Discover and book the top Dordogne sights
Formed in the Middle Jurasic period as much as 150 million years ago this cave offers the chance to see nature at her best. Rock formations, calcified pillars and cave paintings are amongst the sites to be seen here.
These caves were originally discovered in 1825 and house some impressively large stalagmite pillars reaching up to 10 metres in height and varying in colour.
The Pataud Shelter (or Arbi Aptaud) is one of the few prehistoric sites in the area which also shows how it has been dug and the archaeological techniques used.
Only discovered in 1995, by the caver Jean-Luc Sirieix, these caves have some impressive stalactites and stalagmites along its tunnels over 20 metres below the surface.
The caves at Villars were only discovered in 1953 by a team of pot holers from the Périgueux Caving Club who were wandering around the Cluzeau coppice. After many expeditions, over 13 kilometres of galleries and chambers were discovered with some impressive stalactites and stalagmites as well as prehistoric paintings which are thought to date to the Magdalenian period, 17,000 years ago.
The southernmost of all the caves of the Vézère valley, Bara-Bahau was classified as an historic monument in 1961.
The walk through this park will take you past rock shelters, caves and dwellings where a great number of tools and weapons, dating back over 12,000, have been discovered.
This rock shelter was discovered in the late 19th century, but its fascinating engravings of prehistoric fish were not identified for some 20 years.
Accessed today by a small electric train, these caves were discovered in 1902 by Armand Vire and at the time required a descent of over 60 metres.
The most well-known and impressive prehistoric caves in France. The paintings here are thought to be over 17,000 years old and mainly represent large mammals, signs and humans.
The Grand Roc cave, registered with UNESCO as a World Heritage site, is a true mineral forest, including crystallizations, calcite flows, stalactites, stalagmites, pillars, eccentric stalactites, draperies, and more.
Built on the location where the first burial site was discovered by modern man in 1868, the Museum of CRO-Magnon Shelter offers the public the chance to interact with our ancestors and to (re) discover our history.
The prehistoric paintings in the Font-de-Gaume caves near Les Eyzies-de-Tayac were discovered at the turn of the 20th century by Denis Peyrony.
The largest cave in the Périgord region, close to the pretty and tranquil town of Le Bugue. Proumeyssac has a vast subterranean grotto reaching 40 metres in height.
This cave houses an impressive collection of prehistoric paintings and engravings dating from the Magdalenian period. Through its winding passageways, there are over 600 engravings of animals and stylised humans.
The most famous cave in Europe the Gouffre de Padirac is also considered to be one of the most important and interesting geological sites in France.
This is an impressive honey-stoned troglodyte house built within large cave shelters. Its relatively modest exterior disguises the space within, which is decorated in a grand style, with original medieval furniture and tapestries.
This rock shelter houses outstanding prehistoric animal sculptures, the most significant being eight figures carved into the rock, which are thought to have been there for over 15,000 years.