mimipam

A great trip! Thanks to all of you who had input and patience. Thanks esp to Stu Dudley for his extensive notes.

I feel blessed for this trip since upon our return there were reports of high waters and concern for falling rock and business closures which thankfully we missed.

One other thing - I will not proof read carefully when writing this rather lenghty (maybe too long) report. I know that some of you will edit for me along the way.

To begin with we flew British Air at the time of the threatened and real strikes. This is the second time that I have been so glad to have used an agent when booking air as our flights home were indeed cancelled and our agent was able to find us flights on Luthansa leaving us with a lot less stress than if we had to do this ourselves.

We flew into Toulouse and had a Mercedes B Series (I think) SUV rental which was very nice. I had ALL the notes and maps ready. We arrived in Carcassone at our hotel after having a little difficulty finding it as we somehow ended up in a residential area for a bit. We stayed at the Hotel Montmercy (thanks Ira for your notes on this). It was a very nice location and room. The room was indeed small with the bathroom tiny, but it appeared to have been redone just recently. We stayed here for two nights. The first evening we just walked a little around La Cite and had dinner at La Courtine on Place Marcou. Both of us had cassolet for our main course and it was very good. The second evening we had dinner at Au Comte Roger. For some reason I failed to write down what we had but I would bet it was duck as I was eager to try this. This restaurant was nice and more of a dining experience.

A side note here - Our trip was the end of May and I had made no dinner reservations before we left. Upon arrival in Carcassone we made reservations for night two and could not get into La Jardin de La Tour the first nights as it was totally booked. From then on I tried to get reservations before hand and I think this is the thing to do. If going later on, say June to August, I would definitely think reservations are a must for most of the really good and recommended places.

We had a nice tour of Carcassone (La Cite)on the first full day. I used mainly Rick Steves suggested tour. (I know many of you have indicated your dislike of him). It was a good walk throught Narbonne Gate, St Nazaire Church with lovely stained glass windows and old organ and on to Hotel de la Cite bar/library and garden, Chateau Comtal and a wall walk. Carcassone was impressive and I had wanted to go there for some time. I am glad I did, but must say that it was not as impressive as I thought it would be.

Friday - Day 2 - This morning we drove to Albi by way of Toulouse so as to go on better roads and arrive as quickly as possible. One thing I noticed was the beautiful country side with plots of ground divided nearly for agriculture that really looked manicured. We arrived in Albi about 10 a.m. and found our hotel Hostellerie Saint-Antoine. This hotel has on site parking (which a nice guest of the hotel took us to) and very accommodating staff. The man on duty when we arrived kept apologizing for not speaking better English (so much for the myth that the French are often rude - which they have never been to me - except to say that there are rude people everywhere at times). Also the location of the hotel was excellent. Our room was certainly not as redone as the first place but it was really large with a nice sofa to sit on and a large bath. As soon as we dropped off our luggage in the room (yes it was ready that early) we headed for St Cecile Cathedral. It closes at noon for a break so we though we should hurry. We got the audio guide and were told if we did not finish by noon just come back later with our ticket and we could finish. The most impressive thing here was the rood screen (choir screen) carved of stone with lots of decorations, arches, angels, Biblical figues, etc. It was amazaing. The painting of the Last Judgemnt was all in scaffolding and could not be seen except for a little bit of the edges. The church itself is wonderful on the exterior as well.

Next we headed for lunch at Le Clos Sainte Cecile and were fortunate to be seated as it seemed most of the tables were taken by reservation. This was a lovely outdoor garden setting. Lunch was 16 Euro plate with fish for the main course. My husband had the best starter of duck with beans. Wine was 15 Euro Manoir Blanc.

After lunch we viewed the gardens of Palais de la Berbie and went into the Toulouse Latrec museum. I enjoyed this as I am an art lover and my DH enjoyed a few things and endured the rest. Next we rode the little train that takes you around town. The on thing I really looked for was the building where Latrec lived. The train has a printed sheet to tell you what you will see (also they tell you about the sites in French.)

