Visiting the Dordogne also means going back to the Middle Ages to discovering its dazzling chateaux built at the time of the Hundred Years War (14th-15th centuries). In the near-150-metre-long gallery, you can stroll among the 2,500 animal figures – horses, cows, bulls and deer, painted and engraved – which have been running across the walls for almost 20,000 years. A lifesize replica of the original cave closed to the public, this truer-than-life reconstruction offers an extraordinary journey to the roots of art.

But if you had to choose just one site, it would have to be the cave of Lascaux IV. Between Montignac and Les Eyzies-de-Tayac is an amazing collection of prehistoric sites and troglodyte dwellings from the Middle Ages. On holiday in the Dordogne, all roads lead to Sarlat-la-Canéda! The heart of the Périgord Noir beats in old Sarlat, whose heritage is unfurled in its narrow streets, medieval squares and Gothic and Renaissance mansions.Īnother must-see is the Vézère Valley, considered the cradle of human presence in Europe. From ornate caves to châteaux and character villages, visitors learn the stories of prehistoric inhabitants, the knights of the Middle Ages and the blossoming of the arts of the Renaissance.Īnd along the Dordogne river, you can savour the flavours of an exceptional terroir: foie gras, duck breast and truffles are all part of the Périgord Noir heritage, and symbols of the French way of life. In the Dordogne Valley, the blonde stone is more than just decoration.

Dordogne valley france