Discover Perigord : lavish heritage and cosy greenery

Old stones and architecture


Issigeac
Issigeac is our lovely village, just 3km away. This is a medieval village with its narrow alleyways winding up amid timber framed venerable houses. Clustured around the old church and the castle, these old dwellings are embedded in a circular enclosure, conveying its unusual character among the many picturesque towns of Perigord. Stroll through its tiny thoroughfares, nose up to enjoy the lovely nooks, enter into the lovely craft shops and art sudios, lookdown for the quaint flowers growing out of crannies. Want a bustling athmosphere ? Don't miss the Sunday morning market. Also enjoyable casual flair oozes from summer evenings when Marché Gourmand  takes place on the church square. Music, local food, outside meal. Just the receipe for a perfect vacation experience. Check for animations during the seasons, there is often someting going on.

Bastides : Monpazier, Villereal, Beaumont...

Equally charming but differently structured are the "Bastides": this is the name given here to XIIIth and XIVth centuries little towns. Square mapped, their streets converge to a market place, very often fringed by gothic arcades, and here too houses display timber and stone humble or grand architecture. These picturesque villages were new towns in those glorious days, and as transit and market places, they streak the soft hills every other 10 miles or so. Follow their trail for an excursion. Here are the most remarquable of them : Monpazier, Villereal, Beaumont-du-Perigord, Belves, Eymet, Castillonnes, Miramont-de-Guyenne, Monflanquin.


Bergerac

Bergerac, harbored by the Dordogne river, is both a focus of local life and a stopover between Bordeaux and Sarlat. Winking on its past of commercial transit point, it offers Gabarre tours on the Dordogne river : those were flat bottom boat used for shipment of inlands goods conveyed up to the port of Bordeaux. Now you can leisurely embark a soft stroll over the river. Of course, wine is an ongoing core element of local life . It continues to contribute to culture and economic life, and to local and visitors' pleasure. A completely refurbished museum will display all that revolves around wine in a beautiful building by the river. As for tasting, visit vineyards or have a gulp in restaurants. 

Castles : Bridoire, Biron, Monbazillac, Beynac....

From Renaissance Monbazillac to medieval fortress Beynac or Bonaguil, amazing vistas await for your look on. Interactive visits are often on the menu, and kids and adults alike will have a great time in Bridoire with its game theme or Castelnaud-la-Chapelle displaying old times weapons. Château des Milandes presents a bird-falconery show and still hosts  souvenirs of one of its famous owner, Josephine Baker.


Scenery and nature

Landscapes

Strolling through the country, you will enjoy rolling hills and green woods. A car will get you to the afore mentionned sites trailing on small sinewy roads. A bike is a perfect vacation slow vehicule, allowing you to relish the landscape...and muscle up your calves, as flat roads are scarse in the area.Walking trails offer the reward of secret vistas and fauna encounters.

Issigeac is an ideal gateway to varied sceneries, with many difference in so little distance. Southward are the high open soft hills of Lot-et-Garonne, somewhat aquin to, let's dare say it, Tuscanny landscapes. Heading north, you leave Issigeac's nearly flat expense of crop fields, regularly patched with copses and woods. You quickly reach the vineyards and orchards, softly sloping down up to  Bergerac and the Dordogne river. For the feel of the Perigord Noir, go eastward and you quickly drive on winding roads encased in cosy hills and narrow dales, shaded by chesnust forest.


Oriols and lizards, orchids and bellfowers

Walking trails are certainly the best way to spot a roe deer or hear a lark. Get gearred up with your most confortable walking shoes and head off for these tracks, varrying in length and landscape. The most flamboyant colours are on display in spring, with vivid flowers all around, including the otherwise humble wild orchids. Riding a bike can be your choice to reach further afield while savouring a slow pace. With so much woodlands patching the meadows and fields,  a shelter is always at hand. The Dordogne river streches through steep cliffs or soft bends, sometimes white swans elegantly drift along.