Dordogne Region of France

Sarlat is a good base for exploring the Dordogne and offers a nice choice of restaurants. We preferred to stay a few miles outside of the town (in the direction of Salignac) in a great little B&B, Les Hautes Granges. It is surrounded by gardens,has a pool, lots of charm, and they serve a dinner one night during the week. We require quiet for sleeping so am very cautious about booking a place. Some hotels in Sarlat were right on the main road and could be noisy-one was, I think, Madeline and in RS book. Peche Merle Cave is a must see and hopefully you will have a car to explore various villages.

Harold, a couple of questions first: will you have a rental car or taking the train to the region and then taking a mini-bus tour? Do you want to stay in a hotel in a town or out in the country? Do you have a price range per night or week?

We stayed in Sarlat at a lovely B&B called Les Cordeliers. It is run by some Brits who provide a wonderful breakfast. Must sees include the caves, of course, as well as the Maison Forte de Reignac which had only recently opened when we were there in the fall of 2009. We would never have known about that chateau if we had not had Phillippe take us around because we didn't have a car. Both the B&B owners and Phillippe were excellent information resources for the things only locals know that aren't online or in print.

We stayed here when we were in the Dordogne: http://www.lagarriguehaute.fr/ I found it on this web site: http://chambres-perigord.com/cgi-bin/WEB/default.asp?p=CHO_View.asp&id=4568&da=//2012 I wanted a unique experience in the Dordogne and took a chance on staying there. (I found it on the internet and could not find reviews, etc) I was a little worried, but it was one of the highlights of our trip. It was about 9 km outside of Sarlat and very rural. It is a 3 generation working farm that raises gesse for foi gras. It was very reasonable. The room was simple but clean. You can also make a reservation to eat there one night. We did and it was the best meal we had on our trip. One caveat: Only one person in the family speaks any English. It is the son and he was usually out in the barn feeding the geese when we were there. Also, the web site does not translate to English, I used google translate for the important information. I booked online, sent her a check for the required deposit (pretty minimal-one night stay I think). When we were there, she returned my check and we paid in cash. Overall, it was this experience that continues to encourage me to step out and look for new and interesting places to try. BTW- the pictures are very accurate as to how everything looks. My only regret was that we paid for breakfast. It was the only place we did that because I knew breakfast were expensive in Hotels and B&B's and we could do better on our own. However, my husband had the idea that we might get a hearty farm breakfast here. We did not-just coffee, tea, and toast.

I found using sarlat as home base to drive day trips are really fun, and also the drive from bordeaux to sarlet along an old country road was great. you pass by so many vineyards and villages, and the view along the river is excellent. In general sarlet old town, the prehistorical caves, some of the smaller early human settlement dug in the cliff, and castle ruins/villages/farmers markets are not to be missed.