Holiday Apartment Rental in Lot, Milhac, South West France - La Chaumiere 2

Local Attractions

• The Dordogne - also known as Perigord, has a beautiful and varied landscape ranging from forested hills and valleys, dramatic river cliffs and rolling farmland. It is known for its chateaux and fortified churches, its pre-historic caves and the dozens of honey-coloured mediaeval villages that cover the area some of which -like Domme and Monpazier- are hilltop bastides established by bishops and feudal lords in the 13th and 14th centuries and surrounded by a defensive wall.
• St. Cirq-Madelon - (1 min by car and 5 mins walking) is your local hamlet. Here you benefit from both the peace and beauty of the countryside and a location that is in the heart of the Dordogne with the most famous sights a short drive away. Listed below are some of your nearest landmarks and places of interest.
• The Dordogne river - (5 mins by car) offers canoeing, swimming, fishing and boat rides. Grolejac (3 mins by car or half an hour stroll along the GR 64 footpath) has a lake and long sandy beach with lifeguard attendants and an ice-cream kiosk. At the other end of the village is the majestic Dordogne river. Immediately across the bridge from Grolejac you can hire a canoe and be brought back to your car at the end of the day by mini-bus. Gourdon (10 mins by car) has supermarkets just out of town and a weekly street-traders’ market on the main street that circuits the hill on which the charming old part of town is built. Just prior to Gourdon is a small lake and children’s play area.
• Domme (15 mins by car) is set on a steep promontory with breathtaking views across the Dordogne and Vezere valleys. It is one of the few bastides to have retained most of its 13th century ramparts and three old town gates. Underneath the village are the ‘grottes’; 450m of stalactite-filled galleries whose entrance is in the covered market opposite the tourist office. Market day is on Thursday morning.
• Chateau de Castelnaud (30 mins by car) is a wonderful cliff-top castle dating from the 12th to 16th centuries with superb views of the Dordogne and other hill-top chateaux. The mediaeval village clambers down the steep slopes below the castle.
• Sarlat-La-Caneda (20 mins by car) is a beautiful, well-restored town with a mediaeval centre and a cathedral, parts of which date from the 12th century. On Saturdays the town buzzes with locals and visitors who have come for the lively street market. There is also a small market on Wednesday mornings. At night the narrow streets glow with gaslights as if from another era. There is a good choice of restaurants many of which spill out on to the cobbled streets.
• La Roque Gageac (20 mins by car) is an ancient riverside village with fascinating architecture, exotic gardens, caves and a troglodyte fort built into the cliff. Beynac-et-Cazenac (30 mins by car) has a dramatic fortress Chateau de Beynac perched atop a sheer cliff above the village which is built on the river bank. Beynac and La Roque Gageac are two of the most beautiful villages of the region. Rocamadour (50 mins by car) is a spectacularly situated pilgrimage centre in a deep picturesque gorge. Towering above the River Alzou on the cliff top is the 14th century chateau with ramparts. A switch-back path and the ‘Grand Escalier’ -Great Staircase- connect the ‘cite’ with the Chapelle Notre Dame half way up and the chateau at the top.
• Canoeing
• Pleasure boat cruises
• Fishing
• Swimming
• Country walking
• Bicycle or scooter hire
• Hot-air balloon rides
• Historic chateaux, stately homes, gardens, towns and villages to visit
• Prehistoric caves to visit and underground boat rides
• Vineyards to visit
• Markets and Shopping
• Wining and Dining
• Falconry shows
• Golf at Vitrac (15 mins by car)