Sarlat and Carcassone
 

We need some help!! We are travelling to France in July with another family (4 adults and 4 children between the ages of 9 and 13). We know that we would like to visit Sarlat and Carcassone and visit the areas in between. We also love the idea of renting a vacation home with a pool and having that as our base. We would have roughly 6 days before heading off to Barcelona. Here's where we need some advice. Is it a good idea to stay in one place or are we better to spend 3 nights in one spot and 3 nights in another. We really don't want to be packing up every morning and moving to a new place. Then there is the question of what towns to stay in?

We welcome and thank you for any suggestions!!

Sarlat, Carcassone are far from each other so you would need to have 2 bases for visiting those towns. Staying inside the double walled town in Carcassone would be a big treat for your kids. The Best Western Le Donjon is reasonably priced and has a good old inn feel to match the medieval town. The whole town almsot feel like a medieval disneyland, almost too perfect that it feels like a theatre stage. There is a neat town square with various small restaurants serving food on the tables in the middle of the square, sort of a medieval outdoor food court.

The Sarlat and Carcassone ares would be good for three days each. About a 3 1/2 hour drive taking the scenic route thru Albi. Large drop off charge from one country to another. You could drop the car somewhere near the Spanish bordor and take the train to Barcelonia. There is a lot of diverse opinions about Carcassone, but I think with four young kids, they would love staying inside the walls. One hotel within the walls has a pool, but very expensive. Richard www.hoteldelacite.com A little general information. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carcassone www.carcassonne.culture.fr/

DAX, thank you so much for your response and your suggestion on where to stay!

Iris 1745, thanks for your advice!

I would simply visit Carcassonne on the way to Barcelona. It's worth a half-day at best. I'd rent a gîte near Sarlat for 5 days and really explore the Périgord Noir. Splitting 6 days into 3 near Sarlat and 3 near Carcassonne does not appeal to me, as there is so much more to do around Sarlat, especially with kids. Drop the car off in Narbonne after visiting Carcassonne and take a train to Barcelona.

Jed; What are your flight arrangements? Are you flying home from Barcelonia? How are you getting to Sarlat? It's possible by the time you get to Sarlat, you will have lost a day. Perhaps four days in the Sarlat area and two in the Carcassonne area might work. As StC said, there is a lot to see in the Sarlat area. But I still like staying in Carcassonne with kids. Been there three times, once staying inside the walls and once outside. The other time passing thru for a few hours.

Thanks StCirq. Your advice is really helpful. I've read some of your other responses to othere questions and you seem to know the area really well.

hi jedsite,

st. Cirq got there first. with kids, especially so many, moving is going to be a nightmare. stay put near Sarlat, get a nice big PRIVATE pool, do day trips, then visit Carcassonne en route to Barcelona.

try gites de france, or for something a bit more up-market, chez nous has a good reputation.

Hi iris1745. We are flying into Paris, spending three days there and then either driving or taking the train to Sarlat. We defnitely want to have a car once we reach Sarlat. From everything I have read on these forums, Sarlat seems to be an area that everyone loves. Are there other towns near Carcassone that are worth seeing? We are flying home from Barcelona and hope to spend about three or four days there.

I tried looking at some of your pictures on another forum they wouldn't open.

Thanks!!

For what to see between Carcassonne and Barcelona, you might want to consider the Michelin Green Guide: Languedoc, Roussillon, Tarn Gorges.

There are many, many wonderful things to see between Sarlat and Carcassonne, but the point is, you don't have enough time for them. So park yourself in or near Sarlat and get the most out of that area. You can make a separate trip to the Languedoc-Roussillon area some other time. Pop into Carcassonne en route to wherever you'll take the train to Barcelona from.

Also, don't drive to Sarlat from Paris. Take the train to Brive or Libourne or Périgueux and drive from there.

Train to Sarlat is easy. More to do in the Sarlat area. StC has probably been there over 100 times and knows more that most. But look for Stu Dudley's extensive trip reports. In the end, what's important to your family? That's where you need to go. Of our 31 trips to Europe, we have had 9 family/friends trips, one with 25 people. So, what you need to do is discuss all this information, kids included and then decide what to do. We always have group meetings to make final decissions. Have a great trip. Richard

<i>Also, don't drive to Sarlat from Paris.</i>

Unless you want to see a chateau or two in the Loire valley.

Train to Sarlat is NOT easy. Which is why I mentioned Brive, Libourne, and Perigueux.

This was a nice hotel on the outskirts of Sarlat. www.hotel-sarlat-bonencontre.com

When we traveled with our kids, we wanted to maximize the medieval experience by staying inside the fabulous Sarlat downtown rather than outside or in neighboring towns. Sarlat can get really crowded if you only come during the day, but if you stay in town you can access all the charm at various times of the day and not fuss about parking space; it's quiet during the morning breakfast time and gets jammed with day tourists later. The Saturday market is super crowded in the summer but absolutely fun. Hope you love duck and foie gras because that's one of highlights of staying in Sarlat. You may want to book this ideal family hotel with perfect in town location in Sarlat as early as possible. http://www.villaconsuls.fr/accueil-s...onsuls-en.html
Rocamadour was the most exciting day trip destination from Sarlat for the entire family. http://www.rocamadour.com/
Press the arrow button to launch the video and you can ask for brochures.

Dax; That looks like a great place. Where we had stayed, they had a pool. In Rocamadour we stayed in www.domainedelarhue.com that also had a pool, but was not in the middle of a town. I do hope they decide to stay at least one night inside Carcassonne.

On another trip with another family of four on a budget, we stayed at a dirt cheap historical old inn in Sarlat with rooms that can accomodate 2 adults and 2 children. The structure used to be part of the original city wall gate, we stayed in room 20 at the top of the crenelated turret. After we put our kids to bed, the 4 adults walked over to the top of the remaining city wall to sit and chat the night away with a couple bottles of wine and a unique view from high above. We had fun memories of that hotel but unfortunately it seems to have gone downhill ever since so I don't know how it is now. http://www.la-couleuvrine.com/

Hi Annhig,

Thanks for your advice and sites to look at. Seems like everyone is suggesting the same thing. This is so helpful!