Earlier we had made reservations at Le Papillon Restaurant. I was having second thoughts about this since I thought Le Jardin des Quatre Saisons would be better. Well, we the the best time at Le Papillon and the best food. It is owned by two men - one is the chef and the other serves. It was like we were honored guests and the food was delicious. They say they use fresh local produce and give them a California type flair (they are from California but one of of French descent). I would highly recommend this restaurant. I had scallops and they were the best.

irishface

Interesting report. Keep it coming, please.

althom1122

Great start - looking forward to more. We enjoyed Carcassone, too, but I know exactly what you mean about not being quite as impressive as expected. It was a little Disneyland-ish, I thought. We had a great hotel, though, outside the city walls, but our room had an amazing view of the city.

mimipam

Saturday - Day 3

Today we drive from Albi to St Cirq Lapopie. Our first stop was Cordes sur Ciel. There was a market at the base of the town, but we just wanted to go on and see the town. It was a steep walk up and we got on side streets on the way back and were already tired after this first stop. It was not my favorite town. Next we stopped in Castelnau de Montmiral. WE parked at the top and walked to the really nice town square. I like this much better than Cordes sur Ciel. We also made a stop in Puycelci and it was a lovely village. Now on to Bruniquel. Parking was at the base and it seemed to be a long walk up and DH was tired and hungry so we skipped this. We had a snack in the car and then went on. We also stopped and walked around Penne briefly. Next I insisted we take the "scenic" gorges route to St Antonin Noble Val. It took us a little whille to find this route and I must say I was somewhat disappointed because there was so much foliage that we could not see the river and sometimes the steep rock wall was obscured as well. At the end of the drive it was a much better view. We stopped across the river from St Antonin for the lovely view and then hurried on to St Cirq Lapopie.

Let me say that the view across the river of St Cirq L was spectacular. We arrived and checked in at Auberge du Sombral. Parking is included in a lot a short distance from the hotel which is in the heart of the town. Marion(the daughter) was most friendly and helpful. We walked around, saw a wedding taking place at the TI (of all places) which was nice to see. We climbed up for a nice view. We ate dinner at the hotel - very good esp the asparagus soup and the mushroom in puff pastry.I had lamb and DH had trout. My dessert was walnut ice cream and so begins my obsession with walnuts.

I really liked St Cirq L. It is a lovely place with picturesque scenry. Our hotel was nice - no a/c but none needed. I will say that I felt that one afternoon there was sufficient.


Sunday - Day 4

We had reservations for Pech Merle at 9:30 - the second tour of the day. They told me if we were there earlier it might be possible to go on the first tour. We made this first tour. WELL - what can I say about this wonderful cave!!!!It was our first experience with pre-historic cave art and we loved it. We had a lovely young guide. The tour was in French but they have an excellent brochure in English. Also our guide would often repeat some things for us in English and was willing to answer any questions. This cave was spectacular - large, open, MANY different paintings, human footprints, hand paintings. There is also a small museum to see.

We drove along the Cele on the way to Rocamadour. We took a wrong turn and went way up somewhere and finally found a place wide enough to turn around and were back on our way. This was a beautiful drive and I enjoyed it.

Upon arriving in Rocamadour there was a big cheese festival going on and traffic was a "zoo." We rinally parked and then realized we were too far away. We did walk through L'Hospitale. Next we found where to park and take the elevator to Rocamadour. We only went to one level (sanctuary) where the Black Virgin is and went through this chapel. Also there is the sword of Roland and St Michael's Chapel. I am, now sorry we did not spend more time there, but we wanted to get to Sarlat at a decent time. The view of Rocamadour is great!

On to Sarlat - and wouldn't you know we arrived and there was a holiday and the place was packed. We had no idea where to park as we were told where to unload our luggage but that area was congested. So we just found a parking lot and a spot and walked to our hotel sans luggage. We stayed at Villa des Consuls. As it tuned out we were parked not too far away and there was an electric luggage cart available. We had reserved a secure parking spot and I am glad we did. It was a few blocks walk to it but considering the weekend holiday it was a good decision. We had an apartment here with kitchen and sitting room. There is also on site laundry facilities (free). David, the owner, was exceptionally helpful. He helped us with dinner reservations for that evening - Le Bistro de l'Octroi and I gave him a list of places in the area I wanted to eat and he made those reservations as well. At Le Bistro both of us had asparagus salad, St Jacqwues scallopw with lentils, potatoes and souffle of corn. It was an excellent meal.


