Trek Notes - France

Dordogne

Dordogne

We offer two tours in this area, an 8-day tour and a 10-day tour. Much of the route is common to both.

The 10-day tour is a circuit of approx. 120km, in the area of the Upper Dordogne Valley. This is a region largely away from normal tourist haunts in the Departments of Correze and Lot. The scenery is varied, taking in the limestone plateaux or Causses, covered mainly with rough pasture & scrub oak, and then later wooded hills, which slope steeply down to the Dordogne at the delightful former river port of Beaulieu. The route skirts the natural amphitheatre of the Cirque de Montvalent, whose great cliffs overhang the Dordogne between Carennac and Creysse, and visits the historic towns of Creysse and Martel. Six villages on this tour are on the unofficial but prestigious list of '143 most beautiful villages in France'. Curemonte, stretched out along a ridge; the gentlemen's houses or gentilhommieres of Autoire; Loubressac, on a high spur above the Dordogne valley; Carennac, with its elaborate abbey church; Turenne, encircling a hilltop castle; and the celebrated red sandstone village of Collonges-la-Rouge. Castles, stone-built mediaeval villages, ruins and caves lend daily interest to the circuit, 'une surprise a chaque pas'. The individual, family-run hotels offer the sort of cooking that people come to France for, and several have noted chefs. This is the land of truffles, foie gras, magret de canard and rich dark wines.

Level of Difficulty

Fitness: This tour is graded : ‘Moderate’ This should present no difficulties for anyone in reasonable condition and accustomed to walking.

Day stages: 14km to 22km per day with average altitude gains of 350m. 4 to 7 hours walking per day.

Waymarks: Waymarks for the 10-day tour are usually Grande Randonnee style (white over red). The trail follows in the main, well-established paths and presents no special difficulties.

General Information
Baths: it is not normal for your room to have a bath, the main reason being that it takes up a lot of space, some hotels/guesthouses may have a separate room in the house where a bath is available to guests, but in the main it is showers.

Breakfast: in countries such as France/Italy/Spain/Greece etc are usually coffee and toast/croissant, if you want more for breakfast then we would suggest you purchase some food the night before. It is important for you to tell us if you have any dietary requirements when you book your holiday so that we can inform everyone that you are staying with.

Single Supplements: are payable on most of our tours. 1) The single supplement guarantees the privacy of your own room, however, rooms can at times be small and in some places may not enjoy the same facilities as double/twin rooms.

Language: Don’t expect everyone to speak English, please try to learn a bit of French and take a phrase book

Luggage: When staying in hotels, sometimes your luggage will have been taken to you room awaiting your arrival. However don’t be surprised if your luggage is waiting for you to take it up to your room.

Accommodation & Meals
Accommodation is on a half board basis (evening meal, bed and breakfast each night) in country inns and auberges. All the accommodation has ensuite facilities. Picnic lunches are not included in the tour cost but are available from hotels at a cost of around 10 Euros (order the previous evening) or materials can usually be bought from local shops. We indicate in the route notes the various possibilities for each day.

Nights 1 & 9: A comfortable hotel (** Logis) with pool near the centre of the pretty market town of Meyssac, 2km from Collonges-la-Rouge. Like Collonges, Meyssac is mainly built of the local deep red sandstone. 

Night 2: Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne. A well-appointed hotel (**) in a quiet street, close to the Dordogne, where you can dine overlooking the water on a summer’s evening. 

Night 3: Port de Gagnac. Old established family-run hotel (**) overlooking the River Cere. The restaurant is a favourite with many of our customers.

Night 4: Autoire. A pleasant old auberge (**Logis) with modernized bedrooms in the centre of this charming village dominated by cliffs and a waterfall.

Nights 5 & 6: Carennac. An elegant family-run hotel (** Logis) with swimming pool in the centre of this lovely and historic village on the banks of the Dordogne. Excellent restaurant with a good local reputation.

Night 7: Creysse. Another family run hotel (** Logis) with pool in the centre of a delightful little village. A stream runs beneath the hotel and its terrace.

Night 8: Sarrazac. The cellar of this establishment (*Logis) was formerly a smithy where, three generations ago, the blacksmith’s wife would serve refreshments to waiting customers. Tiny Mme Aussel and her jolly daughter Chantal are as hospitable as their ancestors, the smithy has vanished, and guests are housed in a venerable building nearby.

Night 9: As night 1.