Itinerary Expand allSouillac to Souillac Day 1 Start Souillac.A transfer has been arranged to pick you up from Souillac train station and take you to your hotel (please see the joining information). Souillac is a bustling town, with an impressive Benedictine abbey, good shops and an excellent mechanical toy museum. It is considered the gateway to the Dordogne and our hotel is right in the centre if you fancy a wander and pre-dinner aperitif.Premium Hotel Meals included: Dinner Day 2 Ride from Souillac to Sarlat via the Chateau de FenelonToday you head west along the Dordogne Valley, with the possibility of a lunch stop at the fabulous Chateau de Fenelon. There's a fine collection of armour, arms and objects d'art dating from the 1st to the 18th century. Your route continues along the old, disused railway line before a final climb to our 3 star hotel, just outside Sarlat, in plenty of time to relax by the pool before dinner.Premium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Dinner Day 3 Free day to relax in Sarlat or enjoy an optional ride to Domme or La Roque-Gageac.Today is a free day to relax and the setting of the hotel lends itself perfectly to this. Alternatively, we recommend exploring the old regional capital of the Perigord Noir. The Vieux Quartier is an astonishingly beautiful jumble of widely varying architectural styles, and virtually all pre-17th Century. A self-guided historical audio walk is available from the tourist office, and there's a lively market on a Wednesday and Saturday. If you are feeling a little more energetic you could also cycle to hilltop Domme, a fantastically positioned bastide town set on the banks of the Dordogne against a backdrop of wooded hills, or La Roque-Gageac, spectacularly nestled within a cliff, with a vertical drop down to the Dordogne Valley. If these options take your fancy then the details are provided in the route notes.Optional ride approx. 36km Premium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Dinner Day 4 Cycle following th Dordogne to Beynac and St Cyprien; end the day in Les EyziesYour route takes you down to the Dordogne River taking in Beynac with its impressive fortified castle. It is listed as one of the most beautiful villages in France, its cobbled streets and squares are still home and workplace to many artisan and craftsmen, and there are lots of hidden galleries. The ride then continues along the banks of the river to St Cyprien, this lively village with its 12th Century abbey is a great lunch stop. Your final stretch takes you up through wooded glades and past the Font-de-Gaume cave and on to the prehistoric capital of Les Eyzies. Our hotel here is set in lovely tranquil gardens and has a private swimming pool. Cycle approx. 40kmPremium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 5 Free day in Les Eyzies; optional ride through the Vezere Gorges or spend the day canoeing or kayaking.Les Eyzies is waiting to be explored and today you have the day off the bikes to make the most of this popular village. Set in the heart of Perigord, standing proudly between the imposing cliffs and the Vezere Gorge, Les Eyzies receives over 600,000 visitors a year. Renowned for its gastronomy and prehistory, the village and the surrounding area offer a wealth of hidden caves, prehistoric art and archaeological treasures. The honeycombed shelters and caves transport you back in time to when men once lived and practised magic within the caves. If you choose to take the circular ride it will then take you through the magnificent Vezere Gorges and back via the Abri du Cap Blanc where you'll find the only remaining frieze of prehistoric sculptures in the world open to the public. Or spend the day canoeing or kayaking down the gentle Vezere River.Optional ride approx. 29km.Premium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 6 Cycle to La Roque St Christophe and the village of St Leon; end the ride in Montignac.An initial climb today before a fabulous freewheel down to La Roque St-Christophe, the oldest and largest cave site in western Europe, then on to the pretty village of St Leon with its charming 12th century church and lovely riverside picnic spots. You continue along the river to the medieval town of Montignac and the charming La Roseraie, your hotel for the next two nights.Cycle Approx. 29kmPremium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 7 Free day exploring Montignac, or ride to the Lascaux II caves.Montignac oozes charm and is well worth exploring. Perhaps wander up to the ruined chateau, before heading off to the nearby Lascaux caves complex, ranked as the number one prehistoric site in Europe. Discovered in 1940 by four children looking for their dog, the caves offer an amazing collection of paintings and are well worth a visit. Back at the hotel, the gardens and swimming pool are perfect for relaxing and soaking up the summer sun.Optional ride approx. 