The Dordogne is a region of France with over 25,000 years of history and there is still a very present, medieval feel to the area today. There are some outstanding castles and medieval villages that you seen on this tour, which adds to the pure beauty of the winding Dordogne river, and it’s limestone cliffs. The area is also renowned for its local specialities including foie gras, duck cassoulet, and various cheeses and wines as well.

One of the things I loved about this trip was the journey from London down to the Dordogne, as I found the train travel such a refreshing way to travel. At San Pancras I was checked in, cleared security and had my breakfast in front of me within 30 minutes. It was also quite enjoyable to watch the scenery change on the way, and to have a spin on the Paris metro. On the way home I even managed to divert via the Eiffel Tower and have a quick walk along the Seine.

You start the tour in Beaulieu sur Dordogne, which means beautiful place on the Dordogne, and it certainly lives up to its name. You have the morning to mingle with the group, explore the town and talk a nice stroll along the river, before taking to the canoes for the first time.

Being on the river was my favourite place to be on the tour. It was great to see the river from a different perspective, seeing all the amazing Chateaux and villages from the water, as welling as seeing hidden caves, and the beautiful limestone cliffs. I also loved seeing how the group developed as the time went by. The first time we were on the river, we were all enjoying a gentle paddle (you’d often spy me going round in circles or paddling in the wrong direction, although I had definitely improved by the end of the week!), then the 2nd time there was the odd splash and it built up to our final day on the river which had plenty of splashing, games and water fights – we all had so much fun! Our tour leader made the mistake of telling us that he hadn’t been capsized by previous groups……we soon changed that! There was also the chance to pull in at a campsite along the river for a cold beer or an ice cream – nice and refreshing on a hot day.

We also visited Rocamadour, which was the most impressive place we visited on the trip. The village is built into the cliff, and has been visited pilgrims since the 11th century as it was the last halting place en route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. I highly recommend talking a walk along the cliff top, and down through the village as it’s simply spectacular.

Being on land, and doing the cycling and walking was also great fun. Our group had a mixture of abilities and it was all fairly easy, with the odd hill. We cycled to the Castlenau Bretenoux, which is one of the most impressive examples of medieval architecture in Southern France, cycled through small villages, and even visited some stunning caves as well.

We visited some beautiful places, tried the local specialities and it was also great fun to be camping. We would sit around in the evenings watching the stars, and also had a barbeque one night. I enjoyed every second of this trip, and the real highlight for me was doing the activities to get you from A to B. I would recommend this trip to anyone.

This is an activity based camping trip with plenty of beautiful scenery, accompanied by good food and wine. Find out more about Dordogne Discovery. There is also a family version for active families – Dordogne Adventure.