susan001

Hello all,
I'm in the early stage of sketching out an itinerary. First of all I need to ask if it would better to travel to the Dordogne in June or September? I can do it either time. I've heard the weather can be better in fall, but not sure if my source is correct.

I'm planning to use public transit & private guides. I just don't want to drive by myself in a foreign country. I've traveled solo many times -- always using trains/ buses (and sometimes local guides in minivans). I've never been to the Dordogne.

Fly into Brussels, train to Bruges 2 or 3 nights

Paris -- 3 or 4 nights

Chenonceaux (the town - next to the famous chateau - I've never been there) 2 nights

Sarlat --4 or 5 nights
(hire a private driver/guide to visit Beynac, La Roque Gageac, Chateau des Milandes, Domme, Font du Gaume -- etc.

Carcassonne (maybe-not sure) 2 nights.
Fly out Toulouse.

(After Previewing my post just now, it struck me that I may not have much fun touring the Dordogne region with a local guide. Hmmm.)

kja

As always, how long to spend in any place really depends on your interests and preferred pace. All I can offer is based on my own experience.

> Fly into Brussels, train to Bruges 2 or 3 nights.

I was glad to have nearly 2 full days in Bruges.

>Paris -- 3 or 4 nights

I thought 6 nights barely enough for my first visit to Paris. I was very glad to spend another week there on my 2nd visit.

> Chenonceaux (the town - next to the famous chateau - I've never been there) 2 nights

I'm glad I visited the chateau. I spent a leisurely 1/2 day there.

> Sarlat --4 or 5 nights (hire a private driver/guide...) ... I just don't want to drive by myself in a foreign country.

I am SO glad a had a rental car when I visited the Dordogne! As a solo traveler, I resisted renting a car for many years, but once I made the decision to do so even once, I lost all sight of why I fought the idea for so long! It has definitely been freeing to be able to rent a car now and then (although I still often choose public transportation instead - it depends on routes and timing, etc.). As a solo traveler, I definitely try to make sure that I won't have to drive after dark. And I do my best to figure out in advance how to manage without a navigator. For a few trips, that meant studying driving routes in advance. More recently, I purchased a GPS system that I can program in advance and take with me when I travel. If you REALLY don't want to drive while in a foreign country, I can understand, but I would suggest that you give it a second thought. My experience of the Dordogne was that a private guide was NOT necessary if one had a car.

> Carcassonne (maybe-not sure) 2 nights.
Fly out Toulouse.

For what it's worth, I loved Toulouse and wished I had given in more than 1.5 days. But then, I didn't make it to Carcassone....

Hope that helps!

susan001

Thank you so much, kja. I will definitely give more thought to having a car. I really wanted to visit George Sand's house in Nohant-Vic which would require a car. Maybe I need to think about a 2 day car rental in the Indre valley, and a 4 day car rental in the Dordogne. With a GPS, how bad can it be? Also, I'm a little nervous about getting gas. I've heard that more and more stations require the kind of credit card that has a European chip (most American cards don't have it) or cash IF there's an attendant.

StCirq

I cannot imagine hiring a driver in the Dordogne, unless you hired me. Whatever for? You can easily drive yourself all over for a gazillionth the price of a a private driver (if they even exist - maybe they do, but in all my 20 years of owning a property there have never heard of one). Rent a car, drive all over, drive it to Toulouse and visit Carcassonne, and then maybe take the TGV back to Paris from Montpellier or Toulouse or Brive or somewhere.

Spend at least a couple of days in Brussels - if nothing else, it's got the best food in all of Europe. Then a couple of days in Bruges (two is plenty).

You do not need two nights in Chenonceaux. Go there, see the château, and get out. Same with Carcassonne - go for a few hours and get out.

susan001

Thanks, StCirq! I've read your posts in the past, and so glad you chimed in. There actually are a couple of guides in the region. They will pick up visitors in Sarlat (some are pre-planned day tours, and the other guy leads custom tours). I did this in Provence. It ended up being a very long, interesting, but tiring day. In the end I wished I had rented an apartment in Lourmarin & had a car (living like a local is the way to go, it seems).

