above: BeautifulSt Cirq Lapopie

Things to see and do

Cahors
A busy departmental town with shops, busy bars and restaurants including local, Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese and Indian food. The cathedral square hosts a bi-weekly market on Saturday and Wednesday mornings. There is also a covered market open Tuesday to Saturday.

Take a picnic up to the viewpoint at Mont St Cyr for spectacular views over the town. Relax on the little train town tour seeing all the sites, or a boat trip down the Lot valley. View the historic UNESCO listed bridge ´Pont Valentré´.

Visit the popular Sunday morning market at St Gery some fifteen minutes away along the Lot valley for fresh produce and local goods.

Activities include a water park with slides, horse-riding, canoeing, cycling, walking, wine tasting and shopping. 

Visit the beautiful, old bastide towns of the Lot such as St Cirq Lapopie which is built into the cliff.

The nearby ‘Grotte de Pech Merle’ is famous for its prehistoric drawings.

Children
There are numerous activities for children including water parks with slides, horse-riding, canoeing, zoos, an aquarium, boat rides on underground lakes in caves, monkey/eagle/reptile/dinosaur parks.

Summer events 2009:

• Two Monday night markets, which close the main boulevard on two Mondays in the summer - awaiting confirmation of this year's dates. These are a great evening out for all the family.
• Cahors fête with impressive firework display over the Pont Valentré.
• Cahors Blues festival in July - awaiting confirmation of dates.

There are also numerous concerts and sporting events throughout the summer.

Rocamadour
Voted the second most beautiful village in France, Rocamadour is built on three levels into the side of the hill. The village includes a castle, chapel and beautiful village street all linked by steps and a lift.

Nearby you’ll find:

Dordogne
Marvel at the medieval town of Sarlat and visit the numerous chateaux in the Dordogne valley.

There are many caves with prehistoric drawings or rock formations to marvel at, such as Lascaux. The prehistoric dinosaur park outside Beynac will thrill the children.

Aveyron
Visit the pretty riverside town of St Antonin, the historic bastide of Cordes and awe-inspiring Aveyron gorges.

Toulouse
The 'pink city', so-named because of the colour of the local stone used to build it, is definitely worth a visit. Direct trains are available from Cahors and take 1 hour 20 minutes if you’d like to avoid the drive.

Carcassonne
The beautiful, old, fortified city is fully intact and gives spectacular views over the valley.

Sport

Golf: There  are a number of impressive golf courses within a 40 minute drive which are open all year round. The Souillac Country Club is one of the most popular with its 18 hole course and a practice putting green. Others include the 'Golf de Montal' and the 'Golf de Roucous' both of which have 9 hole courses and practice putting greens.

Fishing: Carp fishing, in particular, is very popular in this area and the river Lot is teeming with fish. Weekly permits are available.

Canoeing: There are numerous places to hire canoes in the surrounding valleys.

Horse-riding: There are a number of horse-riding stables in the area. All offer hourly or daily rides through the stunning local scenery. See the Lot horse-riding website for more details.

Paragliding: There are a number of sites offering paragliding in both the Lot and Dordogne valleys, such as the 'Ecole de parapente du Lot'.

Tennis: Most villages have tennis courts which may be hired by the hour.

Swimming: Cahors has a spectacular water park alongside the river Lot with water slides.

Flying: Take a flight over the valleys for amazing views.

Whether you prefer walking or cycling, there is a huge choice of trails all taking in the breathtaking scenery. There are also organised walks.

For further information please see the Quercy net site which gives full information on the Lot region.