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Paris to Dordogne

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We are planning a 3 week trip to England and France over the summer. We are flying out of Paris, but do not want to put a big city at the end of a 3 week trip. Our plans for the France leg are Paris, Dordogne, and the Loire Valley in that order. The train from Paris to Sarlat-la-Canèda takes forever, so I am thinking we can hop a cheap flight from Paris to Brives la Gallarde and then take the train from there to Sarlat. From there, we would rent a car and drive the rest of the time in France.

I have never done a local flight inside of Europe, so I wanted to see if I could get feedback on this approach vs just taking the train.

Posted by
10195 posts

You have other options: rent the car in Brive. Take the train to Bordeaux and rent the car there. Fly to Toulouse and rent the car there. Try to fly from Orly for convenience. You are adding unneeded steps.

Though you don't want to end in Paris, by far the easiest is a flight from London to Bordeaux, two places that are still well connected.

Edit: if it's a Sunday, your original plan via plane or train works though it wouldn't be my choice as so many steps and transfers are involved. I'd still go via either Bordeaux train station or Toulouse airport if the car rentals were open.

Posted by
4 posts

Forgot to mention - our schedule has us arriving in Sarlat on a Sunday. I could not find any car rental agencies open, which is why we were looking at the train from Brives.

Posted by
1443 posts

Last year I took a train from Paris Gare de Lyon to Brive, rented a car from Europcar in Brive, and drove a delightful hour to La Tour de Cause B&B, a couple miles south of Beynac.

The train from Paris to Brive is 4 hours, which will likely take less total time than any flight once you consider the hassle of getting to a Paris airport and security. Plus, the train I took last year had a foosball table. Try getting that deal from an airline!

ETA: Rental car companies are not open on Sunday. And they are closed from 12-1 PM. Schedule accordingly.

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