We leave in less than a month. We have done much research and planning, and are confident with our itinerary (which may or may not be considered slow by some!):

2 wks Lourmarin
1 wk Rieux Minervois
2 wks Penne d'Agenais
1 wk Loire

I am asking specifically for dining,"wine-ing" and non-tourist experiences for the Rieux-Minervois (Aude)and the Penne d'Agenais destinations (Lot-et-Garrone). We've never been to Languedoc, but were close to Lot-et-Garrone in the Dordogne 2 years ago.

All suggestions welcome! I know that Chris has a wonderful trip review and recommendations for Lourmarin (including a great book that I did buy! thanks, Chris) and Ken is the resident Loire expert (whose blog is my own private tour guide!). But these two areas are a little elusive, so please share your thoughts, ideas and wisdom!

Thank you,
Laura

Here is something I wrote a while back about the Penne area.


Follow the Lot west of Cahors, using the route described in the Green Guide under “Lot – Lower Reaches”. In the newer Green Guide, this route is described under “Luzech”. If you like exploring luxury hotels, stop at the Mercues (only do this if you didn’t visit Cahors & didn’t visit Pech Merle today). Stop in Luzech & explore a little. It’s a very small town with the ruins of a very impressive tower perched on an overlook. Richard the Lionhearted had actually used the tower. Stop & explore again at Puy l’Eveque. We spent a lot of time there. It’s a wonderful town, which boasted many restored buildings & even had a town walking route posted along the narrow back roads/paths. Follow the Green Guide to Boneguil** and get the camera out as you approach on the specified route. Look up Bonaguil in the Green Guide & notice the picture. You can tour this interesting medieval military fortress. There is also a guided tour, but we found it to be very long & tedious (it’s in French too). You can wander on your own.

You will now go out of the domain of the Dordogne GG, so I’ll describe one short trip that we found interesting. From Bonaguil, leave on the D158 south and then the D673 southwest towards Fumel. At Condat, cross the Lot River and connect with the D911 again heading west. Take the short side trip off the D911 & drive through Lustrac, and then back on the D911 heading west. At St Sylvestre, cross the Lot, and go to Penne*. There is an upper “Centre Ville” – make sure you go there & not the lower less interesting part of the city. Penne is a fabulously restored medieval town with an attractive “place” (square) dotted with cafes. My wife believes that this historical town had a “master plan”, as the restorations had a rather “ordered” appearance & there were no structures in dilapidated condition.

Now head back east for a drive through the beautiful Quercy Blanc*+. You are now back in the domain of the Michelin GG for the Dordogne. From Penne, head east on the D661 to the bastide town of Tournan. At Tournan, take the D18 south to Montaigu, and then the D2 to Lauzert+ (another TMBVoF). This is one of our favorite Bastide towns. Get out & explore. Lauzerte has the typical configuration of a bastide town – large/huge central square, flanked on all four sides by relatively tall buildings, all with vaulted arcades at the ground level. Sit in the central square, or under the arcade (if it’s too hot) & have a refreshment. As you leave Lauzerte and drive through the lower town, you will pass a pizza store. You can get a pizza with toppings such as crevettes, foie gras, Roquefort, magrets (duck breast), and artichokes – only in France!!!

Here is a very pretty drive to take you through the heart of Quercy Blanc. Leave Lauzerte heading east on the D34. Take the D34 through Cazes-Mondenard, Vazerac, and when the D34 hits the D20, take the D20 northeast to Molieres. At Molieres, take the D29 northwest, and when it hits the D68, take the D68/D26 (road number change when it crosses a department boundary) northeast and connect to the D695 to Castelnau-Montratier+, another nice bastide town worth exploring. Leave Castelnau heading southeast on the D4/D38 (another road re-numbering) and on to another of our favorite bastide towns – Montpezat de Quercy*. See Montpezat in the Dordogne GG and explore this town. If you want to shorten this drive a bit, when you go through Molieres, stay on the D20 to Montpezat & skip Castelnau – the D20 is actually a slightly prettier drive.

Now it’s time to head to the hotel. Hop on the fast N20 (the “N” road, not the freeway) going south. Drive through Caussade and then get on the D916 heading east toward Caylus. Just past Stepfonds, head towards St Antonin Noble Val on the D5. Shortly, when the road starts to curve a little, you will get a fantastic view of St Antonin – get the camera ready.

Proceed into St Antonin Noble Val*, but before you get to the center of town, look for a turn to the right, which will take you counter-clockwise around town. At the bridge, turn right & go over the Aveyron River. If you want to get an even better view of St Antonin, as soon as you hit the D115 off the bridge, turn right & go 20 yards or so until you see a large park downhill on your right. There are several benches in this park. We’ve spent many hours sitting on these benches, admiring the view, devouring a pizza we bought at the fabulous Sunday morning market, and writing in my wife’s diary. After absorbing this view, turn around and proceed east on the D115 to the small town of Feneyrols. My map has the name of the town on the south side of the river, but the town is actually on the north side. Cross the river and turn left (west), and go about a hundred yards and look for the Hostellerie des Jardins des Therms on the left. Turn into the driveway and park in the lot behind the hotel/restaurant. We have never stayed at the hotel, but we’ve dined there twice – it’s our second favorite restaurant in this area, and my wife loves the simple colorful décor in the restaurant. My Michelin guide says the rooms are 42 to 72 E per night with dinners from 22 to 41 E, with ½ pension available. My Red Guide says that this place is restful and that they have large rooms. The phone is 05 63 30 65 49, and their e-mail is farri-frederic@wanadoo.fr . The town of Feneyrols is nothing special, but this hotel is very centrally located for touring this area and like I said, the food is superb. If you want to stay in a very famous hotel that has a Michelin 1 star restaurant, in one of the top tourist towns in the area, you could stay at the Grand Ecuyer in the town of Cordes sur Sel. Rooms are 125 to 155 E and dinners are 38 to 72 E. A close friend stayed there and said that the dinner was not as good as some other 1 star restaurants that he had dined at. There is probably a little more overhead getting in & out of Cordes, since it is a restricted traffic town. There will be more American tourists at the Grand Ecuyer than at the Jardin des Thermes. The town of Najac has two hotels and both have restaurants that have been rewarded the “Red Man” by the Michelin guide. We’ve checked out both places, and they did not appeal to us, and it’s also a little difficult to get in/out of Najac.