I will consider what you say about Brussels and perhaps less time in Chenonceaux & Carcasonne. Thanks, again! I don't have any real time constraints.

What about June vs Sept? Does it matter?

Michael

It may be cheaper to rent a car for the entire Loire valley/Dordogne stay. A two day rental will tend to have a higher per day charge than a 7 day rental. George Sand lived in the Berry, which means that you are already on the way to the Dordogne.

susan001

Thanks, Michael. Yes, I've found these places on my map, but wanted to avoid driving the autoroutes. I would be visiting the Sand place solely due to my interest in Frederic Chopin. He composed some of his major works there in an upstairs room.

Michael

Use www.viamichelin.com to establish an itinerary that avoids the autoroutes.

Carlux

And DON'T worry about having problems buying gas. There seems to be some mistaken belief that you wont be able to use your card anywhere if it hasn't got a chip/pin. Certainly if you try to use it in machines, including at gas stations that arent staffed, you will have problems. But most stations (buy at supermarkets, virtually all sell gas, cheaper than at stations) have staff there during the day. IF you run out at night, or on a Sunday afternoon, you may have problems, but at other times there will almost always be someone at the desk to process your card.

And in fact, if you rent a diesel car you may not have to fill up more than once. Our last guests drove around most of the week on one tank, then filled up at just to take the car back to the rental agency.

And I do second the recommendation to have a car. Much of the charm of this region is the 'getting there' Wandering around from village to chateau to Romanesque church to market. And if you get a little lost (unlikely with a GPS) not so bad, as there's always something interesting around the next bend.

susan001

Thank you, Carlux. I will definitely consider having a car. I'm glad you posted this comment (very helpful). Are you American or British? How did you end up living in the region?

ira

Hi sus,

>Carcassonne (maybe-not sure) 2 nights.<

We found Carcassone interesting as an overnight, but no more..

I suggest you add a day to Paris. I suggest that you add several days to Paris.

We visited the Dordogne in the Autumn and enjoyed it very much.

With respect to driving: The roads are good and well-marked. The distances aren't great.

You will save 2 hrs of travel as well as not having to make 2 changes of trains if you drive from Chenonceaux to Sarlat.

I suggest you take the advice from St Cirq and Carlux.

Enjoy your visit.

ira

PS,

We carry a European cell phone for emergencies.

Also, if you have a GPS it will give you telephone numbers and directions to emergency services.

enjoy your visit.

susan001

Thanks so much, Ira. If I do decide to drive around the Dordogne (now leaning that direction), I will most likely stay in a smaller town like Beynac or Domme. Any suggestions?

It's now looking like this:
3 nights - Bruges (I want 2 full days there -- one afternoon, may join a bicycle group).
4 or 5 nights - Paris (I've been to Paris twice before -- this time will be visiting the Chopin places, returning to Musee d'Orsay, visiting several others - going on a Hemingway walk.
2 nights - Chenonceaux (not sure about having a car there - want plenty of time to explore the grounds in the morning, and just unwind).
5 nights - Dordogne (train to best car rental place in area from C). I want to avoid the autoroutes.
1 night - Carcassonne
1 or 2 nights Toulouse (not sure I will like it enough to stay)

Note: the Sand house in Berry region is omitted. It's very remote and not a tourist destination, though the house is open to the public (including the upstairs room where Chopin composed).
I would need a car. I'm nervous about driving there.

ParisAmsterdam

Do you drive in LA? In California? If so, you will have no trouble driving in France. With all due respect to the people of SoCal, you will find the French are much more skilled drivers. Have you ever heard of someone failing a driving test here in North America? Never. In France a license is much more expensive and requires more training to get.

Don't be afraid of picking up a car in Tours, seeing more than one Loire chateau, then driving to the Chopin house and the Dordogne. These are areas of France where having a car is a delight. Get a Michelin road atlas and a GPS before you go. Learn how to use the GPS and preload POIs, routes etc. I love driving in France.

