Self-guided cycling holiday · 8 days
A week by bike through the classic Dordogne: riverside cycle paths, castles on the skyline, four of France’s most beautiful villages and the prehistoric caves of the Vézère.
| 8 days (7 nights) | |
|---|---|
| Per person, sharing a double or twin | £1,250 |
| Single room supplement | +£305 |
| Travelling solo (on top of the per-person price) | +£495 |
| Bike hire | Included |
| E-bike upgrade | +£140 per person |
Prices are per person, sharing a double/twin room, including bike hire (e-bike upgrade an extra £140 per person).
| In US dollars | about US$1,670 |
|---|---|
| In Canadian dollars | about C$2,340 |
| In Australian dollars | about A$2,380 |
| In New Zealand dollars | about NZ$2,940 |
| In euros | about €1,490 |
Approximate amounts at the 23 October 2026 exchange rate. Prices are set in pounds, and you can pay in any currency you prefer.
| Day | Route | Distance | Climb | Overnight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrival in Souillac | – | – | Souillac |
| 2 | Souillac to Sarlat | 32 or 34 km (20 or 21 miles) | ↑ 200–320 m (about 650–1,050 ft) ↓ 140–260 m (about 450–850 ft) | Sarlat · La Verperie |
| 3 | Free day in Sarlat (optional rides) | Optional 29 km (18 miles) | ↑ 490 m (about 1,600 ft) ↓ 490 m (about 1,600 ft) | Sarlat · La Verperie |
| 4 | Sarlat to Les Eyzies | 30 or 40 km (19 or 25 miles) | ↑ 480 m (about 1,550 ft) ↓ 560 m (about 1,850 ft) | Les Eyzies |
| 5 | Free day in Les Eyzies (optional ride) | Optional 28 km (17 miles) | ↑ 350 m (about 1,150 ft) ↓ 350 m (about 1,150 ft) | Les Eyzies |
| 6 | Les Eyzies to Montignac | 23 or 29 km (14 or 18 miles) | ↑ 230–320 m (about 750–1,050 ft) ↓ 220–310 m (about 700–1,000 ft) | Montignac |
| 7 | Montignac to Souillac | 46 km (29 miles) | ↑ 510 m (about 1,650 ft) ↓ 490 m (about 1,600 ft) | Souillac · 3* Vieille Auberge |
| 8 | Departure | – | – | – |
Make your way to Souillac, a lively old market town on the banks of the Dordogne and an easy journey by train or road from Paris via Brive. If you arrive in good time, wander its old streets and step inside the domed Romanesque abbey church.
Two options today. The longer route follows the Dordogne, mostly on a cycle path, past the Château de Fénelon and the pretty village of Carsac. The shorter one is hillier and a little more challenging.
A day to explore and shop in Sarlat, or ride out to the hilltop bastide of Domme and to La Roque-Gageac, whose golden houses huddle at the foot of a cliff on the banks of the Dordogne. Tonight is bed and breakfast, so you can choose any of Sarlat’s good restaurants.
Over rolling hills to the Château de Beynac, then on to Castelnaud, crowned by its medieval castle, with the Château des Milandes close by if you’d like another visit, and the old town of St Cyprien. Here you leave the Dordogne behind for the Vézère valley and the limestone cliffs of Les Eyzies, known the world over for its prehistory.
An optional ride to troglodyte caves and the Château de Commarque, with its Romanesque chapel, knights’ tower and nobles’ houses carved into the cliff and rediscovered after 350 years under vegetation. The route continues past the Cro-Magnon rock shelter to the Abri du Cap Blanc, whose 15,000-year-old frieze of carved horses and bison is the only prehistoric sculpted frieze in the world open to the public. Tonight you choose from the local restaurants.
The shorter option lets you stop at the prehistoric rock shelters of Castel Merle. The longer ride runs along the Vézère beneath the towering cliffs of La Roque Saint-Christophe, lived in from prehistoric times until the 18th century, then past the Romanesque church of St Léon-sur-Vézère to Montignac.
Visit Lascaux IV, the remarkable replica of the famous cave paintings, then enjoy a slightly longer but fairly even ride with long downhills. Your way home runs through St Geniès, a village of honey-coloured stone, and past the old convent at Salignac, and you can stop at the Italianate gardens of Eyrignac, laid out in the 18th century. Return your bike when you arrive in Souillac.
Your holiday ends after breakfast.
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 5 hours from Paris.
By car. Calais to Souillac is around 800 km. The route is a circle, so you finish where you started.
Our detailed route notes 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 clear pocket for your route 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 a clear pocket for your route notes, 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.
Read the full Terms: www.dordogneexperience.com/terms-of-service
Send us an enquiry at www.dordogneexperience.com/book-holiday?trip=cycling-dordogne#enquire, call or WhatsApp Cassie on +44 7476 205 325, or email hello@dordogneexperience.com. We’ll check availability and send you a quote, with the full details of your holiday.
The holiday page: www.dordogneexperience.com/cycling-dordogne
Owned and run by Cassie at Dordogne Experience · +44 7476 205 325 · hello@dordogneexperience.com · www.dordogneexperience.com · Trip notes dated 24 October 2026
Dordogne Experience