I recently visited Lascaux, crossing off one more point on my list, and while I really enjoyed the Dordogne region for the time I was there the actual "cave" was not quite what I expected. Can anyone advise on Chauvet? I'm looking at a road trip along the lines of Dijon, Lyon, Avignon, and Chauvet is more or less on the route.
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Chicago
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Lascaux II was built to be shaped like Lascaux -- I have not been to Lascaux IV to compare. Chauvet is designed to get groups through efficiently so you have the art as an exact replica but the cave itself is not an exact replica -- -- the art is laid out to make walking through it including for people with disabilities to be easy and staightforward.
I love this stuff and have visited Font du Gaume twice, Roffignac twice, Lascaux IV twice, Pech Merle, and Chauvet. Chauvet is wonderful and well worth a visit if you are as entranced by the art of our ancestors as I am. We didn't have to book ahead for Chauvet when we were there 8 years ago -- I don't know if that is true now (the only one we have ever booked ahead was Font du Gaume which is the best of them all and the rules on how to do that changes all the time)
the art at Chauvet is similar to that at Lascaux. You can also see it in the movie "Cave of Forgotten Dreams' which was shot in the actual Chauvet cave. the area of the Ardeche where the cave is is also just incredibly scenic -- pull over at every viewpoint on the river.
At Chauvet I got photo placemats with the cave art on them and enoy the art work for breakfast every day. I switch them out with the photo place mats I got at Giverny of Monet's Japanese print collection.