As the glowing sun rises over the quaint cottages of Les Gites Fleuris, blissful life echoes off the rolling hills. Soprano and tenor birds chirp morning carols. A tall, red rooster bows out his chest and crows, letting the world know of his presence and ordering the hens to lay eggs. A sorrel horse paws at the lush green ground and neighs, probably hoping soon to chomp on fresh carrots and luscious apples. From a distance, a wild boar or maybe a promiscuous ram (who knows which?) bellows a loud call that catches the attention of Bandit, a yellow tomcat who will chase anything that moves one minute and beg his owner for a cup of milk the next.
This is the typical morning at Les Gites Fleuris, a gentle paradise of vacation cottages and farmhouses just outside Hautefort, a village in Southwestern France that combines rolling hills and winding country roads with magnificent history and people. Built in the 1700s and owned by two Californians who've lived in France for four years, Les Gites Fleuris is a little slice of heaven that gives incredible views of the splendor below and bright shining stars above.
Once home to a French poet and a midwife who helped hundreds of babies into the world, these rustic stone Perigordian farmhouses—where life began for so many—are now the gateway to one of the world's most tranquil travel destinations: the French countryside, where it's green 365 days a year and the friendly people counter the "rude" label assigned to them with characteristic charm and pleasantness.
Whether you want to enjoy fine wine and gourmet food, walk through castles that have survived for centuries, admire original artwork carved in prehistoric caves, or simply get away from the American hubbub and breathe some fresh air, Southwestern France will make you feel like you've come to the right place.
The travel season is May through September, but you're welcome year-round. Plus you can save money off-season without losing the experience.
But heed this warning: If you spend a week here, no matter what time of the year, you may want to move permanently. And if you did, your French neighbors would welcome you with genuine kindness and two quick kisses on the cheek.
So with that liability disclaimer out of the way, let us go to the Dordogne region of Southwestern France, where more than 1,000 castles, impeccable cuisine, awe-inspiring caves, and natural, well-kept beauty will take your breath away.
Hautefort
Surrounded by a towering stone wall, the benevolent Château de Hautefort sits graciously above this charming village (population 1,100). Leading you into the massive castle are extravagant French gardens forming curling shapes with green shrubs and colorful flowers.
The château's story is as sad as it is beautiful. Once lived in, defended, abandoned, and mostly destroyed in a locally infamous 1968 fire (started, the story goes, when a little girl dropped a lit cigarette), Château de Hautefort is a precious gift that was restored by the wealthy Baroness de Bastard, who died in 1999. Despite attention spurred by the 1998 Drew Barrymore film Ever After, which was filmed here, officials say tourism revenue is not keeping up with restoration costs.
Perhaps its beauty stays hidden from the major travel journals and the millions of people who read them because Hautefort is not an obnoxious tourist town that says, "Look at me." There are other castles in the area that attract more visitors from around the world, but there's something special about Château de Hautefort that makes you fall in love. When you leave, you miss hearing the wind blowing through its classic windows; you miss gazing at the ebony bookcases inlaid with copper, the sheep-bone chairs, the marble medallion profiling Louis XIV, the blue velvet canopy edged with strips of tapestry in the master bedroom, and the large original paintings by famous French painters. For just a few euros a person, the halls of Château de Hautefort will welcome you into its good graces and enchant you with its beauty, both inside and out.
Just below the château is the finest restaurant in town. Owned by a married couple, Les Foies Gras d'Erillac gives the palate a lesson in French country cooking. In America, Les Foies Gras d'Erillac's dishes would be featured in Gourmet magazine and command $60 or more a plate. But in this simple corner building, the elegant dishes are affordable. As a bonus, the co-owner (who is also the waitress) used to work in the French Pavilion at Walt Disney World, and she speaks fluent English. The menu, which comes in both English and French, features a wide range of the region's famous ingredients—chestnuts, walnuts, truffles, fresh duck and lamb, and of course, foies gras that melts in your mouth. There's even a vegetarian salad so delicious and zesty it will delight even the hungriest meat eater.
If you're up for a drink or two after dinner or lunch, people from all ages and different walks of life will welcome you to Le Bistrot with open arms. Much like the rest of this town, this tiny bar will never be featured in tourism books, but it's just as important to the town's culture as the château or the town's other main tourism attraction—the Museum of Medicine. In Le Bistrot, you can see the French for who they really are—kind, fun, and full of curiosity. Once they hear your English—or, if you speak French, your American accent—they will strike up a conversation and thank you for visiting their town. Somebody will more than likely buy you a drink or maybe even invite you over to dinner, and they'll definitely give you a kiss on the cheek.
