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To Book or Not to Book in the Dordogne Region

Posted by on

Hi fellow travelers,

We are trying to have a balance between having some reservations during our 5 week trip in France and Italy, but also leaving room for flexibility and spontaneity - would the Dordonge region be a good place to explore and find places to stay without making reservations or do many of the places fill up? (we plan on spending about 3 nights there in mid june),

If any of you think that it is really important that we do have reservations - do you have any recommendations? We are trying to stay in places for no more than $100/night

Thanks!

Posted by
3250 posts

We stayed at La Belle Etoile in La Roque-Gageac--it was a good value and centrally located for touring the Dordogne region. I'd make a reservation for a mid-June stay in Dordogne--especially for a room less than $100 per night.

Here's what Booking.com posted when I looked at mid-June availability:

"La Roque-Gageac is a top choice with fellow travelers on your selected dates (48% reserved).
Tip: Prices might be higher than normal, so try searching with different dates if possible."

Posted by
111 posts

The Dordogne is far from untouristed. When I'm staying flexible, I try to call/email hotels a few days ahead, but don't expect to get my top choices. A car makes this easier, so you can drive to more hotels out of town, and since French trains often need reservations. If you want to reserve ahead for a couple of cave visits, then that might be another reason to firm up your plans. In June you can reserve at Lascaux II (reproduction cave) and at Grotte du Peche Merle. The Grotte de Font-de-Gaume and others don't take reservations, so you just show up early. If you have Rick's France guidebook, then see pages 524-5 for a rundown on cave reservations.
P.S. Diane's advice about being able to book ahead for a French-language tour of Font-de-Gaume is also interesting: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/cro-magnon-caves. As a person who speaks a little French, I previously found the tour in French to be fine. As the guide pointed out different art details with a flashlight, it wasn't too hard to get the gist of the conversation.

Posted by
6486 posts

We liked Le Petit Versailles in Beynac very much. It's within your budget, but I'd guess it will be full if you just show up in mid-June. So would any of the smaller places mentioned in guidebooks. For spontaneity, show up at the TI in Sarlat and see what they can find for you. But you'll spend time locating places to stay instead of seeing the sights if you don't plan ahead. Why not reserve a room somewhere for your three nights and explore from there? BTW, for the Dordogne I'd recommend a car.

Posted by
4132 posts

Whatever you decide about lodging, I would make reservations to tour the caves as early as possible. Unless that's not an interest of yours.
.
If you make those reservations, then maybe you might as well reserve a room as well.

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