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transport tips to see cave paintings

transport tips to see cave paintings

Old Feb 21, 2009, 6:29 am
  #1  
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transport tips to see cave paintings

I'm taking advantage of discount tix to Paris around Memorial Day (5/25), wish to head down to Sarlat to see the cave paintings (Grotte de Font-de-Gaume, etc.)

what do you folks suggest for a city to transfer from SNCF to a rental car? should I try to get to Sarlat and rent a car there or get off at a larger city, say Limoges, Brive, or even Bordeaux?

we only have 4 days and nights, with a good portion of the first day spent in transit.

we get into CDG mid-morning, and I'd be open to taking the RER/Metro to Gare Montparnasse or Austerlitz as opposed to departing directly from TGV station at CDG. my preference coming back would be to return the previous evening and stay in the city, so don't need to go straight to CDG on TGV either.

suggestions will be very welcome

bonjour!
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Old Feb 21, 2009, 9:51 am
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iff
 
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Could you be more specific about your dates? That may affect your options.
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Old Feb 21, 2009, 1:58 pm
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sure, we are scheduled to ...
arrive into CDG Thu 21-May @ 09.20
depart from CDG Mon 25-May @ 11.40
prefer to be @ CDG ~2 hrs prior to dep (09.40)

merci beaucoup!
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Old Feb 21, 2009, 3:17 pm
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iff
 
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Okay, that helps a bit.

May 21 is a national holiday (Ascension), so you'll need to see which rental locations are open that day. It's also not unusual for some small businesses to be closed on Friday to make a 4-day weekend.

Just something to keep in mind as you make your plans...
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Old Feb 21, 2009, 7:23 pm
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any tips on reserving a time-slot to tour Grotte de Font-de-Gaume besides calling? I haven't found any web sites that help out other than some advertizing big mondo tours that would involve more than we want.

merci
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Old Feb 23, 2009, 4:27 pm
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Perhaps some of the information here might be useful. Robyn

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...Aquitaine.html
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Old Feb 24, 2009, 3:43 am
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Thanks! After posting I worked up the nerve and called (I've little experience calling FR from US), managed to secure the reservation at Grotte Font-de-Gaume for late morning of day following our arrival.

I guess we'll rent a car at Limoges as it seems easy enough to get to from Paris, large enough to have some car deals, and my wife wants a peek at the local craft (enamel painted copper, etc.). Really don't want to cope with renting a car in a larger city or making a big drive after flying all night and transiting Paris to Gare Austerlitz.

Trying to decide if staying in Sarlat-la-Canda is good enough or should move around some. Do want to see Rocamadour upon advice of a waiter who likened it to Mont-St-Michel.

Any other suggestions for things to see in Black Perigord ?

merci,
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Old Feb 24, 2009, 4:31 pm
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If I recall correctly - the Perigord Noir is part of the Dordogne region of France. I would therefore recommend getting a copy of the Michelin Green Guide to the Dordogne - which will show you everything there is to see. I have found the Green Michelin guides very useful in the past (and once spent a week or so in the Dordogne region of France using the guide). Apart from the caves - the Dordogne is the foie gras and truffles and armagnac region of France - best eating in the country IMO. Robyn
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Old Feb 25, 2009, 1:32 am
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Originally Posted by robyng
If I recall correctly - the Perigord Noir is part of the Dordogne region of France. I would therefore recommend getting a copy of the Michelin Green Guide to the Dordogne - which will show you everything there is to see. I have found the Green Michelin guides very useful in the past (and once spent a week or so in the Dordogne region of France using the guide). Apart from the caves - the Dordogne is the foie gras and truffles and armagnac region of France - best eating in the country IMO. Robyn
thanks Robyn

I am looking forward to the gastronomic discoveries during this visit. I had some interesting foie gras in my one visit to Lyon, and wish to try more. Can't say I've ever had truffles (other than the chocolate kind which don't count), but they sound good.

