Bradt Guides Reisgids Dordogne and Lot 1

Bradt's Dordogne & Lot, with Bordeaux & Toulouse is the most detailed guide to the entire region, with coverage that includes the Lot-et-Garonne and Tarn-et-Garonne in addition to Dordogne, Lot and Bordeaux. Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls (authors of the original Cadogan guide to the area) have lived in the Lot valley for over thirty years and are the good guides to the region's landscapes, towns, food, art, architecture and, of course, wine: Bordeaux's 8,800 wine châteaux produce on average 650 million bottles a year! Their guide starts with Bordeaux, the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region as well as the world capital of wine, along with the départements of the Gironde, Dordogne, Lot, Lot-et-Garonne, and Tarn-et-Garonne in between. This is a land of great wines and stunning rivers, encompassing long sandy beaches along the Côte d'Argent (with Europe's biggest sand dune on the south end), forests and rolling hills. Here, too, are the UNESCO-listed Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley, and extraordinary Palaeolithic masterpieces (Lascaux, Font de Gaume and Pech Merle). History has been made here, evidenced in medieval castles and bastides, and beautiful old cities such as Sarlat, Périgueux, St-Émilion, Cahors and Figeac. Hundreds of unspoiled villages dot landscapes that are among the most idyllic in France, while Romanesque churches, including the great abbey at Moissac, are a feast for art lovers.