyere which is right at the dock in Beynac. They took us to Vitrac by van, dropped us off with a canoe, lifevest and cooler and told us they'd see us back in Beynac whenever we got there. You can stop anywhere along the way for lunch. Beautiful float down the river for 22 km. Took about 4 hours but the river does all the work. Total cost about 30 Euros.
We ate at Hotel du Chateau and La Petite Tonelle. Lunch one day near the dock at the bistro associated with the Maleville Hotel. Sorry can't remember the names of other restaurants in other towns.
One night we took a bottle of wine up to the parking lot at the top near the castle. There is a picnic table there and we were the only ones around . We sat there watching the castle slowly light up. Very romantic. May be much more crowded in July.
As you can see we really enjoyed our time there.
In Collioure we stayed at Hotel Caranques.Very beautiful views from our balcony. Rooms are simple but very adequate.
Hope you have a wonderful trip.

Thanks for the info Grimmy. Another coincidence: We had already requested the chambre verte! I will take note of your suggestions. We are only spending a few hours in Carcassonne...hopefully that will be adequate. We will walk around, eat, then head on to Albi for the evening.