Before you leave Hautefort, take a stroll through the old streets at sunset. The sunlight in this town and all across the Dordogne region has attracted the world's top painters for centuries. You'll especially appreciate the sun's warm light if you're a shutterbug.
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Excideuil
Just a few minutes from Hautefort is the tiny town of Excideuil, with fewer than 300 residents. The village boasts the fortified Château d'Excideuil, which was built by the same architect as Château de Hautefort. It still has its medieval donjon—two square towers joined by a high wall.
This castle successfully repelled Richard the Lionheart three times. The foreboding structure with its dark history will make you happy to be living in the 21st century, when tar-fire catapults are a thing of the past. Perhaps it's a good thing that Château d'Excideuil is not open to the public.
There's an old Gothic church in Hautefort and some interesting 16th century houses. But the real gem is the Chocolatier A. Faugerolas, a family-owned business established in 1890. Taunting wide-eyed candy lovers from its windows are charming chocolate bunnies and cats. Smooth and velvety, this chocolate makes other kinds seem amateurish. There's milk chocolate, dark chocolate, coconut chocolate, chocolate on chocolate, and just about any combination of rich, sweet goodness you can imagine.
Brantôme
Situated with the Dronne River on all sides, this marvelous medieval city has been called the Venice of the region. Founded in the early ninth century, the Abbaye de Brantôme sits on a thin row of rocks by the river. Its main attraction is the eye-catching gray belfry. Once destroyed by the Normans, the bell tower was rebuilt in the 11th century and refurbished in the 1400s. It is considered to be the oldest bell tower of its kind.
Behind the abbey are the troglodytic caverns, which provided refuge for hermits who Christianized the area and protected civilians during times of war. Open to the public, these caves display amazing religious carvings created by clergymen long ago.
Near Brantôme, in the small town of Thiviers is a 6,000- year-old Neolithic tomb, the Dolmen de la Peyrelevade. And seven miles northeast of Brantôme lies the 16th-century Château de Puyguilhem, a beautiful example of early Renaissance architecture.
Périgueux
Périgueux, the capital of Périgord, is the closest thing to a big city as you'll find in the Dordogne region. Filled with neat little shops and great restaurants, Périgueux combines modern amenities with historic charm. You'll even find French Inca Indians on the street corners playing their traditional instruments and pushing their latest CDs.
The big tourist draw to Périgueux is the most remarkable building in Southwestern France-the Cathedral of St. Front. This early monastic church was built in the 12th century and displays white cupolas and a minaret-like steeple. The Romanesque building was restored in the 1800s when the domes and cones were added.
Périgueux is also home to some 60 dome churches built around 1100 and the Musée du Périgord, a comprehensive prehistory museum with artifacts dating back 70,000 years.
If you're looking for a tourist trap, though, Périgueux isn't it. In reality, this is a bustling town with 35,000 residents who will gladly share their town with you for a week or two.
Sarlat-La-Canéda
In contrast to Périgueux, Sarlat is a tourist trap with traffic as bad as Chicago during high season. Armed with a large tourist center with helpers who speak English, Spanish, German, and French, Sarlat offers you a chance to go back in time and explore prehistoric caves at Lascaux II, home of replicas of the most important Paleolithic painting in France.
Until 1968, the original cave, featuring paintings of horses, horned bovines, and deer, was open to the public. Over the years, carbon dioxide and the weight of hordes of visitors nearly destroyed the 17,000-year-old paintings. A replica was made—so exact that experts say it's impossible to tell them apart—which opened in 1983. A guided tour lasts 40 minutes, but you cannot take pictures.
Sarlat was in the thick of the Hundred Years War. On the outskirts of town are two gorgeous castles that sit high above and overlook the Dordogne River—Château de Beynac and Château de Castelnau. The two castles—Beynac French and Castelnau English—face each other. A quick look through a Beynac window at Castelnau gives you the same sense of intrigue the rich nobles must have felt long ago.
Sarlat's most famous religious edifice is the Saint- Sacerdos Cathedral, built at the end of the 13th century around a Benedictine Abbey, which holds the remains of Saint Sacerdos. You can see artistic creations like this everywhere—from the Renaissance architecture to famous contemporary work from local artist Pierre Shasmoukine to the Sarlat film festival.