StCirq

First off, I should think you'd want a car for Chenonceaux. It's a small castle and the grounds aren't that big. There's a wax museum there, which I suppose you might want to visit, though it's never interested me on many visits there. Not even sure how you'd get to Chenonceeux without a car, though I suspect there are days trips organized from Tours (but you'd be on THEIR schedule, not yours).

Unless you keep the car (and keep in mind that a car rental for 2 days will be a lot more than one for a week or more), you're likely going to end up taking a train from Tours to the Dordogne. There are a few TGVs from Tours to Bordeaux, where you can switch to a Corrail train to Périgueux, which puts you about 40 minutes in a car from the Sarlat area. You can probably get a train from Tours to Brive as well. You can check out schedules at www.sncf.com or www.tgv-europe.com. From Brive it's just a bit longer drive. Rent from AutoEurope - they're a broker and will connect you with Europcar or Hertz or some other rental outfit in Périgueux or Brive. I always pick up my car in Périgueux, right around the corner from the train station.

There are dozens of small towns you could stay in, Beynac and Domme among them. Those two will probably be fairly crowded in either June or September, with parking issues - not a huge problem compared to high season, but still potentially an issue (we were in the Dordogne a few weeks ago in September and had parking problems everywhere, especially on market days). You might want to pick a town that's not so much of a tourist magnet.

I'm betting you'll love Toulouse.

Judith_Hunter

what everyone else said, plus in defence of the autoroutes, we noted that on weekends they verged on serene! During the week they were pretty horrible. If you timed a major leg of your journey (eg Sarlat to Carcassonne) to be on a Sat or Sun you could do it quickly on an autoroute, saving a lot of navigating on smaller roads.
Have fun!

Carlux

'Thank you, Carlux. I will definitely consider having a car. I'm glad you posted this comment (very helpful). Are you American or British? How did you end up living in the region?'

No and No. We are originally from Canada, came to the Dordogne, and with no research into other regions, fell in love with the Dordogne. Moved here 18 years ago, and have never regretted it.

Michael

<i>the Sand house in Berry region is omitted. It's very remote</i>

Meillant is not far from Nohant.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57624575935008

StuDudley

I'll just echo what the other experienced travelers recommend - get a car.

We thought 2 nights/1 1/2 days in Bruges was enough - but we visited very few museums. Since it is your first stop - 3 nights is perfect (to recover from jet lag).

We enjoyed the George Sand house very much - although the countryside was not as "charming" as the Dordogne.

We've spent about 3 weeks in the Dordogne in June and 7 weeks in September. Both were equally delightful times. Perhaps June was better because daylight hours were longer. Although, the Dordogne seems like a "fall" place to me.

Here is want I would do:

- Bruges 3 nights
- Paris 4 or 5 nights
- Take the 12:38 train to Amboise, rent a car, and spend 2-3 - nights on the Loire - visiting several chateaux. I recommend that you do not take the train from Paris to Tours, and your first driving experience be the Tours/St Pierre des Corps area. That's a difficult region to navigate. Start in Amboise. In fact, stay overnight in Amboise (and visit their chateau).
- Head south to George Sands house. If you choose to do this, let me know & I tell you where we stayed. It was a Michelin 1 star restaurant with rooms.
- On to the Dordogne for as many nights as you can. Staying in Domme, Roque Gageac, or Beynac would be perfect.
- Drive to Toulouse, stopping in Carcassonne for a 3 hr visit along the way. Stay 1 or 2 nights in Toulouse. This is our 3rd favorite city on France. We've visited it 3 times - latest being this past July.
- Fly home from Toulouse. There are several flights connecting through various airports in Europe. We did this in July.

Do you have my Dordogne itinerary? I've sent it to about 1,000 people on Fodors. If you would like a copy, e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach a copy to the reply e-mail.

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

>>Meillant is not far from Nohant.<<

Fantastic chateau!!! Get off the Autoroute and visit this chateau, then a short drive to Nohant. Note that Meillant closes for lunch. We got stuck inside the chateau grounds for 1 1/2 hrs a few years ago. But the grounds were interesting to exploring, relaxing, & taking pictures of the chateau.

Stu Dudley