Tania

I'm just starting to plan my month long trip to France for next summer, and am thinking I'd like to spend two weeks in Dordogne. Problem being, I don't drive. Could you tell me of three places I could station myself over those 2 weeks, from where I can easily do day trips by bus, bike or moped?

You're input would be greatly appreciated!

Tania

StCirq

Nope. Don't do it. You really can't. You'd be better off learning to drive. Or just plan to hike - seriously.

Carlux

Agree with St Cirq. You can't get a bus to most places. You have to be a very practised cyclist to go up and down the hills in the area.

I presume you could rent a moped but I wouldn't recommend it. Again, lots of hills, lots of traffic in the summer.

Unless you want to spend two weeks in a town like Sarlat - we love it, but I wouldn't want to spend two weeks there and not see anything else - there isn't much point in coming here.

ira

Hi T,

Good advice from StC and Car.

They live there.

There are Dordogne tours, but I don't think they are as long as 2 weeks.

scot1

hi - just thought i would add this info - at easter we were left minus a hire car due to a mix up. We were based in Le Bugue, we did walk everywhere & ad some lovely days but one day it just rained all day! We never saw much of anything due to train times being quite restricted for us as we were 8 miles from the nearest train station!Buses were only twice a day for school runs & taxis quite expensive. The Dordogne is gorgeous,we had a fab relaxing break but i would never do it again without a car!! I am dying to go back & see all those caves etc!!

PalenQ

I have driven and biked in the area and yes you need a car because of a paucity of local transport to sites in rural areas.

A great biking venue even with so-called 'perched towns' and bastides on hilltops dating from Roman times i think.

But in any case beware pyrannahs in the Dordogne River

StCirq

hi, scot:

I'm sure you were severely hampered by restricted train schedules, but just for the record, you can't have been 8 miles from the nearest train station if you were based in Le Bugue. There's a train station right there. Not a very useful one, to be sure.

scot1

Hi St Cirq - i was trying to give a quick version of the story!! We were actually staying near Le Bugue - at a campsite St Avit Loisirs - which was a fab site, unfortunately it was about 6 or 7 miles out the other side of Le Bugue from the train station(which i think is about a mile or 2 out in the other direction?).We got the train from Paris down to Limoges & were picking up a car there, unfortunately my cc had been frauded so it was not accepted as deposit & the lovely lady@ Europcar would not even take a cash deposit of 1000 euro & could not use our debit cards!! We got a 2 trains & a taxi to campsite & walked most of the rest of the time. One day we got v.tired & hitched a lift from a really nice guy who lived on the farm nearest to the campsite! Lesson learned? Do not leave home without a cc for emergencies a backup cc for more emergencies!! I am so jealous if you live in the St Cirq in Dordogne, gorgeous part of France.

StCirq

Hi again, scot:

I know that campsite well (yes, I'm in the St-Cirq that's between Le Bugue and Les Eyzies). Nice spot, but you're right, a good hike out of Le Bugue, and the train station's on the opposite side of town.

I'm so sorry the EuropCar lady wouldn't help you out - was it the one in Périgueux? They're usually so nice there! I can't imagine anyone shunning a cash payment.

annhig

Tania,

rather than the Dordogne, what about Provence? or the french riviera?

there are recent threads about them both, particularly the latter, without a car.

regards, ann

Tania

Ann (and everyone else!)

I'm SO upset that Dordogne is not do-able without a car, so now it's back to the drawing board. Arg.

I've been to Provence (and Burgundy and Corsica) before...all without a car. In Provence, though, I've been to Aix, Avignon, St. Remy and Arles, and have done day trips to surrounding towns from all of them. So my first question is: Can you think of other spots in Provence I can station myself, without any overlap?

My next question is, can you recommend other beautiful parts of the country where I could spend a week or two without a car?

Ann, you mentioned the Riviera. Any recommendations of places I can situate myself for a few days, that are easily accessible to smaller towns?

JudyC

To Tania, Brittany is an area with good bus/train networks, lovely sceneries and old towns.

Tania

Judy,
I'm actually already considering Brittany for the start of my trip, along with Loire. Good to know that Brittany would be a no-brainer when it comes to transport.

annhig

Hi Tania,

to answer your question directly, Nice gets good reviews for car-free travel.

to answer it indirecctly, we just got back from Brittany - 5 days, WITH a car. But it looked reasonably easy without one - lots of trains, and buses.

of the places we visited, quimper floated our boat best.

regards, ann

PS - best joke of the trip - we came across a place called [I'm not kidding] "Brasparts" - quipped my DH - "I suppose it's twinned with Brest". LOL - you just had to be there!

scot1

Hi everyone
more input from me - hope it is useful Tania!From Nice is sooo easy to get around the whole area by bus & train,we never take a car there!!I could totally recommend that as you can get transport to lotsa good places really easily, google french riviera & it gives some great sites with links to buses etc(i think there is 1 called Riviera transport or something similar)I see from a previous post that you went to Corsica w/o a car - how was that?? We always hire a car as the buses & trains seem few & far between! If you can manage that i am sure you will be fine anywhere else!Only other part of France i went to minus car was Rousillon - based in Argeles & took train to Perpignan, Elne, Barcelona, Collioure - all really good. Hope you have a good trip anyway.Let us know where you ended up.