I'm finding lodging to be scarce over period 5/21-24, so I'm hoping the guide you suggested will help with that. All the hotels in Sarlat-le-Caneda are apparently full, so I am checking out alternative places to stay. At least we'll have a car for a change so I have options which may include taking the train to Angouleme and renting a car there instead of Limoges.

merci et bientt
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Old Feb 25, 2009, 2:21 pm
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Well if you're in the Angouleme area and are happy to drive, you might like to visit COGNAC and visit the brandy distilleries and sample some good ones. Also there's La Rochelle and the Ile de R not too far away .... and the cinema themepark FUTUROSCOPE near Poitiers. Be aware that the Ascension Day holiday stretches in to the weekend, and many families start their long weekend on the Wednesday as there's no school .....................
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Old Feb 25, 2009, 3:21 pm
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I took a look at the Relais & Chateaux website. It has 5 properties in the general vicinity - and 4 are available. I don't have a clue what your price range is - or know anything about any of these properties. But you might take a look (or have a travel agent took a look for you). FWIW - R&C properties vary a lot - from relatively simple to very very fancy. Many tend to be restaurants with rooms where the food is more important than the accommodations.

The Green Michelin Guides basically give sightseeing information (with a little hotel and restaurant information). If you want detailed hotel and restaurant information - you'll need the Red Michelin Guide. Robyn
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Old Feb 25, 2009, 3:41 pm
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P.S. The places closest to Sarlat are Chateau de la Treyne (25 km); Le Vieux Logis (30 km) and Chateau de Mercues (45 km). And - like I said before - I know zero about these places. Robyn
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Old Mar 2, 2009, 10:43 am
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car rental places closed on Ascension day?

Originally Posted by Alsacienne
Well if you're in the Angouleme area and are happy to drive, you might like to visit COGNAC and visit the brandy distilleries and sample some good ones. Also there's La Rochelle and the Ile de R not too far away .... and the cinema themepark FUTUROSCOPE near Poitiers. Be aware that the Ascension Day holiday stretches in to the weekend, and many families start their long weekend on the Wednesday as there's no school .....................
I am having problems with finding a place that rents cars on Ascension day!

Is it normal that the car rental places are closed on this day?

merci
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Old Mar 2, 2009, 7:02 pm
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followup:

it seems that the rental car counters at BOD airport (Aroport de Bordeaux - Mrignac) are open on this particular holiday.

I've resigned myself to skipping the TGV (sniff, sniff) and taking AF instead. we'll save a couple of hours each way by my estimates.

It shouldn't be too much to circumnavigate Bordeaux from the airport out to N89 eastbound, right?

merci
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Old Mar 3, 2009, 3:44 pm
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We were just in the Bordeaux/Dordogne region in August and it was a wonderful trip. We bought a Garmin Nuvi 670 before we left (includes Europe maps) and it made traveling extremely easy. You should be able to rent a GPS at most places and I highly recommend it.

I found it difficult to navigate the Michelin guide. The guide is great if you know where you want to go but doesn't help much in deciding which cities you want to visit. However, it seems like you have a pretty good idea of what you want to see & your time is so limited that you should be fine.

Rocamadour is pretty far. We stayed in Beynac for our sightseeing days on that side of the perigord-nord. Then we stayed in St. Cere for when we went to Rocamadour. It was still a small drive (maybe 30 minutes?) but worth it. We stayed at the Victor Hugo which was pretty inexpensive for what it offered. The proprietor was extremely courteous.

In Beynac, we stayed at the Cafe de la Riviere. It was cheap (I think 55 euros a night) and we were traveling on a budget (we had time for a vacation and had to go to France due to a wedding but otherwise would never have chosen to go due to the xchange rate). However, I think the exchange rate is slightly better now and if you can get a place in Roque-Gageac, that's what I would do. There are better restaurants in RG and it's so nice to drink a carafe of wine with dinner and stumble home. Plume D'oie is slightly nicer and I think Belle Etoile is cheaper. I just checked on tripadvisor and there is a slightly negative review of Belle Etoile, but it seemed charming when we were there & you should definitely have dinner there. It was very well priced from what we remember.

The Presidial in Sarlat had an exceptional seared foie gras.
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