Moday - Day 5

Today we took a canoe ride down the Dordogne the first thing. I am so glad we did as some rain came in the next few days and our canoe trip was lovely. We used Canoes Loisirs and began at Vitrac and went a little past Beynac. This took about 2 1/2 hours. We went to the grocery store and had lunch in our room. In the afternoon we did some laundry and had a little rest. Dinner was at La Rapiere. This was in Sarlat right outside the church there in the square. The setting was lovely, but it was our least favorite food (goose). We wanted to eat at Quatre Saisons but they were booked. Before dinner we took a walk thought the old town.


Tuesday - Day 6

Today is cave day. WE had reservations at Laxcaux II. I had been wanting to go here for years. We did like this cave but not as much as Pech Merle (or Font du Gaume). Maybe it was because we knew it was a reproduction or because we had a lot of people who taked and asked a lot of questions to excess. Maybe it was just us. Also there were a couiple of small children who were not happy. One couple finally left because their child was unhappy.

We had some time before our Font du Gaume reservations so just as a fill in we went to La Roque St Christopohe. This was very interesting to me. My DH liked it less. It is amazing to see how "prehistoric" people lived and used these exposed caves. It was not crowded so our tour went fast.

On to Font du Gaume. Well, we drove all around (the wrong way) looking for the cave entrance. Either it is not marked well or we just missed the signage (did see one sign). We arrived early and just waited in the shade of the parking lot until time (DH took a little nap.) This was my FAVORITE cave. (DH liked Pech Merle best. ) It is a hike to the entrance. We had a wonderful guide. The passages inside the cave are very narrow. I thought by favorite "painting" was the reindeer but then I saw the bison running along the wall in a very narrow space - GREAT. It was an emotional experience as it was so very beautiful. Our guide was almost reverent in his narrative and you could tell he really loved the place. He told us about paintings in the closed areas and went to the gate to see if we could just get a glimpse, but it was too far.

Back to our apartment for a short time before going to dinner in Domme. We arrived early so as to have a walk around. I think that was enough time there for us. We drove to the top looking for the lookout (Belvedere) only to discover that L'Esplanade sits right there. There are beautiful view of the river and the valley here.

For dinner I had noix aperitif. DH had the 35 Euro menu - salmon wrapped huge white asparagus with "salad" sorbet, duck (looked like croquets) with fried eggplant and walnut ice cream. I had 45 Euro menu escargot on a salad with warm dressing, seabass with fennel, and a cream brulee topped with white spun sugar (cotton candy) on a chocolate wafer that tasted like nestles crunch and mango sorbet. Rose for me and red for DH were the wines. This was a great meal in a fabulous setting. Now I am hooked on vin du noix. It began to rain at the end of dinner. Of course, we had left our rain jackets in the room and had no umbrella. It rained harder and thankfully we just followed the signs back to Sarlat. We took a wrong turn upon arrival in town and were thoroughly confused for a brief time until I saw something I recognized. We parked in our secured garage spot and got really wet running back to the apartment. I had a great time!

mimipam

Wednesday - Day 7

We got up late today - market day in Sarlat. We had a quick walk through the market and it began to sprinkle rain. We drove to Castlenaud and toured the castle and looked at the small village. I had thought of not going through the castle as I have seen a lot (too much) weaponry before, but I will admit this was better as there were things I had never seen. Also we vistied with nice people along the way. There were school children as well. One couple we talked to was from New York. She wanted to know how someone from Texas even knew about the Dordogne area. (No offense was taken as she seemed a lovely person).Next was Beynac. We drove way up to the Chateau. Joan of Arc was filmed here they say. It is not as restored as Castelnaud but I liked it better. GREAT views with Castelnaud in the distance.

We drove to the bottom, parked and waked to see a great view from below. It began to rain again.

On the way back we stopped for gas. I can confirm what many of you told me. Our credit card would work if there was an attendant on duty to help. Our cards do not have the chip needed otherwise (at least not where we tried)

Afternoon - we did more laundry and DH of course, checked email, et.

Dinner tonight was Le Belle E'toile in Le Roque Gegeac. We drove to this very small village early. Saw boats docked (Gaberes, like in the movie Chocolat). Saw way up in the rocks where early cave dwellers lived (and where now is evidently in danger of some collapse). Walked up to see the "exotic" garden and church beside it.

Our dinner was very nice. We sat inside by the window. There was no terrace seating as they had four tables out the night before and the big rain came. Vin du noix appertif for me. We had a cold melon soup, foix gras with bay leaf, DH had coddled egg with mushroom ((warm like a soup). Main for me was guinea with white asparagus risotto. DH had sea bream with fennel.


