What to do and see in the Dordogne
There’s also information about the Dordogne on our website.
Markets
- Sunday morning – very popular and good food markets in Issigeac and another in Saint Cyprien
- Tuesday mornings – small food market in Beaumont
- Wednesday mornings – food markets in Bergerac and Sarlat; a brocante in Beaumont (all day in July and August)
- Thursday morning – food market in Monpazier
- Saturday morning – food markets in Villeréal, Bergerac and Sarlat and a small one in Beaumont
- 2nd Sunday of the month – morning antiques market in Villeréal
Shopping
Sundays: The Intermarché in Beaumont and the Grand Frais in Bergerac are open from 9am to 12.30pm and the Sunday morning market in Issigeac is brilliant for local produce such as fruit, vegetables, meat, bread, cheese etc.
Bergerac has 3 fantastic supermarkets, all on the same road (Route de Bordeaux). From the airport, drive towards Bordeaux and when you are at the McDonalds/Leclerc roundabout, take the road signposted Bergerac.
- Leclerc is a big supermarket on the roundabout, where you can buy everything.
- Grand Frais is the best supermarket in the area – fantastic fresh fruit and veg great cheese, meat and fish counter, bakery (only food, no general items). It’s like Waitrose but half the price. It’s on the second roundabout from Leclerc (direction Bergerac centre) on your left.
- Lidl is further down the road towards Bergerac centre, on your left.
Le Bugue has 2 good supermarkets:
- Intermarché, Avenue de la Libération
- Lidl is on the same road south direction Limeuil, on your right-hand side as you leave town
Beaumont has our closest supermarket:
- Intermarché, Avenue de Monpazier (on the road to Monpazier, just on the outskirts of town). A mid-size supermarket where you can get everything. The fruit and vegetables can be a bit wilted…
Monpazier has 2 small supermarkets, a Petit Casino and a Spar.
Prehistoric caves
Lascaux IV
Lascaux IV is the world-renowned cave with drawings by prehistoric man. The real caves have been closed to the public for decades, due to their deterioration. Lascaux IV is the 4th facsimile of the caves, incredibly made and with a great visitor centre. Do book tickets in advance. An hour from Le Mas.
Font de Gaume
Font de Gaume is the only prehistoric cave in Europe with polychromatic paintings (from 15,000 years ago) that’s still open to the public. We loved visiting it, it really is incredible to step back in time and see what people 700 generations ago were inspired to paint on the walls. It’s about 45 minutes from here, in Les Eyzies.
Buying tickets is complicated and tickets are limited. The calendar opens the month before (usually)!
- Go to the French site (not the English one, they don’t offer the English tour!!!!)
- Scroll down, find the block ‘La Grotte de Font-de-Gaume’ and click on ‘Choisir’
- Choose how many tickets you want – adults are ‘Tarif Individuel’ and then click at the bottom on ‘Mettre á jour le panier’
- Scroll back up to ‘Choisissez votre langue’ and choose ‘Anglais’ for the English tours
- In the calendar click on the month you want and then the available dates (depending on how many tickets you want to buy) become visibile
- Click on the date you would like and then ‘Valider le date’
- Check the details and then click on ‘valider votre commande’
- Type in your email address. If you don’t want to create an account, choose ‘continuer sans compte’ by clicking on ‘poursuivre’
- Tick the small box, and click on ‘payer votre commande’
- Pay with your credit card
- You’ll receive several emails with the tickets etc.
Antiques and Brocante
There are several brocante and antique shops around, but we prefer going to the brocante markets. The best is the Villeréal one on the 2nd Sunday of every month. Bergerac has a brocante on the 1st Sunday of the month, and Monpazier on the 4th Sunday of the month.
You can look the Dordogne brocantes up on this calendar.
Sporting activities
Canoeing
Read our blog post about canoeing on the Dordogne and which rental company to go to.
Cycling
Here are 8 of the best cycle routes in the Dordogne. There are many websites like Komoot who have cycle routes near Le Mas & Le Mazet.
You can rent bikes from Aquitaine Bike, who will deliver to and later pick them up from Le Mas. E-bikes can be rented from Bees in Monpazier. You can find their prices in English here.
Golf
Golf de Lolivarie – 25 mins away, an exceptional setting between castles and picturesque sites, an 18-hole, 6,000-metre course.
Chateau les Merles – 30 mins away, on the edge of the beautiful Liorac forest and the Bergerac vineyards, 2550 meters, 9 hole golf course par 35.
Chateau des Vigiers – 1 hour away, offers a 27-hole course made up of 3 combinations of 9 holes offering a variety of 18 holes.
Hiking
There is a brilliant walk from Le Mas to Montferrand which we’ve written about in a blog post.
There are other walks nearby, this website has a good selection, you can zoom in on the map.
You’ll see boucles advertised – these are circular walks often starting at a church or Mairie. They have yellow-capped posts to help show you the way.
