Fodor's Travel Talk Forums

Fodor's Travel Talk Forums (https://www.fodors.com/community/)
-   Europe (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/)
-   -   Dordogne or Languedoc/Rousillion? (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/dordogne-or-languedoc-rousillion-666403/)

HappyTrvlr Dec 27th, 2006 10:49 AM

Dordogne or Languedoc/Rousillion?
 
If you had one week, which one of these regions would you choose to spend it in?

Travelnut Dec 27th, 2006 11:14 AM

Pick one for this coming trip, then do the other on the next trip :)

GregY2 Dec 27th, 2006 11:43 AM

If had to make a choice I would go for the Dordogne/Perigord. There is just so many things to see & do in a relatively small area and the countryside is lovely. I say this even though we have a share in a property in the Roussillon, near Perpignan, and I really like that area as well.

bill_boy Dec 27th, 2006 01:18 PM

I'd go with the Dordogne/Perigord area. We've been to both of your choices but it's night and day when we compared one to the other.

Check out a very recent nicely-written trip report here by ekscrunchy - it captures what a nice trip in the Perigord would be.

Sue4 Dec 27th, 2006 01:29 PM

Dordogne. If you haven't already done so, so a search on here and you'll see some wonderful reports. It's such a beautiful area with wonderful sites, and easy to get around (only by car, of course).

jamikins Dec 27th, 2006 01:55 PM

Definitely the Dordogne! We spent a week there this Oct and LOVED it! So much to see, great food, and lovely scenary!

Do a search for Bikerscott and you can find our trip report.

ira Dec 28th, 2006 03:42 AM

Ditto travelnut

((I))

Steve_Stearns Dec 28th, 2006 05:13 AM

The Dordogne gets my vote too. We spent the month of September there (our second trip) and would return again because there's so much to see and do. Email me ([email protected]) if you'd like a copy of my rather lengthy trip report.

Steve

Trudaine Dec 28th, 2006 06:00 AM

I am from the Dordogne, but I would add it's difficult to compare two relatively vast areas in general terms. It depends on where in the Dordogne, and where in the LR. I believe that what English speakers refer to by "Dordogne" far exceeds the territory of the current Dordogne département, that is more or less the ancient province of Périgord. Besides, the Dordogne proper is more than the now heavily touristed Sarlat region, and includes and a lot of quite ordinary, non touristy countryside, which has its delights but is not necessarily worth crossing the Atlantic for.

The Languedoc-Roussillon (if the original poster means the administrative region) is a vast and varied place. There are few common points between the mostly sandy, flat coastline and the adjacent flatlands, and the rugged highlands of the hinterland. In my view, the LR coast is not highly attractive outside selected locations (1960's -1970's seaside resorts with a lower middle-class feel, unsightly urban sprawl around the larger coastal cities, especially Montpellier). The mountainous interior is much more interesting both in terms of scenery and architecture, such as the eastern Pyrenees, the Corbières, the southern Massif central (which extends to the Cévennes, the Larzac Plateau, the Tarn Gorges, therefore beyond the limits of the LR, and offers some of the most stunning landscapes in France).

Another consideration is time of the year and weather. The "Dordogne" has a maritime-Atlantic climate with a relatively short tourist season. The LR has a primarily mediterranean, dryer climate with warmer summers.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 10:22 PM.