THE AREA

Hauteforte

Visible from afar, the village of Hautefort has an imposing castle in the architectural style of the Loire castles. Baron Maxence of Damascus helped to forge close ties with the population. Every year he gave a party during which all the inhabitants were invited and received magnificent gifts. Today this attachment to the castle continues and is found in local history.

The city of Hautefort also has a Hôtel-Dieu, unique in the region, which since 1994 has housed the Museum of the History of Medicine. This historic monument, in the shape of a Greek cross and with the chapel in its center, offers the opportunity to discover 7 exhibition spaces which deal with Heritage and Medicine.

Tourtoirac

Tourtoirac is a small village in the north-east of the Dordogne department, to the east of Perigueux and just a few kilometres from Hautefort and Excideuil. The river in the village is the  Auvézère, that flows into the Isle then later into the Dordogne river.

On the edge of Tourtoirac you can see (but not visit) a lovely manor house called the Manoir de la Farge.

There is a cave system open to visitors here called the  Grotte de Tourtoirac. The caves were only discovered in 1995, then opened to the public in 2010. The path through the caves is around 300 metres long and has a good number of stalactites and stalagmites

Excideuil

Excideuil is a charming town with an attractive town square, and a castle dating back to the 12th century. It is in the northern part of the Dordogne department, about 30 kilometres south of Jumilhac and 15 kilometres from Hautefort.

The town square also has a fountain and is surrounded by lovely houses. Wandering around the streets leading from the square are a large number of imposing houses dating back to a period of wealth particularly in the 17 and 18th centuries.

Excideuil has a Thursday market, when the village leaps to life with reputedly the busiest market in the region.

Climate