Momliz

we tried to do a bike trip in the Dordogne which did not work out for many reasons, so we ended up taking taxis all around. It was doable, but a pain. So, if you really want to go to the Dordogne carless, you could. And, our taxi drivers were charming and fun gentlemen.

Although, in re reading your post, 2 weeks sounds like a long time. But, as I said it is doable - and a mix of hikes, bike rides and taxis might work.

I, however, will have a car for our next trip.

julia1

Tania-- If you're interested in the south of France, I could recommend you look into staying in Hyeres. It's an interesting place to base yourself. I've spent many weeks there over the past ten years without a car and have never run out of things to do. There are good bus connections from the very busy gare routiere near the center of town.

Hyeres is one of my favorite places along the Provençal coast. The town itself rises up a hillside a couple of miles from the sea, with a maze of interesting old streets leading upward and winding through. There's even a rue Paradis, which passes through an old stone archway with a ceiling of golden stars painted on deep blue. Hyeres is very different from most of the other seaside resorts along the côte d'azur, because it's a real town for real people, as well as being a resort, mainly for the French. There's a lovely square with large old plane trees and cafes and a good market - I'm not sure but I think it's on Saturdays. The Place Massillon, another open square, features a Knights' Templars tower from the 13th century watching over the small cafes that spread their tables out onto the pavement. Another market, this one for fruit and vegetables and olives, stretches away down one of the side streets. At the top of the hill are the remains of an old castle and wonderful views out over the mountains and the sea and islands. Just below the castle is Park St-Bernard, where there is the Villa Noailles, famous for its 1920s/Art Deco/Modernist garden, and also Castel Ste-Claire, once the home and garden of author Edith Wharton. The garden is open to the public and it, as well as Park St-Bernard, have trails and good walks.

Beyond Hyeres ville is the peninsula Presqu'ile de Giens, connected to Hyeres by a 4-mile-long wide and sandy beach, from Almanarres on the west side and Hyeres plage on the east. Between the two are ancient Salines des Pesquiers or salt-evaporating lakes. These and the large Etang des Pesquiers attract migrating flamingos which can often be seen in large flocks along the shallower edges feeding on small shrimps. On Giens there are a couple of small villages and some good walks, one of which will take you to a large sea-water pool carved out of the rock, where you're welcome to swim sans-suit if you wish. There's also a small port and from here you can catch ferries to the Porquerolles Islands.

There are also more salines and often more flamingos, a long sandy beach and a couple of small villages about a 20-minute walk to the east of town, near the Port d'Hyeres.

Bormes-les-Mimosas is a lovely, but heavily-touristed, small town on the hillside above La Lavendou. Bandol is also a short bus ride away, another pretty but heavily touristed town, but the beach is beautiful and the wine is good.

Toulon is a 30-minute bus ride from Hyeres and is worth seeing, there is much more to it than just the naval base. Rising behind the town is Mt Faron, with a telepherique to whisk you to the top. From there, the views are astonishingly wonderful. There are cool walks on soft paths through typical Mediterranean maquis vegetation. The wildflowers are abundant, at certain times of the year you will even see orchids and wild tulips. There is a small WWII French Resistance museum and a couple of bars/cafes. And lions and tigers and bears too - there is a small wild cat sanctuary back in the woodlands. Here you will probably not run into any American or English-speaking tourists, just French families or young couples out for the day. The port is a real working port, and there are places to eat with good fresh fish and lovely wines.

Here are some photos, if you're interested: http://jmstudio.fotopic.net/c1542303.html

julia1

I forgot to mention, Hyeres is also easily accessible from Nice airport by bus and train. And Marseilles is just about an hour away by train also.

bikebus

We hire bikes and deliver them around the Sarlat area and have a fleet of 200 bikes. You don't need legs like Armstrong to cycle in the Dordogne like many people seem to believe, this is not the Alps. The hills are rolling and besides, since when have view points ever been at the bottom of hills ?? The countryside around here makes the effort worth the while. Cycling gives you the freedom to roam the area at will, going places that you wouldn't normally find in a car or on foot. Cycling is the perfect pace to see the Dordogne and our bikes all have 27 gears so there's always the right gear for any incline. We rent bikes to people of all ages and abilities and help you find a route that corresponds to what you want.
www.multitravel.co.uk

Tania

Julia1,

Thank you SO much for the wonderful info on Hyeres! I've now bookmarked a couple of websites with info on it, and it seems right up my alley.

I'm starting to think an ideal itinerary would look something like this:
Paris-3 days
Brittany-8 days
Bordeaux and region-4 days
Hyeres-5 days?
Menton-5 days
Nice-3 days