One of the great things about the Dordogne as a holiday destination apart from the beauty of the landscape, farmland and vineyards, is the fact that there is no shortage of things to do and see whatever your preference or ability.
We had some guests staying with us who both wanted to visit the famous La Roque-Gageac region on the Dordogne River, however one wanted to go canoeing, the other – walking and site seeing. Not a problem for us.
Adrian who loves canoeing down the Dordogne River from Roque-Gageac, because of the stunning chateaux scenery, was happy to escort our canoeing guest. Meanwhile I was happy to take our walking and garden loving guest up to Les Jardins de Marqueyssac. It had been quite a few years since I’d last visited these stunning gardens when the topiary Boxwood plants were fairly young and small, but I could see what it could become and I’d been keen to re-visit for a long time. The topiary gardens did not disappoint, now the Boxwood plants have matured and have been meticulously hand-pruned into fascinating shapes. Not only are the 6km of gardens simply stunning, but the panoramique views of the Dordogne Valley and it’s chateaux are such a treat. I’d recommend a visit to this garden even if you don’t possess les doigts verts. The gardens themselves are formed around an early 19th century stone-tiled chateau which you walk through to enter the gardens. Of course a site like this would not be complete without the resident peacocks. An excellent on-site café offers very tasty light lunches or gateaux and coffee. Find out more at https://www.marqueyssac.com/
The canoeing party which set off from La Roque-Gageac were returned by bus approximately three and a half hours later after an enjoyable trek down the gentle river. We would recommend taking a picnic and something to sit on the bank so that you can stop off on the journey for lunch and enjoy a cooling swim or simply watch the world float by for a while before setting off to your appointed destination for pick up.
There are many chateaux, places of interest and gardens to visit in this region of France so it would be worth doing your research and identifying your preferences. It takes approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes to get to La Roque-Gageac from Eymet through some very scenic countryside but you may prefer to return via the larger, faster roads heading in the Bergerac direction alongside the Dordogne River for a change of scene.
A sample of some other things to do in this area and useful links:
- The official tourist site https://laroquegageac.fr
- Catch a guided boat ride on a traditional gabarre (flat-bottomed boat) https://laroquegageac.fr/activite/promenade-en-gabarre
- In the upper part of the cliffs is the Troglodyte fort, an ancient medieval fortification https://www.fortdelaroquegageac.com
- Visit the magnificent historic Château de Beynac covering 9 centuries of French history, including Richard the Lionheart https://chateau-beynac.com
- Or Josephine Bakers’s former residence, the stunning Château et Jardins des Milandes https://www.milandes.com
- Canoes can be booked from https://www.canoesdordogne.fr