Susan Buchanan and Stephen White’s
BOUTIQUE STYLE LES CORDELIERS
Exceptional openings 2025/2026. Click here
Susan Buchanan and Stephen White’s
BOUTIQUE STYLE LES CORDELIERS
In 1940, The Lascaux cave was “found” by four Périgourdin young boys from Montignac. The 4 young boys decided to explore the hill and made the cavity they found larger so as to slip into the cave…
They were the first ones to discover the cave paintings which are now world famous and are among the very oldest works of art by man and the finest of all prehistoric painted caves.
Lascaux was open to the public until 1963; however, with as many as 1500 visitors a day, carbon dioxide from human breath began to damage the prehistoric paintings.
On exiting the cave in 1940, Pablo Picasso is said to have remarked, “We have invented nothing!”
Today, the original Lascaux cave is closed and is under close surveillance in order to preserve this site which is registered as a World Heritage site by UNESCO.
However, you can visit the replica of the cave system at Lascaux IV. Online booking is strongly recommended (especially in summer). Lascaux IV (replacing early museums Lascaux II and III) was opened in December 2016. Lascaux IV is an exact replica of the original Lascaux site and has been designed to evoke the sense of the prehistoric rock shelters for which the Dordogne is famous. Great care has been taken to emulate the original cave, right down to temperature changes throughout, damp cave scents, air pressure changes and interior cave sounds.
The Gardens of the Manor of Eyrignac, Historical Monuments since 1986, are among the Most Beautiful Gardens of Périgord, an enchanting parenthesis a few kilometers from Sarlat.
The Périgord area is synonymous with castles. It is said that there are 1001 castles in the Périgord. Perched on rocky outcroppings, the picture-book castles of the Périgord are treasures of the regions’ heritage.
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You cannot explore the Dordogne Valley without visiting Rocamadour. The emblematic site of the Lot, vertical and majestic, crowned with its castle, is spread over several floors, clinging to the cliff that separates the Alzou stream from the Causse de Gramat.
No part of France is so impassioned by its culinary heritage as the deeply gourmet idyll of Sarlat. Dining has its soul around the kitchen table and the best gastronomic experiences remain traditional feasts lasting several hours.
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You can opt for a full day or half-day of a variety of water activities on the Dordogne or the Vézère, and discover the natural beauty of the surrounding region by canoe, cargo barge, kayak, or paddleboard.
