psy_dr

We're staying with family for 8 nights in Bordeaux in June with our 5 yr old. We plan to take several day trips but we don't want to drive more than 2 hours to a destination (2 hrs each way for a total of 4 hrs a day is our upper limit).

We want to visit the Perigord area - our 5 yr old son would LOVE the castles/chateaus and caves and we'll enjoy the countryside & villages.

Looking at google maps, it seems that the Bergerac area is about 1.5 hrs from Bordeaux & the Lascaux caves are 2 hrs away --- that's totally doable. Unfortunately, the Sarlat area is 2.5 hrs away & Beynac is 3 hrs away (too far for us). But google maps could be wrong.

Please recommend villages, castles, caves, restaurants, etc. Really, recommend ANYTHING.

We can probably do 2 day trips to the Perigord area, so please recommend as much as possible so I can narrow it down.

Many thanks!!!!

ekscrunchy

Having made only three trips to that area, I am not as well informed as some. But I did write a rather lengthy report after one of my visits, this one of a week's duration; if you want to wade through it, you might get some ideas. I began that particular trip (in 2006) in San Sebastian and then took the train to Perigueux, where we rented our car.



http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...paris-1006.cfm

psy_dr

ekscrunchy- Thanks for chiming in on this post & the San Sebastian post! The link to your trip report is wonderful - I had done a forum search for the Perigord area but this one didn't show. I'm sure I'll get some ideas from it.

Aduchamp1

We enjoy cave drawings and we were duly impressed with the detail and quality of work of Lascaux II. There are other worthwhile cave drawings including Ruffignac and Font-de-Gaume. Ekscrunchy really knows her stuff as does StCirq, if she sees this topic.

psy_dr

aduchamp1 - Thanks for replying. I've read up on Lascaux I & II and am intrigued that everyone is so impressed by II even though it is a replica. Is there any reason why we should go to Lascaux II instead of I?

ekscrunchy - I can't thank you enough for giving me the link to your trip report. It's amazing -- exactly what I was looking for to help me plan day trips in this area. Now I just have to figure out how far some of these areas are from Bordeaux. Regardless, I love the idea of having lunch at fermes & visiting walnut plantations, farms, markets, etc. This is EXACTLY what I was looking for. And the scenic drives -- your report will be my guide for our day trips. I've actually copied the entire post (replies & all) onto word (total of 85 pages) and I'm deleting the information I don't need. I'm half way through and it's so wonderful so far.

Piccolina

bookmarking

ivenotbeeneverywhere

You cannot go to Lascaux 1 because it was closed to preserve it and therefore Lascaux was built but I hear now that it too is having the same problems from people being in it and perhaps it too will be closed or at least open only on occasions.
Lascaux 2 is a replica of 1 and done very, very well and you should not miss it just because it is a replica.
If you are in that area then go to the village where there is a wonderful museum - I will let you know the name of it 1/ when I remember it and 2/ when I have some light on this computer as I am typing in the dark ( getting over jetlag but don't want to wake everyone).
We spend one year doing most of the caves in the Perigord and they are really special. In fact I will be there again this May and most likely be going to Lascaux again for the 4th time.
Yes Bordeaux is about 2 hours away but I really think that the Lascaux region is very special and worth the trip in every way. So is Sarlat for that matter and the beautiful villages of Domme, Beynac, Les ( whatever its name is ) and those around. Do make the effort as you will not be sorry.

ekscrunchy

I am very pleased that you found the report helpful.

On another visit to that area, a few years ago and more recently than the date of the report here, which I did not write about here, I had a very good lunch at a restaurant in the tiny, yet very atmospheric hamlet of La Chapelle Aubereil; here is the website for the restaurant. It was recommended to me by a person on this forum who lives part time in the region.

http://www.tableduterroir.com/restaurant.htm

Note that there is also a more casual eatery in the same village named Le Barreil; we arrived too late and were turned away, but it looked just great--all locals eating there, no fuss, no frills.


Also, I spent a week in Madrid in January and wrote about my experiences there, too, so if you do plan to visit to the Spanish capital, it might be helpful as there is lots of food info. I think Spain has some of the best food in Europe right now, especially in Madrid, SS and Barcelona.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...k-in-spain.cfm

psy_dr

Hi everyone...

At the risk of sounding like I'm trying to do too much (ask my husband & he'll say I'm always scheduling too much -- but -- I am very flexible on the trip itself & am okay with not completing everything on my list of things to do --- I just like to cover all my basis prior to the trip so I have choices!!!)....Is it worthwhile to stay overnight in a castle in the Perigord area?

I'm thinking of my 5 yr old more than anything.

Is the "staying in a castle" experience really all that it seems to be?

If it's worth it, any castles (not too expensive --- maybe 125-150 euros a night) you'd recommend - for this we could drive a bit further for - maybe 2.5 or 3 hrs from Bordeaux max.

Thanks a million!!!

ivenotbeeneverywhere

Thought I had better come up with that name for you and in searching I found this site which shows most of the villages in that region
http://www.francethisway.com/places/...s-dordogne.php. The village that I was particularly mentioning is Les Eyzies but they are all worth a visit.

ivenotbeeneverywhere

There are one or two lovely B&Bs in Sarlat in the centre of the old village which would be fantastic especially if you were there for the Saturday market - for that though I would book for Friday night so that you can get an early start at the market and at least you have a park before the hordes arrive for the market on the Saturday morning.
One B&B is run by an English couple so language would not be a problem - the other one looks lovely but I only saw the pictures of it when there last year. Also there are some very good hotels on the edge of the medieval centre of Sarlat.
However if you are wanting to go for the caves then there are lovely places to stay closer.
In answer to your question of a castle to stay in - I did once stay in one and it was not that wonderful and would not spend that money again. Plenty of great places which are not i.e. the beautiful hotel overlooking the Dordogne Valley in Domme - the best bet is to get onto the site for accommodation by the Tourism office in Sarlat which lists everything available in the area.

StCirq

Lascaux I has been closed since 1961. That's why there's Lascaux II.

Instead of two day trips to the Périgord, which would mean at least 10 hours in a car with a 5-year-old, I would take an overnight. And not to a castle - there aren't that many castle hotels in the heart of the Périgord Noir to begin with, those that are there will probably cost more than your budget, and I can't imagine a 5-year-old wanting to hang out at some stuffy old castle with a bunch of middle-aged and elderly tourists, which is what will be there. Pick a nice small hotel or B&B in Sarlat, Domme, Beynac, La Roque-Gageac, St-Cyprien, or elsewhere; visit Lascaux II the first day and Font-de-Gaume the next; have your fill of foie gras and confit and chocolate-dusted walnuts; maybe squeeze in a gabarre ride or a short canoe trip; then head back to Bordeaux.