Tinaindenver

We are taking a week bike trip that ends in Bordeaux and want to go to the Dordogne for 4 or 5 days and then back to Paris to get our flight. Since we will be dropped off in Bordeaux, where is the best place to take a train where we can pick up and drop off a rental car before going back to Paris? Is Sarlat the best base for tthe Dordogne valley or Beynac or another village? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

There is another long thread about where to pick up a car, but it is written from the perspective of starting in Paris.

Michael

Pick up the car in Bordeaux or Périgueux.

ira

ttt

StCirq

Périgueux. Train from Bordeaux St-Jean. It takes about an hour and costs about 13 euros. There are rental car outfits at the train station. I always rent through AutoEurope.

Tinaindenver

Thanks. Any suggestions for the best place to stay (i.e., best village or best accomodation) to explore the region? We usually like to stay at B&Bs, but most of the talk on the forum is about gites.

StCirq

You don't want to stay in Sarlat? There are a thousand villages to stay in in the region - depends on your plans.

Carlux

Check for Chambres d'hotes - there are several in Sarlat, and countless others in the 'thousand villages' where you could stay.

Sarlat is very central, and has the advanteage of cafes/restaurants, where you can wander in the evening. Lots of villages, while beautiful, do not. Depends what you want, and what time of year you will be here.

Tinaindenver

Looking on TA, I found a B &B in Sarlat, Manoir Petite meysset and one in Beynac, Balcon en Foret, that look nice. Has anyone stayed at either one? Sarlat is probably more convenient for restaurants, etc., but the place in Beynac looks quite scenic. We are going in mid-September.

Carlux

First of all, it really helps if you provide a link so that someone can check what you have seen.
So: http://sarlatmanoir.com/#/location/4565919091
This is not IN Sarlat. You would definitely have to drive to get into town. Just as long as you know

Two that I know of in town, and ENglish speaking are La Lanterne
http://www.sarlat.biz/
and Les Cordeliers http://www.hotelsarlat.com/
A number of others, French speaking if you check

I havent stayed at any, as I live nearby, and don't need to stay overnight in Sarlat.

THe place in Beynac looks lovely http://www.balcon-en-foret.com/ Again you would probably have to drive. Somewhere they say a 10 minute walk, but Beynac is straight up and down, so not sure. If you want a country setting by the river, in 'one of the most beautiful villages of France' this could be it.

StCirq

If you're not actually IN Sarlat, you're going to need a car. You haven't said if you'll have one or not, but without one you're essentially going to be stuck wherever you're staying and unable to go around and visit all the incredible things in the area.

Michael

<i>You haven't said if you'll have one or not,</i>

The original posting implies that a car would be rented.

Tinaindenver

Thanks for the comments. Yes, we are going to have a car, which sounds essential.

According to the TA reviews, this place is walking distance to Sarlat, but i can't really judge. From the map, it is definitely outside of Sarlat.

www.sarlatmanoir.com.

Carlux

Sorry, I would believe the map. Ave colonel Kauffman is a highway, not pleasant to walk on. Then you end up at a big Carrefour supermarket/McDonalds, and walk down a less interesting road until finally you get to something that would reasonably be the Sarlat you want to see. They say in their directions that it is a kilometer (.6 of a mile) to the centre of Sarlat. I would say that is underestimating a bit.

Certainly at night you would NOT want to walk back on this route. Not dangerous, but not pleasant either. (Why would you want to walk along a highway when you could be walking through gas lit streets in the centre of town?)

It wouldn't be my choice if I wanted to walk into Sarlat. A short drive, but not what I would call the centre of town by any means. The advantages of the place might lead you to choose it, but don't be fooled into thinking it is within walking distance.

jamikins

Totally agree with the above.

We stayed at Les Cordeliers http://www.hotelsarlat.com/ in 2009 and it was great - large rooms, right on the edges of the historic centre but with parking on the road out front (we never had an issue parking and parking is an issue in Sarlat).

We also stayed at Les Granges Hautes http://www.les-granges-hautes.fr/ in 2006 which is about a 15 min drive from the centre of Sarlat and loved it. But we needed to drive after dinners, and we love wine. Hence why we tried staying in town the next visit.

Both were great so it depends if you want to drive after dinner or not.

Best of luck, its a beautiful area!

Tinaindenver

Thanks again for the helpful suggestions. I think I will try something closer in.

Englishmaninfrance

Really do pay attention to parking, it is a big issue in Sarlat.

There are lots of interesting villages in the region, some right on the banks of the Dordogne and lots of "Bastides", medieval villages. Bergerac is a historic town towards the western end of the Dordogne. You can get there by train from Bordeaux and pick up a car at the station.

The roads along the valley are not brilliant, but they are not terrible either and everwhere is within an hour or so's drive.

I hope you enjoy your visit. I love living here, it's a beautiful region.

StCirq

Bastides aren't just "medieval villages." They were particular kinds of towns arranged geometicrally and with very particular arrangements regarding the inhabitants, and with very particular arrangements between the lords and the guys who served him. The layout of the bastide towns is distinctive.

Bergerac is a bore and WAY out of the main area that most people want to visit. Sarlat is not, but it's also tourist-central, with all that that entails.

And you can't really walk from that Meysset place, which looks lovely on the website, into Sarlat, or back. It's on a huge hill outside Sarlat, and you'd have to walk down a very windey major road into town and back, and no one would want to do that at night. Nice place, but without a car, I'd skip it. It's also right next to a huge open place where the local police have focused on trying to keep "les gens de voyages" of the area. Not a big deal for me, but might put off some travelers.

Tinaindenver

Interestingly, I emailed a few reviewers on TA who said that the walk isn't bad from Le manior Meysset,but I'm not sure I believe it. I booked a hire car anyway. What do you mean about the open area?

Carlux

THe open area is on the other side of the road. Rather like a big parking lot. If you are driving, you'll hardly see it.

Carlux

I just got back from driving that route, and while the Petit Manoir Meysset is closer in than the Hotel Meysset, it's still not a walk that I would find pleasant. Do-able, just not very pleasant.

In fact it is NOT next to the 'huge open place' at all - this is by the entrance to the Hotel, further up the hill than the Petit Manoir. And even there, as I say, it's really just like a big parking area, and it's downhill from the road. You probably won't even notice it.