I'm heading with six friends to SW France at the end of August. I've walked through through the area before, on the Chemin de Compostelle / Via Podiensis, but it will be the first visit for the rest of the gang, and the first trip to France for two of them. I'm happy with our itinerary, but still have a few questions on the details, mostly about restaurants. We've already locked down reservations at the sites that require them.

Our route:
4 nights / 3 days Toulouse. Probable day trip to Carcassonne.
2 nights at Viguier du Roy in Figeac. I loved this town when I walked through it.
2 nights at Domaine de bel air, a gite in the Lot, . Visit Peche Merle en route, and Gouffre de Padirac one day.
5 nights at Parc Place in Sarlat-la-Canéda. Visit Rocamadour en route. Reservations already made for Lascaux IV.
2 nights at La Gomerie in Saint-Émilion.
1 night back at Toulouse, probably at an airport hotel.

My questions:
* We can stop somewhere between Toulouse and Figeac; I'm leaning towards Cordes-sur-ciel. I'd rather linger in one bastide town than try to visit a lot, and it looks like there is more to explore in Cordes than in other towns. Is this accurate?
* I've read about the tourist crowds at Rocamadour, and my schedule has us there Sunday morning. Does anyone know what time the tour busses start to arrive? Is it extra horribly crowded on a Sunday? The alternative would be to have a shorter visit on a Friday or Saturday afternoon, around 2 pm.
* We'll have one splurge meal at a Michelin-starred restaurant. I'm eyeing Logis de la Cadène in Saint-Émilion. It will cost about 300 euro for the menu + wine. I'm open to other suggestions, but this is already pushing the budget & other starred restaurants were much more expensive.
* We'll have time for a stop somewhere on our return drive from Saint-Émilion to Toulouse on a Saturday. I suspect we'll have had our fill of touring and visiting charming towns, so I'm thinking to do a nice, final brunch. La Maison Despouès in Puylausic looks like it fits the bill, but I'm open to any alternative ideas.

I thought I had a lot more questions - I guess these are really the only main ones!

(also, I can't find the French tag, or a way to post only in the French forum, so I guess this is going into the main Europe forum. I don't recall having this problem last time I posted)

Le Grand Bleu in Sarlat-la-Caneda had a Michelin star for MANY years, although it does not have one now. My understanding, which could be wrong, is that the chef opted to give up the star in exchange for greater freedom. I had an utterly awesome meal there some years ago (while it still had it's M. star) and it still gets some outstanding reviews. You might want to consider it.

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That group of friends is lucky to have you.

See swandav’s report for inspiration.
French Roads -- St Emilion, Sarlat, & Figeac

In Figeac, do not miss La Table de Marinette. Exquisite setting (inside, Art Deco; the street is not prepossessing) and incredibly reasonable prices for the quality. Reservations a must. Pierre et Rosette was recommended but we were never in town during their then-limited hours.

As you probably already know, the drive up the Célé valley from Pech Merle caves is quite pretty, and the drive along the Lot valley likewise.

You couldn’t pay me to revisit Rocamadour, but YMMV. You’ll get the statutory Instagram pic just by stopping at the Belvedere in L!Hospitalet, and save yourself a bundle of money and time. Stroll around Autoire and hike up to its little waterfall instead, even though that may be a mere trickle in August.

We stayed two nights in Cordes-sur-Ciel only because its medieval fest on July 14 was not to be missed. Not sure about the rest of the year. It’s right on your way; why not.

Loved Font de Gaume, though online reservations were a challenge. Reward yourselves with a gourmet meal at Bistro des Glycines or Le 1862 afterwards. Since we are cave nuts, we also enjoyed Cougnac and Presque; less so, Domme.

With all of those days, you could take time to visit a farm. Many of them sell direct to the visitor, and some offer prepared meals... Here is one example, but this website offers so many others.:

https://www.bienvenue-a-la-ferme.com...04032897949219

Yo MC,
I agree with FT about crowds at Rocamadour. Once was enough.
One splurge meal that might possibly serve as a two-fer could be tiny Belcastel and its Vieux Pont restaurant/hotel. That village punches above its weight regarding 'visual beauty per square inch' and the restaurant is excellent. I realize that its not quite directly on your Toulouse-Figeac route but...
Our poster St Cirq once pointed out that the actual town of Carcassonne is quite nice.
An obscure village daytrip from Toulouse: Olargues.
Two weekly farmers markets that have good reputations outside Toulouse: Carmaux and Caussade.

We were looking into visiting Toulouse this fall but have changed our minds.
I am done. The end.

