BEST TRAVELER'S CHOICE 2026
BEST TRAVELER'S CHOICE 2026
Could France be your next home? Spend a week in the Dordogne getting a real sense of the area; the mechanical side of a move, from property to financing, and the human side, the language, culture, and daily rhythms that make a place feel like home. Hosted by Les Cordeliers & the Adrian Leeds Group.
The week is hosted by an American couple who asked themselves the same question not long ago, and in-country subject-matter experts, based entirely at a single boutique hotel in the heart of Sarlat. In January 2025, Susan Buchanan and Stephen White sold their inn and restaurant in the Green Mountains of Vermont and became the owners of Les Cordeliers, a boutique hotel in the heart of the Dordogne. Along the way, they navigated visas, banking, healthcare, real estate, insurance, driving, language, and culture: everything that comes with building a new life abroad.
Les Cordeliers welcomes guests from around the world, especially from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Drawing on the riches of the Dordogne, our own passions, and the professionals who have become our partners, we have crafted a collection of weeklong experiences, this French property-focused week among them.
Based at a single boutique hotel, the setting puts you in close proximity to people who are genuinely in the know, an exclusive opportunity if you are seriously considering a move of your own. Daily “Welcome to France” sessions on property, administration, and culture, led by the Adrian Leeds Group, are balanced by real property viewings and some of the Dordogne’s finest sightseeing, from Les Plus Beaux Villages de France to the medieval châteaux and sculpted gardens.
– Arrivals at Les Cordeliers throughout the afternoon
– Opening reception and informal dinner that evening
– First “Welcome to France” session: how to choose where in France to live, with the decision-making tree you really need
– Lunch at La Crémerie
– Dinner at Le Bistrot
– A morning at the Sarlat market
– Second “Welcome to France” session: how the French property buying process works, including a look at real properties
– Dinner at Les Cordeliers
– Morning “soup-to-nuts” session: the practical details of settling in, healthcare, insurance, and driving among them
– Afternoon visit to one of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France along the Dordogne river
– Dinner at Gueule & Gosier
– A morning at the Lascaux IV cave replica in Montignac
– Lunch at La Poste in Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère
– Afternoon “Welcome to France” session: assembling your financial team (currency exchange, banking, notaires, taxation)
– Dinner at Les Cordeliers
A day trip to Bergerac.
– Winery tour
– Lunch in town
– Afternoon of real property showings
– Dinner back in Sarlat at Le Coin Coin
– Morning session on bridging cultural differences
– Picnic lunch and visit to the Hanging Gardens of Marqueyssac
– Closing Q&A at Les Cordeliers that evening
– Dinner at Aux Trois Sens
From 11:00 am.
– Breakfast
– Farewells and departures
Les Cordeliers is an 1870s maison de maître, a grand townhouse once built for Sarlat’s leading merchant families, set steps from the medieval old town’s stone lanes and markets. A landmark blue door opens onto soaring ceilings and chandeliers overhead. Five guest rooms, averaging 400 square feet, all with ensuite bathrooms, serve as home base for the full week: seven nights, breakfast daily, and every dinner.
Before Sarlat, Stephen spent nearly two decades in wine and spirits sales in New England, later earning his Certified Spanish Wine Educator credential and WSET II. Susan spent over twenty years as a professional fundraiser for leading medical research institutions, including Massachusetts General Hospital and Johns Hopkins Medicine, and holds a law degree and a master’s degree in French, with a fellowship year in Strasbourg.
Together, they ran Tucker Hill Inn & Restaurant in Vermont’s Mad River Valley, and now bring that same hands-on hospitality to every signature trip they host. One or both of them will be with you throughout the week.
Adrian founded the Adrian Leeds Group (ALG) after moving from Los Angeles to Paris in 1994, building it into the leading property consultancy for North Americans buying in France and a familiar face along the way, including more than 50 episodes of HGTV’s House Hunters International.
Jennifer joined ALG after living the relocation herself: she and her husband moved to a small town in the Aude in 2016, where she founded her own real estate agency helping foreign buyers navigate French village and country homes, before re-joining Adrian as Regional Director. Jennifer is with you throughout the week as your real estate expert and property buying guide. Adrian, who divides her time between Paris and Nice, contributes her broader perspective on what it means to live in France as an American property owner, joining in person or remotely as her schedule allows.
Typically, no fewer than 6 and no more than 12 participants (not including guides and support team).
Single occupancy requests require a supplemental charge, considered on a case-by-case basis depending on availability. Request a quote from Les Cordeliers.
Should it be necessary to cancel, the reservation may be transferred to another person following their acceptance by Les Cordeliers. Otherwise, the following charges apply per person:
Final itineraries may vary slightly; inclement weather may also necessitate alterations.
All trips are conducted in English