4km Meals included: Breakfast Day 8 Cycle back to Souillac via Salignac and the Manoir d'Eyrignac.Starting out, you head first, via the tiny farming village of St-Amand-de-Coly (impressive abbey) and on through wooded glades, to Salignac. From here, we'd recommend a short detour to the Manoir d'Eyrignac whose impressive 18th century gardens are rated the best in France. Then it's lovely flat cycling through open country passing chestnut groves, maize fields and masses of sunflowers, perhaps stopping off at charming St-Genies with its 14th century chapel. Roll through traditional Perigord villages such as Eyvignes and Eybenes (the church and manor are worth a stop), before heading down into the Borreze valley. Back in Souillac, time permitting, perhaps visit the Vieille Prune Distillery.Cycle approx. 47kmPremium Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 9 End Souillac.We have arranged for a transfer back to the train station. See the joining information for more details. Meals included: Breakfast
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Hotels All hotels have been specially selected for their warm welcome, location and regional cuisine. On this trip we use 3 and 4-star hotels, including the stylish Hotel Les Glycines in Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil. This hotel is run by the Lombard family who have lovingly restored the building to its former glory, with the addition of a cosy bar, modern bistrot and dining room which looks over the gardens. All the hotels have swimming pools and all rooms have en suite facilities.Single AccommodationAll prices are based on 2 persons sharing, so if there is an odd number of people travelling in your party or you are travelling alone, there will be a compulsory single room. Please call our sales department for the latest prices and availability.
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Reviewed September 2017 Tilly JensenCAUTION: This is a '4' level of difficulty and NOT a '2'; difficulty level grossly misrepresented We booked this trip to have some cycling time with our son who is a novice cyclist but fit. My husband and I are strong cyclists and have done trips with Exodus that are rated as a '4' and '3'; no difficulties with cycling experienced on those trips. However, this Dordogne trip starts off the first cycling day with grades of 5% to 10% and as high as 16%. The second day of cycling has two optional rides with the same thing and even as high as 20% showing on our Garmin. Our son was not here to train for the Tour de France ... the goal was to have some relaxing cycling ... this is NOT relaxing cycling. I confirmed with an Exodus agent that a trip rated as a '2' should be relatively flat terrain. When you are continuously experiencing elevation grades greater than 6%, it's a seriously challenging ride. We ride in the Canadian Rockies ... some great but tough rides there ... this Dordogne trip is as tough as our mountain rides in Canada but not as many kilometres. The difficulty rating of this ride has been totally misrepresented by Exodus. Had we known, we would have booked an ebike. We were unable to get an ebike because we didn't realize it was necessary until we had done a couple of days of cycling ... now they are unable to get us one ... so we're stuck sitting around doing nothing. BEWARE!!!!What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? When we realized that we will never book another trip with Exodus given the misrepresentation experienced on this trip ... and we've done more than 10 to date with them!What did you think of your group leader? No group leader; self-guided.Do you have any advice for potential travellers? BEWARE!!!Is there anything else you would like to add? I should have noticed that there were no reviews more recent than August of 2015. Exodus likely has been pulling all the bad reviews. They'll likely pull this one even though they say they post all reviews!!! We know this trip has been booked by others because the reps who greeted us on the first day told us that was the case. Reply from Exodus Reply from ExodusWe were in contact with Tilly whilst she and her family were on their trip. We responded as quickly as we could and arranged an e-bike for their son so he could enjoy the last 3 days of their cycling holiday together. We gather that this gesture greatly improved the end of their trip.Subsequently, following their concerns of the grading we have looked at this in greater detail. The average daily distance is 37km with the longest ride being 49km and the average elevation gain is 462m with the highest elevation gain being 550m. With this in mind, we have increased the grade to a level 3.