Thursday - Day 8

Today we went to Jardins d'Eyrignac. It was really lovely. It was raining when we left our apartment but at the gardens it was only cloudy. The white or rose garden was especially beautiful. I had a hard time deciding whether to go here or to Margueyssac. I wish I had done both, but this was very nice and even my DH liked it. It was a nice break from caves and castles. We returned to our apt by way of Carlux where we had only a brief stop. Light lunch at apt.

After lunch we headed for Milandes. It was great! We arrived in time for the bird show. (Thanks Stu for pushing this a little). Both of us loved it. The commentary from the bird handlers was all in French and even though I did not understand hardly a work, the beautiful birds of prey touched our hearts and the care of the handlers was evident. Then we toured Josaephine Baker's former home. I loved seeing the beautiful chateau with outstanding views. Costumes and pictures of JB were throughout and I enjoyed seeing them. DH said he thought about two rooms were enough for him.

Tonight we had dinner at Le Grand Bleu in Sarlat. This was a great meal. DH had chicken with orange for starter, lamb with carrot souffle, and peach souffle for dessert. I had warm asparagus with foi gras in a great sauce, John Dory fish with vegetables and morrocan spices on top. My dessert was orange slices on chocolate wafer covered with chocolate sauce and rosemary ice cream. Before our starters we were brought asparagus essence, lobster on toast and cheese biscuit (all very small tasting bites). Of course, I had vin du noix. Wine was red Bergerac Chateau La Tours Verdots 2005. Excellent! This was a wonderful dinner.


Friday - Day 9

We drove from Sarlat through Belves to Monpazier. There is a very small square there, Place des Cornielies). It is lovely and there are roses everywhere. We stopped at the church St Dominique which had a rose window, stained glass above the altar, beautiful stations of the cross. We stopped at the TI for a map of a walking tour but did not do all of it. We went into a bakery and bought ham and mushroom quiche and a raspberry tart. DH found Christophe, an artist on one corner of the square who made beautiful inlay wood objects from furniture to hair clips. He bought bracelets for the ladies he works with and for me.

Then we were off to Chateau de Biron. We ate our quiche upon arrival in the car. Next we toured the Chateau which is being restored. They have a long way to go. We first went into the chapel, then the main courtyard, tower and private quarters. One notable thing here is that you can actually see the restoration process. Some of the rooms have rotten floors. Most impressive to me was the prison area with racks and cages, made me want to cry. The grande kitchen and tannery were interesting as well. The written English guide was hard to follow -- really confusing and almost useles.. Back in our car we ate the raspberry tart.

After a brief discussion we decided to return to Monpazier. We parked on the street and returned to see Christophe who fortunately for us remained open. We bought hair barretts for our grandgirls and a plaque for our son.

On the return drive we took D53 as suggested by Stu for views of Milandes, Beynac and Castelnaud which I had to turn around and see from behind as I must have looking too hard the wrong way. DH stopped for pictures (just for me.)Back to Villa des Consuls for cheese and wine. DH took a nap.

Oh yes! Yesterday we found out our BA flights were cancelled. Our agent has us on Luthansa now with tight connections.

The weather is cloudy and crisp!

Dinner tonight at La Plume d'Oie in La Roque Gageac. Absolutely wonderful meal! Owner/chef looked out from kitchen and waved us in. The lady that was our waitress (originally from Holland) was very good in making recommendations. I had the house aperitif (white wine flavored with florals - she said elderberry, but I think I misunderstood and that it was really elderflower). Also I had the 38 Euro menu with scallops with snow peas, lamb with white asparagus (the house special for the night), local cheese with walnut, roquefort, herb and a hard cheese that I don't remember the name of. I ordered a chocolate dessert. DH had the 29 Euro menu with mushroom ravioli, veal picata (not like what we are accumstomed to), and poached pear for dessert. We ended up trading desserts but agreed the pear was best. Also there were hor d'orves of lobster on crisp wafer and mushroom in pastry shell. Then a shrimp in glass with tomato and vegetable puree. Wine was Pecachard Chateau 2001 red as recommended by our waitress. Everything was wonderful. Too bad there was only one other couple there besides us. I went to the window on the way out and told the chef how excellent the food was.