But the best thing to do in Sarlat is spend a day at the market—on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Cheese vendors cut slivers of the finest cheese and happily offer free tastes. Bakers proudly display a wide range of fresh breads, including boule, a round loaf; ficelle, a thin baguette; and fougasse, a flat rectangular bread often filled with bacon, onion, or herbs. The butchers hang geese, chicken, and ducks with heads intact and sell whole quarters of beef and lamb. There are fresh-cut flowers, fruits, herbs, and nuts as far as the eye can see.
All through the market are people enjoying themselves, carrying or walking their dogs and affectionately greeting one another. The Sarlat market is definitely a treat for your belly and your eyes.
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Saint-Émilion
Seventy-nine miles from Les Gites Fleuris, SaintÉmilion requires at least a full day to appreciate the history, vineyards, decadent food, and charming locals.
Named after its founding father, a hermit who performed four known miracles—including giving a blind woman sight—Saint-Émilion is home to the Monolithic Church, an architectural wonder that is the largest church of its kind in Europe. Built from existing caves between the 9th and 12th centuries, this magnificent underground structure embodies Saint-Émilion's religious heritage. The church's Byzantine-style cupola with three bas-reliefs evokes the resurrection of the dead. Although it appears to be in good condition, the Monolithic Church is on the World Monument Fund's 100 most-endangered buildings list.
Visitors can see original catacombs that hold the bones of beheaded politicians and religious men who were on the wrong side of one conflict or another. Inside these catacombs are the church's pillars, sarcophagi, and several high-level funeral chambers for children and babies.
After a church tour, you must walk the limestone streets and eat a macaroon. These delicious almond treats have been a part of the local culture since the 17th century when nuns made them from almonds imported from Italy. You can find them at every store in town, but Mme Blanchez's are the best. She toasts and grinds her own almonds. But don't buy them for gifts—the fresh taste seems to fade after a day or two, and they probably would not last on the plane.
And while you're out walking, you have to visit Les Délices du Bain, a quaint shop on the corner of town that displays about 500 bars of homemade soap. Some bars have fruit inside; others are packed with skin-healing properties; and all bring pleasant scents. With French engravings, they make great gifts.
But the best treat of Saint-Émilion is its wine. The 822 winegrowers and 101 châteaus produce more than 150,000 bottles a year of merlot, Cabernet Franc (or Bouchet) and Cabernet Sauvignon. The region's fertile soil and bed of limestone underneath create a rich diversity of grapes.
Château Fonplégade, a Grand Cru Classe vineyard, is a benefactor of Saint-Émilion's limestone plateau. American-owned Fonplégade sits on 48 acres, and its average vine is 30 years old. The vineyard produces 25,000 bottles a year and offers private tours. The Fonplégade wines are clean and well-focused, with abundant up-front plum and red-fruit flavors, medium body, fine-grained tannins, and a bright, fruit-tinged finish. The 2005 vintage will be a top wine in a few years.
The best vineyard tour in town is at Château Guadet, another Grand Cru Classe vineyard. It's named after a member of French parliament who was guillotined in 1794. Guy Pétrus Lignac, the owner, takes you to the small vineyard (14.25 acres) on the chalky plateau at the gate of town and then to the vineyard's cellar, a cave below Lignac's house. Lignac will show you thousands of bottles that will make wine lovers crave a sniff, especially from an 1897 bottle made from grapes grown in this 164-yearold vineyard.
As he walks you through his home and wine cellar, Lignac makes you feel welcome. For us, he laid out an American flag.
"I always like to make my visitors feel welcome, so I put out their country's flag—that's important to me," he says.
During the tour, Lignac tells story after story about his family-owned business, including how a German officer commandeered the home and vineyard from his grandfather during World War II. The officer stole several vintages from the vineyard in payment for not executing his grandpa.
The wine itself is wonderful, and it tastes even better once you know the story behind it and its vineyard. The 2003 vintage has been described as a dense ruby, purple-hued with lovely sweet currant and cherry fruit. The 2001 vintage has a precise, clean flavor with elegant tannins, and it pairs nicely with red meat and other fatty acid foods. But those are just opinions of writers. Lignac doesn't produce wine for Wine Spectator or other magazines. He's simply out to make the perfect wine.
Lignac himself is a sweet man who loves speaking English and occasionally invites guests to stay for dinner. If you visit his fine home, you'll hear him say several times over, "Every wine has a story."
For me, Château Guadet wines tell a story about genuine hospitality, kindness, and a humble winegrower who displayed an American flag in his French home. Château Guadet wines will always represent everything French.
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– Fred Minnick (fredwrite.com [1]) is a professional writer and photographer based in Louisville, Kentucky.