It is a lovely, peaceful place, a place you could see yourself living. Cyprien, a town with a huge abbey and church. Finally, I mostly used our paper maps and used the apps to track our progress. Occasionally, the blue ball just totally stops for extended periods of time (along with my heart) as we lose coverage, I am guessing, but also, the apps send us on some very questionable roads. We start early in the morning, crossing the bridge to the south side of the Dordogne, and we do not always stay on the road shown above. Even though we picked and chose, we still had to stop now and then along the way just to stand in awe of the beauty we were seeing. This is actually a very short drive, Limeuil to Domme, but it takes us all day 🙂 There are castles at every corner. Cyprien, Castle Beynac, Chateau des Milandes and La Roque Gageac – Shuttle transfer (30 minutes) to town center: Bordeaux St Jean train station > Montauban Ville Bourbon train station or Brive la Gaillarde train station > Souillac train station (by train).Dordogne: St. – Bus shuttle « Tisseo » direction ‘Gare routière’ – stop Toulouse Matabiau train station > Souillac train station (by train). – Bus shuttle > Paris – stop‘Porte Maillot’ > Metro line 1 + line 10 > Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train). – Orly Val (automatic metro: from Orly Sud or Orly Ouest > Paris – stop ‘Antony’ > RER B – stop ‘Denfert Rochereau’ > Metro line 6 + line 5 > Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train). – Bus shuttle (Orly Bus): from Orly Sud > Paris centre – stop ‘Denfert Rochereau’ > Metro line 6 + line 5 > Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train). – Taxi transfer to Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train). – RER B > Paris centre – stop ‘Chatelet Les Halles > Metro line 1 + line 10 > Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train). Paris Austerlitz train station > Souillac train station (by train).įor more information, do not hesitate to visit : By plane: Possibility to plan an extra night in Souillac.įrom A20 hihway > exit n★5 direction « Souillac ». All along the way, you will cross numerous ochre colored villages, and the medieval castles will keep going watching you from the heights of the hills as an example: Fénelon castle covered with ‘Lauzes’ typical stone of the region. Reach the quiet Dordogne river through the old railway transformed as a Green path. Have a walk in the lively streets and sit on the terrace to taste a typical Périgord dinner. You will arrive at the end of the day in Sarlat-la-Canéda, Black Périgord capital city. Follow your road along this river: all around you, are erecting numerous castles, witness of a belligerent past between the lords of the region: Castelnaud and Beynac are only examples. The small countryside roads will lead you to Domme, perched bastide above the Dordogne river.

Before reaching the medieval city of Gourdon and its quaint ochre houses, stop over the beautiful Notre-Dames des Neiges’ chapel and its colored frescoes.

The hilly landscapes on the Black Périgord will enthrall you. Leave Rocamadour through the heights and cross the peaceful and preserved Regional Nature Reserve of the Causses de Quercy. You will arrive in Rocamadour from the heights with a breathtaking view on this village, built on the side of the cliff, in three parts: the village, the sanctuary and the castle. To reach the village, you will ride along the Dordogne, then the Ouysse valley. This first bike stage leads you to Rocamadour, Marian sanctuary welcoming one of the greatest pilgrimages in Europe. Day 2 : Souillac – Rocamadour | 21 km or 28 km Souillac is the ideal departure point to discover the Périgord: a perfect mix between river and built heritage: indestructible bridges span the Dordogne down the city Sainte-Marie’s abbey, ancient Benedictine abbey, crowned by byzantine style cupolas, takes pride of place in the middle of the city. You will climb up to Rocamadour, European major pilgrimage, you will cross the amazing Regional Nature Reserve of the Causses de Quercy, you will ride along the Dordogne river, and go from villages to medieval castles, all unique but all united by History. This is a sporty bike tour offering a nice mix between valleys and hills, green landscapes and ochre colored houses, peaceful countryside roads and paths and lively center towns. Welcome in the heart of the Black Périgord.

Dordogne castles map