French Holiday Ideas | Holidays in the South West of France: discover the Lot

The Lot department is situated at the northern corner of the Midi-Pyrénées and offers a rich array of landscapes to explore, heritage sites to enjoy and all manner of holiday breaks to choose from which take in the best that nature and historic towns and villages can offer.

As well as having some of France’s most beautiful villages to savour – St Cirq Lapopie in the Lot valley, Carennac, Loubressac and Autoire in the Dordogne valley, and Cardaillac – as well bastides in Quercy to enjoy, the Lot also boasts some of France’s best gastronomy.

Two of France’s great rivers run through the region – the Lot, which gave the region its name – and the mighty Dordogne. As well as providing some striking riverside and clifftop villages to visit, these make for great outdoor holidays.

Walkers can enjoy some 700km of marked Grande Randonnée trails including a part of the famous St Jacques de Compstelle pilgrim route, as well as trails in Quercy Blanc and through the Ségala Forest.



For watery adventures, why not hire a boat for a 75km meander through the Cahors vineyards on a navigable stretch of the Lot? Or hire a canoe for a gentle downstream paddle on the Dordogne – perfect for families keen to enjoy a hot summer’s day close to nature.

Mix a river tour with some sightseeing, beginning a trip at the majestic village of Sousceyrac in the shadow of the Massif Central, and then heading down towards Souillac (once the hub of the river’s trading industry) at the gateway to Périgord. Other key stop offs include Belcastel, Montvalent, Creysse with its Romanesque church and Carennac.

Rocamadour is one of the most spectacular sites in all of France, a village clinging to the cliffs high above the Dordogne. The village is also noted for its famous goats cheese, which brings us to another of the region’s greatest assets – its food and drink.

Foodies will be in heaven in Lot. From tender lamb in Quercy to wallknut of Périgord, and from saffron from the Lot and Sélé Valleys to truffles and melons, nature’s bounty is in evidence wherever you go.

There are also many ‘bonnes tables’ serving fine fare to an exceptional standard. All this can washed down with a glass or two of Cahors wine, a full-blooded red known as ‘Black wine’ because of it deep richness.

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