Upon our return to VdC I discovered there was a gaslight rights by our entry gate. I had been looking for them in town and it seems a lot have been converted.

mimipam

Saturday - Day 10

Market day again in Sarlat. It was a large market and very interesting. The best thing for me was watching them set up. Our apt had windows facing the street below which was converted totally to the market. I could just watch out the window and see everyone working to set out their goods. One thing I have noticed on this trip is how hard most people work. I know many of them take off a lot of time for holiday. David, who owns VdC, closes part of the year (guess there are not that many visitors year round). Yet, when they are working they are really with it. The wait staff at the restaurants are busy scurrying, almost running, to keep up with everything.

We went to the market looking at the great produce. I had to buy asparagus knowing I would not be able to eat it all before leaving.

After the market we took a drive starting out on D704 toward the Eglise de Carsac where we stopped and went inside the small church. There is a WWI monument here. Then we went on for a view of Montfort which we had failed to see before. This was a nice drive and not too long. We headed back to VdC for cheese, bread, wine, and asparagus. The remainder of the afternoon was spent packing for our departure tomorrow.

Dinner tonight is at Le Presidial. This is a lovely setting and we sat inside the first dining room by the fireplace. Both of us had Gambetta (warm shrimp - huge plate) for starters. I had duck tornedos with foie gras, potatoes, green beans served in a facy shell and some kind of greens (maybe chard). DH had "fried" scallops with something green that sure looked like mashed potatoes. We both had warm goat cheese with honey. I thought it was the best but DH did not care for it. For dessert DH had creme brulee and I had assorted sorbets. I think this was a great place but we were both getting tired of eating such heavy meals that we did not enjoy it as much as we could have.

kenav

Keep going. I'm loving this.

mimipam

Sunday - Day 11

Today we leave Sarlat on our way to Cahors and Toulouse. We had rain off and on. Cahors was a little stressful. Guess my maps were not good enough. We first parked in a lot too far from everything. So we got back in the car and found the Pont Valentre with parking very nearby. This was a worthwhile stop. We walked across some of the bridge in the rain and spotted the "devil" high up on one of the towers. In town there seemed to be a market. The town was packed and there was no parking by the Cathedrale St Etienne. I had especially want to see the north door. With narrow streets and lots of traffic we were able to drive beside the church and I just did see the bottom section of the carvings on top. DH said he would keep trying for a parking spot but the traffic was so awful I was ready to go on. Right in front of the church there was a small flower market with lots of people.

We almost "never" found our way out of town. Finally we are on to Toulouse. Here again there were markets. Traffic was hectic. DH spotted the sign for our parking (thank you Lord) and we finally parked in this big multi-level garage with market stalls on the ground floor. A pretty young lady assisted us by showing us the way to our hotel, Albert 1er. It is a good locations for sightseeing in Toulouse. Our room was simple but adequate with a/c. The desk was helpful but we discovered since it was Sunday we would be unable to obtain our parking discount (no attendant). Also, we must leave very early in the morning and again no attendant. The young lady at the front desk made sure we had coins for leaving the parking garage.

We are tired, esp DH, and a little anxious about getting out of the city center so early tomorrow. Nevertheless, I am in Toulouse and want to see as much as possible.We had a nice walk to St Sernin Basillica and went inside. Most impressive inside and out. It is all red brick as are many of the buidings there. We went to Les Jacobins, by Place du Capitole, past Notre Dame(very small facade), walked along the river by Pont Neuf. Toulouse has beautiful architecture not unlike Paris but it seemed dirty to me even though we encountered hard at work street cleaning crews. Perhaps they were trying to recover from a busy weekend.

We walked around looking for a place to eat that opened earlier than 7 p.m. as we have to get up at 3:30 tomorrow. Finally we decided on Pizza Marzano on Place de Capitole. What a nice change from all our heavy, rich meals. DH had chicken with pineapple pizza, and I had chicken with vegetables pizza.


Monday - Day 12

We are up at 3:30. Most of the night I worried about getting mugged on the street with us pulling our bags and then wondered if we would get out of the parking garage alive. Wondered if it would be really dark at that time. Well, the hotel had breakfast waiting for us at 4:30 and we did eat a little. The street and parking garage were lit up like daylight and we rode the elevator and found our car. DH was concerned about getting out of the garage and considered if he would really run through the barrier if necessary. Well, he was right to be concerned. We put in our ticket and it showed we owed 17 Euros. He searched all over that machine and could find nowhere to put in coins. Of course, you could use a credit card if it had a "chip". I finally saw a button on the machine which he pushed. He asked for help and the gate lifted so we were able to leave. Of course it was raining and very dark but at least there was little traffic and we found our way to the airport and car rental drop. There was an issue here as well as the "box" to return papers and key was jammed. With the help of another man the drawer was opened and we are on our way.

