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Travel guide
The Lot and Quercy
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to June, and September to October
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Welcome
The Lot and Quercy, in a few days
The Lot river loops almost all the way round Cahors, and everything happens along its green water between pale limestone cliffs. Saint-Cirq-Lapopie perches 80 metres above the river, the Bouziès towpath is cut into the rock, and the quieter Célé valley runs alongside.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Pont Valentré, Cahors free · about 1 hA fortified bridge of six arches and three towers, begun in 1308, UNESCO-listed on the Santiago routes, with a small stone devil added in 1879.
- Afternoon · The Bouziès towpath free · about 1 h 30Between Bouziès and Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, the towpath runs for 300 metres through a gallery cut into the cliff, beside a carved frieze from 1985.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel La Chartreuse€110 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Saint-Cirq-Lapopie free · about 2 hA village clinging to its cliff above the Lot, voted France's favourite village in 2012, where André Breton bought a house in the early 1950s.
- Afternoon · Pech Merle cave · 2 to 3 hOne of the few caves where original prehistoric art can still be seen, including spotted horses from about 25,000 years ago and a teenager's footprint.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Le Saint-Cirq110-€160 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · The Célé valley free · half a dayA quiet tributary valley of grey cliffs and caves, with a ruined Benedictine abbey at Marcilhac and a leaning wooden bell tower at Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie.
- Afternoon · Figeac and the Champollion Museum · about 2 hChampollion's birthplace, now a museum of the world's writing systems, beside a square paved with Joseph Kosuth's giant copy of the Rosetta Stone.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel du Pont d'Or100-€150 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Castelnau-Bretenoux castle · about 1 h 30A red stone fortress above the Cère and the Dordogne, restored by the tenor Jean Mouliérat from 1896 and filled with his collection.
- Afternoon · The Cahors vineyards free · half a dayTerraces along the tight meanders downstream of Cahors, where Malbec, known here as Côt, makes up at least 70% of the deep, dark Cahors reds.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Le Quatorze€115 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €95 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to June, and September to October
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/lot-quercy
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.