Reviewed August 2015 Mark RobertsonSelf Guided Gastronomic Dordogne Cycling trip A thoroughly enjoyable cycling trip with some superb food and especially at Les Glycines's restaurant where the service and accommodation were impeccable.What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Making it it the top of the hill in the mid afternoon heat after climbing up from Sarlat by grinding out the miles! The cave paintings at Lascaux 2 were stunning as the originals are over 17000 years old and cycling through the virtually traffics free country roads with the dappled sunlight over the chateaux.What did you think of your group leader? Being self guided meant that he didn't have a leader which meant we had planets of time to confer while interpreting the route plan from Headwater. Both Claire & Keith ( the local reps) were both friendly and helpful.Do you have any advice for potential travellers? We went in August when it was hot so do take plenty of water with you and stay hydrated as this is an undulating route with plenty of short sharp hills and the occasional long one! Do also remember that shops are often closed during the afternoon until about 16.00 so buy your provisions in plenty of timeIs there anything else you would like to add? The fitter you are before the trip the more you'll enjoy it. This region attracts a lot of tourists and town centres
Reviewed July 2015 Steven GittensMore hills than we expected Our week was particularly hot, as temperatures in the high 30's swept over France. This probably made the hills a bit more of a challenge, but they are achievable since the bikes are very good and have plenty of gears. We would recommend this holiday, the cycling distances are all less than 50k, taking us through stunning scenery and pretty villages. We were well briefed by the Headwater / Exodus staff and when we had a problem with the bike that needed assistance, they came to us within 10 minutes. The first hotel is without doubt disappointing, cramped and poor facilities. However the restaurant next door at La Veille Auberge is excellent. Les Glycines and Le Moulin de Mitou were fantastic with great pools, nice rooms and outstanding food. On our free day at Eyzies de Tayac we hired a canoe from just outside the hotel and paddled for 18k although other longer and shorter distances can be arranged.What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Le Moulin de Mitou has a wonderful atmosphere. The owners are charming and speak very little English. We cycled both days and spent the afternoon by the lovely pool.What did you think of your group leader? Clare and Keith were great. The briefing was spot on.Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Expect the hills. On one day you start with 3k of gradual uphill. Cycle early if it is hot.Is there anything else you would like to add? As previously said the first hotel disappoints, but not enough to take the shine of a great holiday. There is no air conditioning and I was able to use the one fan available at the hotel.
Reviewed October 2014 Peter GriffinDordogne gastronomic cycling trip A fantastic nine day trip through a beautiful section of the Dordogne, riding between hotels and visiting historic chateaus and towns along the way. The accommodation was excellent, the food was wonderful and the self-guided trip allows you to proceed at your own pace.What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Visiting the chateaus and picnicking alongside the Dordogne river in beautiful surrounds, browsing the farmers' markets, unwinding over dinner at the hotels which served excellent food and had great wine selections.What did you think of your group leader? We were on a self-guided trip, but Keith and co at Headwaters provided great support, taking our gear between hotels and thoroughly briefing us on the area and the bikes. They took good care of our luggage and had in-depth knowledge of the regionDo you have any advice for potential travellers? Worth spending a day or two in Brive before starting the trip - beautiful little town and the Black Truffle is a great place to stay. There aren't many vineyards along this route, so unless you are going to Bergerac or elsewhere on the wine route, map out some side visits to vineyards in the region. Have lots of picnics, picking up local ingredients from charcuteries and boulangeries. The entry fee to the chateaus is worth it, particularly Chateau de Fenelon and Chateau de Losse. The ancient towns of Domme and La Roque Gageac are must-visit locations. The prehistoric heritage of the area is fascinating, but investigate the supposed attractions carefully online first - some of them are tacky theme parks. The exception is the Lascaux caves - an excellent site.Is there anything else you would like to add? Useful to have someone assigned to map reading and ideally, a GPS device to keep track of your progress each day. Take the longer cycling options, which usually involve less elevation!
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