Horse-riding
There is a horse-riding centre in Beaumont, which caters to children. The same website has info on activities for children.
Tennis
In Monpazier, go to Duppi (a sports and hunting shop) on the Rue St. Jacques 77, which is open in the mornings and afternoons except Sunday and Monday.
In the shop you can book courts (you don’t need to reserve ahead of time apparently) and pay. The courts are on the right-hand side of the road out of Monpazier back towards Le Mas, in Marsales.
€8 an hour with a refundable security deposit of €10 for the key to the courts.
Close to Le Mas & Le Mazet
Monpazier is a beautiful medieval bastide village founded by Edward I of England.
Château de Biron is on the other side of Monpazier. Amazing views, interesting castle, seat of one of the four ancient baronies of the Périgord.
Beaumont, the quincaillerie is worth visiting. What don’t they sell?
Cadouin – UNESCO Abbey and pretty village; the Gothic ‘Flamboyant’ cloisters are well worth a visit, as is the épicerie behind the covered market which sells delicious artisanal Périgord ice-cream.
Trémolat and nearby villages
Cingle de Trémolat – don’t miss it! From Trémolat follow signs to the Cingle until you come to a uninhabited hotel (for sale), there is a car park next to it. Once you’ve parked, cross the road and instead of going left to the information boards, go right, through a gap in the fence and follow the path. After 5 mins you’ll climb down onto a rocky outcrop over the meandering Dordogne.
Trémolat is a pretty village. Walk into Les Vieux Logis hotel and stroll through their garden, it’s stunning! Sit at the tables by the stream and order a drink.
Limeuil is where the Vezère and Dordogne rivers meet. There is one free car park (also for camper vans) on the road out of Limeuil to Le Bugue – not the large car park on your right, but the smaller one a little further on your left.
Bergerac
The quay of Bergerac has been revamped and a fantastic wine bar, Quai Cyrano, has been created on the 1st floor of the Tourist Office with a terrace overlooking the river. They serve wines only from the Bergerac area and yummy nibbles.
Dordonha is a small, free museum about the history of Bergerac which we recommend visiting. Two concept stores to visit are Le Monde de Zofia and Peninsule.
You can taste wines at all of the wine châteaux around Bergerac, but you are usually expected to buy some bottles in return. More interesting is a tour at the Château de Tiregand in Creysse just before Bergerac. You are shown the vines, 17th century cellars and get to taste their wines for €6.50 per adult; €2 per child. English spoken tour in July and August every Tuesday and Friday at 14h30. www.chateau-de-tiregand.com.
Sarlat and nearby places
Sarlat – the jewel in the crown of the Dordogne, but packed full of tourists. Parking can be a nightmare, especially on market days (Wednesday and Saturday mornings) or in the height of the summer. The earlier you get there, the easier to park.
Domme – a beautiful hilltop village, well worth visiting. Parking can be tricky, try to park up towards or in the village. In high season you might have to follow signs and park at the bottom and take a shuttle to the village.
La Roque-Gageac – Park as soon as you see a space and wander around the village.
Canoeing down the Dordogne is great fun. Park at Beynac or Castelnaud and go to the canoe kiosk in the car parks, get taken to Vitrac and paddle leisurely back to your car from there. See leaflets in the house for canoe companies if you want to reserve.
Les Jardins du Manoir d’Eyrignac were first laid out in the 18th century around a beautiful manor house; in the past 40 years they have been restored.
Château de Castelnaud, a mediaeval castle towering over the Dordogne.
Château de Milandes, where the remarkable Josephine Baker used to live. It’s well worth visiting just to learn about her incredible life, let alone for the stunning château, landscaped gardens or displays of birds of prey!
Château de Beynac is a mediaeval castle and seat of one of the four ancient baronies of the Périgord.
Jardins de Marqueyssac, gardens overlooking the river with amazing box hedging.
Lascaux and nearby places
Lascaux IV opened early 2016, a great facsimile of the caves found in 1940 by 4 boys and their dog, with beautiful prehistoric wall and ceiling paintings. You must book online before you go, to avoid disappointment. Just before you get to Lascaux, you will pass:
La Roque St. Christophe – you’ll see signs to it off the road, follow them and do a drive past, it’s a big rock foundation with shelters that were lived in for over 25,000 years.
Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère is a charming village on the Vézère river.
Château de Losse is perched on the river, a lovely castle and gardens. Good guided tour in French.
Further afield
Latour Marliac is a water garden with waterlilies and lotuses founded in 1875 when M. Latour Marliac created fantastic hybrid coloured waterlilies never seen before in Europe. They were so modern that he exhibited them at the Paris Exhibition in 1889 alongside the new Eiffel Tower. Monet was so amazed that he ordered all his waterlilies from Latour Marliac, which he famously went on to paint.
