We are being to think about our next trip to France (after our Spring ’06 visit) and are considering renting a house sometime in ‘07. We have heard a lot of positives about the Dordogne/Lot areasso we hope you can help us in our preliminary research, perhaps even some specific locations we might scout out when we are there in six weeks. We want to rent a house for two adults only, for four weeks, that we could use as a base. From there we would take side trips as we would have a car. Rather than the country, we would like to be in a small village, where we could walk to shops, cafes and restaurants with access to some memorable dining. Questions:
1. Is it realistic to find a place like this in this area?
2. Would you recommend some specific villages and explain why?
3. What 4 weeks would you choose and why?
If you have a specific home you know about we would love hear about it. Feel free to email me directly if you are reluctant to broadcast a specific treasure you have found.
[email protected]
Thanks again you wonderful Fodors people.

This issue has been discussed quite a bit in the past. Do a search on "dudley sarlat" and you will find many past posts that can help you.

About the only village in the area that will give you enough walk-to-dinner options for 4 weeks would be Sarlat. However, I would not choose to stay there for that long of a time - a little too touristy.

Stay near Roque Gageac or Beynac. If you want a larger village, try Le Bugue, but it's not as charming as the first two.

Stu Dudley

Look into Figeac or Belves. Figeac is the larger of the two, both are charming and are real places. Belves is small but has a newsstand, restaurants, shops, and a laundromat! Not so much on the tourist beaten track, in my experience.

Hi R,

>3. What 4 weeks would you choose and why?

Any time after Labor Day to mid-Oct.

Air fares are lower.
Fewer tourists.
Weather is nice.
Cepes are out.
Grapes are being harvested.
Olives are being harvested.

Figeac, though beautiful, is not in the Dordogne and way far away from the main things you'll want to be visiting. Belvès is ok, but I'd look into St-Cyprien, Le Bugue, Domme, Beynac, La Roque-Gageac, and Montignac. In all those towns you could have memorable dinners you could walk to.

I wouldn't stay in Sarlat, either, for a month, beautiful though it is.

There are loads and loads of house rentals in the Dordogne. Start with Gîtes de France and then look at private rental agencies, Simply Perigord in Le Bugue being a very reliable one.

I'd choose the last two weeks of May and the first two of June, or last two weeks of September and first two weeks of October.

Thanks so much for the suggestions. This is the type of information that will narrow it down for us. We ordered and received the booklet of house rentals that Stu has suggested but the listings are by town and there are so many towns and villages that it is near to impossible to sift through when you don't know them. It is also difficult to tell if the houses are in the villages or in the country - many seem to be away from the villages. I was hoping that some experienced gite users would let slip the names of ones they have tried and which fit the bill but I guess that information is pretty carefully guarded. How about yours StCirq? Will it be ready and does it meet the criteria?

robjame: if you want info about my house in the Dordogne, you'd best email me at [email protected], an I'll be happy to give you the details. I suspect it is larger and therefore mor expensive than what you need, but I have friends who have other houses and I do know a lot of the Simply'Périgord properties because they've managed certain aspects of my property for years now.

As for towns and villages, stick to the ones Stu and I have mentioned and maybe a few others - St-Alvère, Limeuil, Siorac...if you want to email me and get into detail about this I'll try to help out...

>>We ordered and received the booklet of house rentals that Stu has suggested but the listings are by town and there are so many towns and villages that it is near to impossible to sift through when you don't know them<<

The very last page of my 2002 book has a fold-out map of the Dordogne, and has towns indicated that have gites listed in the book. Also, for every gite listing, it indicates the distance to commerce/shops. Most of the gites are not in towns. If you find some you like, go to the web site for the Gites in the Dordogne, and "input" the specific Gite number you are interested in. Often the on-line system has additional pictures, and even an owners web site.

Ackislander mentioned Figeac. This is one of our favorite towns, but I think it is a little too remote to use as a base vor visiting the Dordogne. Belves, however, would be an excellent choice if you want to stay in a town.

Stu Dudley