Our flight was late in leaving and we already had a tight connection. Luthansa had an escort waiting and took those of us who needed to rush through passport control and on to the gate. Kudos to Luthansa!!!

I love France. The area we visited on this trip was very beautiful and the people were helpful and kind. Vive la France!

2010

Reading your trip report brought back so many wonderful memories of our own trips to the Dordogne! It has to be one of the most beautiful regions of France, don't you think? And the food is superb!!! Thanks for sharing your stories!

For the first-time visitor, Rick Steves provides practical hints & just enough information as to not overwhelm the reader! I have found his guidebooks useful - as well as others' - when planning a trip & touring! No need to apologize!

skibumette

If you are going somewhere Rick Steves likes, his map and detailed description are great. But if he doesn't think a particular site merits his/your time, it is banished from any mention and you'll definitely need other references!

NanBug

Great report, thanks for taking the time to write about everything!

Can you tell me a bit more about Villa des Consuls? Would you stay in an apartment there again? Was it quiet? Any drawbacks? I'm considering staying there for an upcoming trip. Thanks!

LLindaC

We did pretty much the same trip except we skipped Carcassonne and went to Bordeaux. Like you, we got lost a LOT!!! LOL! But it was a blast. Isn't the area just spectacular? I think we got luckier on the weather, though!

mimipam

Thanks to all of you who responded.
NanBug, I really liked Villa des Consuls.
We stayed in Richlieu and it was very nice. I was also fearful about noise but there are double windows/doors on the apt and we had no noise issues - not even on busy market days. I would stay there again. True it is in Sarlat which can be busy at times. However, the secured parking spot is a short walk and seemed to be easy in and out for us. Another thing we liked a lot was the nearness of several good restaurants. We could just walk to them in the evening which was especially nice on the last night there (also if you want to drink a lot of wine). Have you been to the website? www.villaconsuls.fr The website seems very accurate and David is the best. He will answer promptly any questions you may have. I enjoyed the apt kitchen though we did little cooking - breakfast is about all. Nice to have a separate sitting area from the bedroom also. Happy travels!!!

mimipam

By the way, I used Green Guides and Fodors as well as Rick Steves plus all the useful info on this site and the internet.

annhig

hi, mimipam,

great report, which brought back many happy memories for me two, of at least two trips; one the DH and I took just the two if us touring from Toulouse [where we stayed in the Albert 1er too] and another with our kids to the Dordogne, about 7-8 years ago. in fact, although they are now grown up, they are coming to France with us again next week.

your mention of the Jardins d'Eyrignac brought a smile - do they still have the tour where they describe it as an "intelligent" French garden [as opposed to a stupid english one??] we still giggle about that.

mimipam

hi annhig, i missed out on the intellilgent French garden tour. That is humorous. Hope you and your family have a wonderful time!

NanBug

Thanks again for your comments, very helpful.

annhig

Hope you and your family have a wonderful time!>>

thanks, mimipan. the family don't know it yet, but I have loads of new gardens lined up for them: Villandry, the garden festival at Chaumont, the Chemin de Rose at Doue la Fontain, [though I might just let them go to the zoo there as well if they are good]..and that's just for starters. Also there is an excellent rose garden at le puy de fou, but we've been there before, so it doesn't count as new. [neither does Villandry really, but we went in spring before, so the planting should be different this time].

shame we've only got 10 days!

mimipam

Villandry gardens and chateau - spectacular!!I certainly know the frustration of wanting to do so much in such a short time.

sap

Great report, mimipam, and thanks so much! It's very useful for me as you covered almost the exact same ground in a similar amount of time that we'll have in those areas of the Cele/Lot & Dordogne. (We also plan to stay at the Albert 1er before our flight out from Toulouse.)

Question: How much time did you end up spending at Rocamadour? The Green Guide says it will take a whole day, but I was hoping to cut that to a couple of hours in the late afternoon as our new plan just puts it as a day trip from our rental house in Beynac and I wanted to combine it with Padirac and a couple of other villages.