Of late, Rocamadour is reported to be a spoiled tourist trap. That being said… is it still worth the effort to visit?
If “ ”No!”, please say so, however, if ”Yes!”:
- what would you do with a 2-3 early morning hours Rocamadour?
- what time would you suggest I arrive?
- is this still true?: If you park at the chateau you can take the funicular down to the main restaurant street, round trip 4.20 euros…
Merci beaucoup :oD
What time of the season will be your journey to Rocamadour?
I have visited two years back Rocamadour a few days after Ascension weekend and there were ofcourse visitors but it wasn’t overrun or annoying. That's during shoulder season and the best time to visit, but maybe someone has experience doing this in the early morning or late afternoon during high season and can tell you how that is. Besides the very touristy main street I enjoyed walking around in Rocamadour. So if you can avoid the crowds it’s certainly worth a visit to my opinion.
I walked down the stairs near the chateau and the road uphill to the parking (doable if there are no fysical issues), so no idea how much the funicular costs.
I liked taking people (and especially kids) to "Rocher des Aigles" in Rocamadour, it's a pretty spectacular show with birds of prey. It can be a complement to the visit to Rocamadour.
https://www.rocherdesaigles.com/ornithological-park-france-rocamadour.html
Still about Rocamadour, and just for information: The little tourist train which travels through the village is stopped. His driver and owner died three days ago of a stroke (while driving the train)
“Durandal” the sword of the knight Roland fixed in a wall of the site has still not been found, it was stolen two months ago
The Black Virgin of Rocamadour will leave her sanctuary on August 15 to bless the skippers of the Vendée Globe, the largest single-handed race in the world. She won't be back until October.
Hi Wil, I’ll be in the area the first week in September, so barely shoulder season
Re the tourist train operation: Thank you for this update, JoLui. (OMGosh, how sad the driver has passed away. RIP.)
So may I park at the chateau and simply walk to explore, anything in particular besides Le Rocher des Aigles (which looks fantastic btw!)
Merci :OD
We visited Rocamadour and really enjoyed it. It was the middle of September and didn’t find it any busier than other tourist towns in the area.
I am saddened to hear the driver of the little tourist train has died. When we arrived, it was raining, so the ride up from the parking lot was appreciated.
Hi Isabel, the French summer vacation is till the 2nd of September, so most of the crowds will be gone. It will be most visited by retired people, can be busy too but not so bad as during the weeks before. Enjoy your trip, it.s a nice area to visit!
The parking at the château is a payed parking, so for the rest you are free to go where you want.
Like MSM Rocamadour is about the view of the place at a moderate distance. It is magical. The town itself is tourist trappy and rather unpleasant with terrible food (I am sure locals know where to get good food, but the main part of the old town is all devoted to tourist trash in food, souvenirs etc. So worth seeing once in your life.
See also La Grotte des Merveilles (The Cave of Wonders) it's a few hundred meters from Rocamadour, it contains drawings and paintings dated more than 25,000 years ago (one of the last caves containing authentic ones, not copies).
Guided tour departures approximately every hour in September.
https://www.grottedesmerveilles.com/tarifs/brochure-2024.pdf
From time to time I also took the kids to the Forêt des Singes (monkey forest) , an animal park with guess what.... lots of monkeys.
It's 2 minutes from Rocamadour, on the road to Gramat, Cahors. I don't think you'll be interested, but just in case:
https://www.la-foret-des-singes.com/en/
For both places you will see direction signs to get there.
People rarely give negative reviews here, because those who disagree react quite negatively. I give honest opinions, just opinions, so here goes.
I didn't like Rocamadour at all. It was dirty and run down. I felt like it's probably a big deal for Catholic tourists because the only draw I could see was the Church and Catholic themed gift shops. The location on a cliff side was kind of neat, but not enough to recommend it IMO.
I'd suggest Conques as an alternative. Conques also has a church that's been on pilgrimage routes. The town has a similar cliffside location but is much more beautiful and much less touristy.
It has been many years since we visited Rocamadour, so I apologize in advance for any errors. I think that Conques as an alternative is a terrific suggestion. Pretty town with good displays and explanatory materials in the historic venues. Not overrun with tourists. We had no trouble finding an excellent meal.
After Rocamadour, we visited Gouffre de Padirac, an immense cave system. Make that “mind-bogglingly” immense. You take an elevator to get to the bottom; and part of the tour is done in boats, along a stream. After the intense heat above ground, the coolness of the cave was a great relief. Strongly recommend, and I’m not even a great cave fan!
