The south-west of France is well known for its wines – perhaps above all for the red wines produced in the Bordeaux / Medoc / Saint-Emilion regions. A little to the east of these world-famous wine regions in the Dordogne department around Bergerac there are also some well known wines produced which deserve your attention. In total there are 13 wines listed as ‘appellations’ in Bergerac, from seven different regions. A brief guide to these is shown below: Pécharmant wine [...]
Mussidan is a sizable town in the (less visited) north-west of the Dordogne region, north of Bergerac. Escaping from the impact of tourism is perhaps a good thing for a town – but tourism also brings with it facilities, and money for maintenance. Perhaps the best way to describe Mussidan is that it has escaped both the benefits and the ‘perils’ of tourism. Unfortunately these perils are what visitors are looking for, and it is true that you do need [...]
Sarlat, ‘unofficial’ capital of the Dordogne department and tourist magnet because of its extraordinary number of medieval buildings, is in the centre of a very attractive region. This is not news! Most visitors to the region around Sarlat venture along the Dordogne River to see the villages and castles, and head up the Vezere Valley for the prehistoric sites. But to the south, towards Villefranche-du-Perigord, the region and places are much less well known. This is a shame, because it [...]
For most people, when we think of gardens in the Dordogne we think of the formal gardens in the French style, with carefully trimmed box hedges and meticulously planned layouts. There are several of these to enjoy, including the very well known (and popular) gardens at Marqueyssac and Chateau Hautefort. For something a little different, venture west of Bergerac in the region and visit the Jardins de Sardy near the border with the Gironde department and close to Sainte-Foy-la-Grande. The [...]
Aubeterre sur Dronne is a remarkable village about 20 km west of Riberac. The most fascinating thing about it is its underground church, the Eglise souterraine Saint Jean. This has been hewn out of the rock and is 20 metres high at its highest point. It is the tallest of its kind in the world – entering the church really is an incredible experience. As well as the main nave which has a full-immersion baptismal font and a reliquary which [...]
Bergerac is found in the region of south-west france known as Purple Perigord – Perigord is the ‘ancient’ name for the region that now largely includes the Dordogne, and ‘purple’ for the wines grown in the region. It is a lively active town that often gets overlooked as visitors head to the quaint villages and ancient castles of the Dordogne region to the east. Bergerac itself is not the most exciting town in the world, but it is attractive, has [...]
The Dordogne region has numerous buildings that are immediately recognisable, such as Chateau Beynac or Chateau des Milandes – great impressive medieval castles standing aloft on rocky clifftops that have come to represent the region, along with the picture-postcard-pretty villages that dot the region. But these are perhaps not the memories that you will take away with you after a vacation in the region! Despite the popularity of the region with visitors (during the summer months) there are still numerous [...]
Monpazier is a small town (OK, village) to the south of the Dordogne region, and south of Domme. A little removed from the main highlights that follow the Dordogne river, Monpazier is none the less firmly on the tourist circuit – and if you are visiting the Dordogne it should be on yours! The region to the south of the Dordogne and into Lot-et-Garonne was once a wild, undeveloped region – and also the frontier between French and English territory [...]
The Dordogne region is well known for its scenery, its castles and its beautiful medieval villages, and rightly so. There are many places where you are close to the Dordogne river, and plenty of opportunities to canoe along with the flow, passed villages and castles. There are also a couple of places where you can admire the view from high above the river. One such place is Tremolat – the Cingle de Tremolat is a large curve in the river [...]
A few years ago, the village of issigeac was not very well known, and even now it lies some way off the ‘tourist trail’ in the Dordogne department. Although it is in the Dordogne, Issigeac is about 25km south of the river, and the ‘big sites’ such as Sarlat and Domme, and a little further from the Vezere Valley. Hence, the sheer weight of well known attractions – castles, villages and prehistoric sites – to the north means that people [...]
