The golden stone properties old and contemporary, with their steep traditional roofs (Perigordin cottages, large country houses, farmhouses and barns with their enclosed court yards) not only delight the eye but also provide a cool and serene retreat from the high summer temperatures. Spring and autumn temperatures remain blissfully warm whilst the summer sun pushes consistently over 30 degrees with short showers disappearing rapidly, allowing for a long family holiday period. On average the winter temperatures are 7 degrees higher than in the UK. The Dordogne is France’s third largest department, the population of 400,000 Perigordins is spread over 9,225 square kilometers in a breathtaking variety of landscapes incurring both continental and mountain climates. The many UK property owners in the Dordogne fly with ease from various UK airports airports to Bergerac and Limoges and also Brive, a flight of 1 to 1,30 hours, to be in the wine routes of the Dordogne itself. Lying between Paris and the Pyrénées, the department of Dordogne is 500 kms and a four-hour train journey from Paris, three hours from Toulouse and one hour 15 minutes from Bordeaux. The magnificently wide river cuts a beautiful swathe through some of the most awe-inspiring scenery in Europe, scattered liberally with 100's of chateaux and many character properties such as Manor houses called ‘Manoirs’ or Maison de Maitre. The Dordogne, renamed after the French revolution and formerly called Perigord, is one of the largest departments of France in the north east of the recently formed super region of Nouvelle Aquitaine.

Dordogne france map regions