Cycling in the Dordogne

By air. Brive–Vallée de la Dordogne airport is about 20 minutes from Souillac; Bergerac and Toulouse are around 1 hour 45 minutes.

From further afield. From Australia, the USA and further afield, most long-haul flights land at Paris Charles de Gaulle, with connecting flights to Bordeaux or Toulouse, or a train from Paris to the region.

By train. Souillac is on the main line from Paris Austerlitz to Toulouse, about 4½ hours from Paris.

By car. Calais to Souillac is around 800 km (497 miles). The route is a circle, so you finish where you started.

Our detailed route notes and maps come in digital form and keep to quiet country lanes and cycle paths wherever we can.

We also email you GPX files, with simple instructions for using them on your phone, so you can see exactly where you are on the map. The handlebar bag on your bike has a map holder for the notes.

It varies by route. Some sections are waymarked, and your route notes tell you where. The notes and GPS guide you the rest of the way.

Bring a smartphone with mobile data and a power bank. If you take a wrong turn, the GPX track shows you the way back, and we’re a call or WhatsApp away.

We’ve walked or cycled our Dordogne and Lot routes ourselves, so our notes come from first-hand experience.

Included: 7 breakfasts and 5 dinners. The day-by-day shows which nights include dinner.

Breakfast is usually French-style: fresh bread and croissants with butter and jam, and coffee, tea or hot chocolate. Some hotels add yoghurt, fruit or cheese.

Lunch is up to you, and it’s one of the pleasures of the day: pick up a picnic from a village bakery or market, or stop at a café along the way. On some days there are few shops on the route, so it’s worth buying lunch before you set off.

Tell us about any dietary needs when you book and we’ll let every hotel know. Vegetarian meals are no problem. Other needs, such as gluten-free food or a serious allergy, are harder for small country kitchens, so please talk to Cassie before you book, and always carry any medication you need.

Drinks aren’t included: anything you enjoy with dinner is simply settled with the hotel before you leave.

Whenever you change hotel, your bags are taken on for you, so they’re waiting when you arrive. Please have them ready at reception by 9am.

During the day you only need a daypack: water, snacks, a waterproof, sun cream and a hat, plus anything you’ll want before evening, such as medication.

Many of our hotels are in old buildings and some have no lift, so expect the odd flight of stairs with your bags.

One bag per person, up to 20 kg.

Rooms are usually ready from mid-afternoon, and check-out is usually by 10 or 11am. If you arrive early, the hotel will normally look after your bags while you explore.

Most rooms have a shower rather than a bath, as is usual in French country hotels.

The day-by-day above lists your hotels night by night, and we’ll send you full details with your booking confirmation.

Our season runs from April to October.

Spring brings wildflowers and fresh green valleys, with mild days that can still be showery; April mornings can be cool.

June and September are often the sweet spot: warm, settled and quieter, and September brings the grape harvest.

July and August are hot, often 30 °C or more in the afternoon, so set off early, carry plenty of water and plan a long lunch in the shade. Summer thunderstorms can be heavy but usually pass quickly.

October is golden and peaceful, with cooler days, shorter evenings and a little more rain.

French is the language of the route. Most hotels speak some English, but in small villages, shops and cafés you’ll often find they don’t.

A few words go a long way and are always appreciated: bonjour as you walk into a shop, merci, and l’addition, s’il vous plaît when you’d like the bill.

Souillac’s market is on Friday mornings, and Sarlat’s big market fills the old town on Saturdays, with a smaller one on Wednesday mornings.

Font-de-Gaume, in Les Eyzies, is one of the very few caves with original prehistoric paintings still open to visitors. Numbers are strictly limited, so book online well before you travel.

For the cave art at Lascaux IV, near Montignac, book tickets online before you travel, especially in summer.

Your bike is a 24-speed hybrid with a rear rack, two panniers, a handlebar bag with map holder, a bottle holder, a pump, a lock and a puncture repair kit.

You’ll need to be able to fix a puncture yourself; for anything bigger, we’re a call away.

Helmets aren’t included. Bring your own, or hire one from the bike company when they deliver your bikes.

Fancy a little help on the hills? An e-bike upgrade is an extra £140 per person.