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Overview:
Cycling through the forests, fields, and honey coloured stone villages of the Perigord is a journey back in time. Vineyards, market towns, renaissance and medieval castles, 13th century bastides, 12th century churches, troglodytic sites and prehistoric cave art...World class rides and spectacular scenery are assured.
We post these tours as starting and finishing in Les Eyzies for practical travel reasons. Les Eyzies has regular train connections to Bordeaux and Paris.
Classic Tour : 6 days / 7 nights (daily distances 40-50 km)
(1 night Les Eyzies, 2 nights Cadouin/Montferrand, 2 nights St.Cybranet/La Roque Gageac, 2 nights Les Eyzies)
Arrive in Les Eyzies - overnight stay.
Day 1: Les Eyzies to Cadouin / Montferrand.
Limeuil - this old fortress village was for many centuries a port and safe haven for heavy barges. Limeuil's role as medieval arsenal and watchtower was established due to its strategic location at the confluence of the Dordogne and Vézère rivers.
Trémolat - with its 12th century Romanesque church, lunch in a café or restaurant.
Cadouin - this charming village grew around a 12th century Cistercian abbey; the cloisters feature three different architectural periods.
Overnight in Cadouin or Montferrand.
Day 2: Bastide loop ride.
Molières - the unfinished English bastide.
St Avit Sénieur - timeless village with a massive fortified church - origins 11th century.
Monpazier - founded in 1285 by Edward I, King of England and Duke of Aquitaine, Monpazier is the finest example and best preserved bastide in the region. Good choice of restaurants and cafés.
Overnight in Cadouin or Montferrand.
Day 3: Cadouin / Montferrand to St.Cybranet / La Roque Gageac.
Belvès - medieval village with a 15th century covered market, turreted houses, bell towers, and terraces.
St Laurent la Vallée, St Pompont, Daglan - lunch possibilities in these villages.
Domme - hilltop bastide situated high on a rocky crag overlooking the Dordogne valley. Templar knights were imprisoned here after the infamous swoop on Friday the 13th of October, 1307.
Overnight in St.Cybranet or La Roque Gageac.
Day 4: St.Cybranet / La Roque Gageac.
Itinerary options:
- Canoe trip on the Dordogne, one of the cleanest rivers in Europe.
- Sarlat - the market town famous for its narrow medieval streets, restored Gothic and Renaissance townhouses.
- Jardins de Marqueyssac - walk through the hanging gardens of Marqueyssac, which offer superb views.
- Château de Beynac - this formidable stronghold, with its 13th century keep, was one of the 4 baronies of the Périgord in the middle ages, and held by Richard the Lionheart until his death.
Overnight in St.Cybranet or La Roque Gageac.
Day 5: St.Cybranet / La Roque Gageac to Les Eyzies.
Château de Castelnaud - 13th century medieval castle with a museum featuring war in the middle ages..
Château des Milandes - this 15th century Renaissance castle was eventually purchased by Josephine Baker, where she sought to create a "World Village", adopting children of different race, religion, and nationality.
St Cyprien for lunch. Meyrals - known for the many artists who live here (visits are welcome).
Overnight in Les Eyzies.
Day 6: Prehistory loop ride.
Grotte de Rouffignac - features galleries adorned with engravings and paintings of horses, ibex, rhinoceroses, bison, and a great number of mammoths, including the "Patriarch".
The village of Rouffignac has a good choice of café/restaurants for lunch.
La Roque St Christophe - this vast troglodytic site has been inhabited since the upper Paleolithic Age (40,000 years ago).
La Madeleine - prehistoric rock shelter, 8th century troglodytic fort, 14th century castle.
Overnight in Les Eyzies.
Suggestion : Font de Gaume in Les Eyzies is an exceptional site - the only cave with polychrome prehistoric art open to the public in Europe, reservations required : fontdegaume@monuments-nationaux.fr . We can adjust the prehistory loop ride to include Font de Gaume.
(Accommodation suggestions can be found on the Where to Stay page.)
We post this tour as starting and finishing in Les Eyzies, which has regular train connections from the stations of
Paris Austerlitz (via Limoges), or Paris Montparnasse (via Bordeaux).
Day 3: Cadouin / Montferrand to St.Cybranet / La Roque Gageac.