I just returned from Toulouse and can't resist touting the amazing, reasonably priced dining there. My husband and I thought the food was the best we've had in France -- including Bordeaux, Lyon, and Paris. If you're interested in suggestions, we enjoyed Franquette, Le Genty Magre, and Le Contre Pied, as well as lunch at Bibent (as much for the glorious traditional decor as the food).

kja - I've bookmarked Le Grand Bleu, thanks! I might go just to try macaron à l'olive noire & sa glace / black olive macaron & "its ice cream." I'll wait until June or July to make reservations, so I can see what the summer menus are like. I love how seasonal the food in this region is.

FTOttowa - I'm lucky to have this set of friends - I love planning, they don't like planning, so they are my hostages for two weeks! Luckily I have a good sense of what our pace is & what we all like.

I've bookmarked La Table de Marinette. We'll end up making reservations there or at La Cuisine du Marché. And Pierre et Rosette is on our list! One of the gang is a vegetarian at home, though he eats everything on vacation. This will be a nice treat for him.

And I have Autoire penciled in, maybe for after we visit Gouffre de Padirac. I love walking in France, and the walk to the waterfalls looks lovely. As for Rocamadour - we'll see. We kind of have to at least have a look.

zebec - Belcastel looks like a good stop on the drive, thanks

abbydog - We're in Toulouse Sunday-Tuesday, so it's been challenging finding open restaurants. We heard good things about the cassoulet at Le Genty Magre, but they are closed each day! I'll look into the others.

And I remembered my last question - I was looking for good brocante in the area. I'm not a shopper, but some of the guys love love love flea markets. But I think I found one: La grande brocante des 4 saisons takes place in Loubressac on August 24 - and it's only a 20-minute drive from our gîte!

Perhaps you already know, but just in case: The Michelin on-line guide to restaurants lets you search by open days. I love that feature!

Some years ago, when crowding was not a concern, we saw the Peche Merle cave and did an overnight at Rocamadour. Even then, the cave needed advance reservations. It was outstanding, combining cave formations with ancient wall paintings and more. The tour was in French with an English crib sheet for the monolingual. Rocamadour, on the other hand, was a collection of stone buildings housing trinket shops (one of which had medals for Christian Pilgrims, who could also attend a mass). There was also a representation of the stations of the cross for even non-pilgrims to walk. The visual memory I retain most is of the night sky view over the valley. As for Carcassonne, A 19th century reconstruction devoted to selling plastic cutlasses was not to my liking. It looks good from a distance, though.

Autoire is a great idea. It ranks among the most tiny/perfect villages anywhere.
I am done. the remote

A few years back a few friends and I did a wine tasting fortnight with meals out every evening at better hotels in the Chablis region.

After a bit it dawned on us that vegetables were seldom on the table.

Just a thought

oh la la, zebec - I've been reading about Belcastel, and swooning over the pictures, the past hour, and it looks perfect. I think I might make that my main stop on the drive instead of Cordes-sur-ciel, and have lunch at Vieux Pont be our main meal. I've been swooning over their menu also.

bilboburgler - our meals in this part of France will be dominated by lamb, duck, goose liver, and trout - but the produce here is also excellent. My buddy won't be vegetarian on the road! I've been picking places that at least have veggies on the menu. Right now asparagus and leeks seem to be on every single menu, but my memories of end-of-summer here were of lots of melons, walnuts, and mushrooms.

Here is our Villefranchois TR, a long one which contains a number of images of Belcastel along with some commentary. Readers need to scroll down.
I am done. the off-the-beaten-path itinerary
En Pays Villefranchois: photo essay (part one)

Just got back from my trip, and really enjoyed Le Tertre restaurant in St Emilion. Charming, delicious, best meal of a two week trip. https://restaurantletertre.com

That menu looks wonderful. What did you have?

zebec - those pictures are gorgeous! This will be my first trip travelling with a SLR camera, and I'm hoping to level-up my skills. I won't be close to what you've posted. And I've worked an afternoon at Belcastel into our schedule.

kja - I always start with the Michelin guide, especially with their bib gourmand selections. Right now I'm in the process of paring down my first choices. I don't want to over plan, but there are times where having reservations will pay off. I'll post my choices sometime this summer; right now I keep changing my mind! The only reservation I've made so far was La Table de Pavie in Saint-Émilion - it'll be my first two-star Michelin restaurant. It's a major splurge, but everything in Saint-Émilion looks expensive.

Have you checked the on-line guide? It isn't limited to Michelin starred or Bib Gourmand options (and I, too, love the latter). As I said, lets you search by days.

Yeah, that's the one I use! At least for Europe; I find their system doesn't transfer well to other places.