Hiya 'poulet'! You'll really enjoy your holiday in the Dordogne region - visited it myself 3 years ago and found it as gorgeous as it had been many years ago when I made a school trip there!

For information on the locality, try these websites http://www.tourisme-ceou.%20www.ot-sarlat-perigord.fr%20%20www.tourisme.fr/carte/carte-departement-dordogne.htm .

You will need to plan your route carefully down to the Dordogne - but if you can incorporate 'fun stops' en route it will make the journey more interesting. I believe that Michelin offer a 'route map' service on their website. Allow at least one night's stop over, even better two so that you are not under pressure. Remember that your holiday starts when you leave your front door. If you type in 'Bison Fute (crafty bison) on google or another search engine, you should also get an idea where the traffic jams are likely to be - and alternative routes are suggested.

Things to enjoy in the Dordogne, - food (even foie gras!) wines - try the area around Bergerac (a bit west of where you're staying) and the almost unknown cheap but quality red called Pecharment, anything to do with walnuts, like liqueurs etc! and also all the lovely fresh veg. There are so many things to see and do - but I would recommend you investigate the web for tickets to Lascaux II which are a timed entrance and could leave you stranded in a queue for tickets that have already run out for that day. The castles are too numerous to mention; if you go to the village of Domme, try to park as high up as possible! The Gouffre de Padirac (day trip) is DEFINITELY worth doing if you are not claustrophobic and can be combined with an early start and a visit to Rocamadour BEFORE the coaches arrive!!

Take and drink plenty of water - it does get hot, and spark off spectacular storms at night!!!

Have a great time!

We stayed at the Grand Hotel in Tours which is about half way between Calais and the Dordogne. Motorway most of the way. the hotel is just beside the railway station and typical 1900 century with HUGE rooms etc. Also if you arrive in Tours on Sundays they have a very big (didnt want to use the word HUGE again!) open market. Plenty of advice on other threads about driving in France, but I would repeat DONT BREAK THE SPEED LIMITS! You can buy tickets for Lascaux on the site itself but can also get them in the tourist office in the town. As I said on another thread a visit to SARLAT is a MUST, go on Saturday when it has its market. Bergerac is another nice town, but modern. Another bit of advice, is that (certainly in the Dordogne area) watch out that traffic coming from the right has right of way, and also get used to "tailgating". ALSACIENNE, what is the French for "tailgating" please?

to tailgate : coller au train de quelqu'un = to stick to one's tail

I tend to say "get out of my boot" in English rather loudly and unpleasantly to those travelling with me - sortez de mon coffre - because, sadly, those driving on French roads do tend to do exactly that!

Oh and keep your indicator (clignotant) ON all the time you are overtaking, until you regain the outside lane (again advising motorists by using your indicator!!).

Bonne route àtous!

Thanks for the replies - have now booked the house in Daglan - read a good review about a restaurant called Petit Paris in the town.

Where would the nearest large town be - we are self catering and was hoping to stock up before we arrived at the house on a Saturday - are there big supermarket chains like over here?

Also I have been trying to do some searches on vineyards in the area as we would love to visit one and check out the local vino.

Merci beacoup (driving my husband mad with my pigeon french)

Your nearest big town will probably be Sarlat. They have a great Saturday market in the town centre, but parking is hell (I know, I've got the scrapes on the side of my car to prove it!).

Supermarkets and commercial centres tend to be on the outskirts of towns. They do not open on Sundays as in the UK. Bakers are certainly open on Sunday mornings .... and many shops are closed on Monday morning.

I would suggest you contact the tourist office and ask them directly (via email in English), also type in 'Supermarches Centres Commerciaux Sarlat' into Google and see what comes up.

As for wine, contact the Tourist Offices of Bergerac, Cahors, Bordeaux (if you don't mind a long drive and often rather pricey wines) for lists of local producers or try entering 'Viticulteurs Domaines Viticoles Dordogne' and see what the search engine will give you. Usually there are just LOADS of signs offering 'Degustation' at the side of the road! It is NOT legal to charge you for the wine you have tasted if you don't ultimately buy a bottle, regardless of what the salesman might tell you.

And remember that there are two important things about wine; it usually accompanies food so you may not perhaps appreciate it fully on its own, and secondly the only thing that matters is do you like the taste? That counts for far more than what year it is or who produced it .... and NEVER eat peanuts or crisps between comparing wines .... the salt rounds off any rough edges so even vinegar tastes like nectar ..................

we have just returned on sunday from the dordogne area. it is a very pretty area with a lot of things to see, we did a canoe trip for about 10 miles down the river dordogne which was great. we stayed at l' echappee verte near belves. this was a lovley quiet place to stay as they only have 6 gites and 2 apartments with a central pool.