Friends and I are taking a roundabout driving trip in a car from Carcasonne, stopping one night in the Dordogne area or Bordeaux.
After that we head to a possible overnight in Angers, then back to Paris the next day.
We were thinking about staying overnight in St Emilion or Bordeaux but others have said that it's now worth a stopover.
Any thoughts on those two cities? Or are there other places that are more charming?
Any ideas of hotels or B&Bs?
Thanks so much.
Yes, Beaune is more interesting, but it's totally out of the way. Could they possibly have said "Bordeaux?" If so, I'd choose Bordeaux for an overnight, with a brief stop (2 hours at most) in St. Emillion if you have the time. I thought St. Emilion was beautiful, but the 1-2 hours we spent there was plenty. I found it very touristy. Others will disagree.
We like [edit] Sarlat or nearby villages such as Beynac as a home base for visiting the Dordogne and would normally stay two or more nights there, instead of adding Angers. (You could drive to Paris in roughly 6 hours plus rest-stopping time.) But it does sound like one night would be enough for St. Emilion and some vineyard driving around there, if you want to save more of the "Dordogne experience" for another trip.
Thanks for answering so fast. Do you have any other suggestions for places to stay around Bordeaux or St Emillion that might
be more charming and less touristy?
Who are others? I'd stay in either place in a heartbeat. They are lovely.
We stayed in St. Emilion for 3 nights and it was worth the time (provided you like wine from that region). We stayed at the bed and breakfast at Chateau Troplong Mondot-outside of the town but a nice walk through the vineyards. It was a great place to stay and would definitely do it again.
It sounds like you have two nights to make it from Carcassone to Paris. For charming, look into one night in Dordogne (ie. Sarlat) and one night in Loire near Tours (i.e. Villandry).