Dine at the hotel tonight. The Hostellerie des Jardins des Thermes restaurant is closed Wed & Thurs (except in July & Aug).

Wednesday

A little less driving today.

You are back in the area covered by the Green Guide to the Languedoc. Look up “St Antonin Noble Val” in the GG. Follow the driving itinerary # 1 to explore the Gorges de l’Aveyron*+. Take the route exactly as described in the Guide – from St Antonin, through Penne, and then Bruniquel – in the clockwise direction. This direction will give you the best views. Make sure that you cross the Aveyron River when they tell you to – you’ll have to pay attention. There is a fantastic view of Penne+ as you approach this village with large chateau ruins sticking up in the sky. You can get a great view from the road next to the tourist office and across from a restaurant with outside tables (lunch?). This restaurant was very crowded when we were there on a Sunday afternoon (when the French take their main meal of the day). Penne is another of TMBVoF. Read about it in the GG under “Penne” and explore the town. Continue on the drive and shortly you will come to Bruniquel*, another TMBVoF. Explore this town quite thoroughly. See “Bruniquel” in the GG & visit the chateau. This is a real pleasant town. Next is Montricoux, home of our favorite restaurant in this area – Les Gorges de l’Aveyron. When you follow the GG itinerary and get to Montricoux, turn left and cross the Aveyron River on the bridge. The restaurant is on the right after crossing the bridge – it’s well marked. Check out the posted menu. Don’t miss dining here. Go back over the bridge & continue on the itinerary. Visit St Antonin*. If you are in this area on a Sunday morning, there is a fabulous market in town, and many of the stores are open too. Find some picnic provisions, and have lunch across the river at the park I described earlier.

After doing Itinerary #1 in the GG, do Itinerary #2. It’s not as scenic, but Varen is cute and worth a visit.

If you are traveling from mid June to mid Sept, dine at the Gorges de l’Aveyron tonight. If you are outside this time period, dine there tomorrow.

Thursday

Market day in Villefranche de Rouergue. From Feneyrols, cross the river & turn left (east), and take the D115/D958 then the D922 north to Villefranche. Get out the Red Guide to navigate into this town.

Villefranche de Rouergue*+ is a very pretty fortified bastide town. Look up “bastide” in the Green Guide to understand how these towns were laid out. There is a map of Villefranche in the Michelin Red Guide. It has a picturesque Thursday morning market. Notice the large square in the middle of the town map – which is where the best section of this market is located. It is one of the most scenic we’ve seen (we’ve visited over 50), with all the umbrellas opened up in the large town square. There is a picture of this market in the Green Guide, but it is actually prettier than the picture depicts (we’ve been there twice). Villefranche has one of my wife’s very favorite home decorating stores. Its called Acuarela at 21 rue de la Republic. This street starts at the southeast corner of the town square, and the store is in the first block of this street on your left as you walk away from the square. The store covers two floors, and it’s fun to just wander through even if you don’t like to shop.

After visiting Villefranche, head back south on the D992, and then west on the D39 to Najac. Look up Najac* in the Green guide. It’s another TMBVoF. If you didn’t have lunch in Villefranche, there are some nice outdoor café’s in this town. Explore the town and especially visit the Fortress*. There is a very nice view of the town from this fortress. Leave town by going west. Notice on your map that there are many green shaded (scenic) roads to the west of Najac. I have no idea which one we took, but there are nice views of Najac from the westernmost green shaded road (I think it’s the D47 – look for the view icon on the map).

Work your way north to the D926, and take it southwest to Caylus – look it up in the green guide. This town actually looks better from the distance on the D926 than it does from within. My wife has bought some pottery (on several occasions) at a store on the D926 on the south side of the road. Head into Caylus – it’s a little dreary during lunch closing, but worth a visit – if only a short one.

After Caylus, take the D19 south back to St Antonin and then to your hotel.

Have dinner in Monteils (northeast of Caussade), at the Clos Monteils. The restaurant is in a house, and you have to knock on the door to get it. The food is not as spectacular as the Gorges de l’Aveyron or Jardins des Thermes, however, but still quite good

Friday

Head out early to visit the beautiful city of Albi***. This is one of our favorite small cities in France. Take the D115 and then the D600 past Cordes (visit later in the day) and then into Albi. Get out the Red Guide to find your way into central Albi. You will enter at #6 and follow the road south across the bridge. From this bridge, there is a fabulous view of Albi. Just after crossing the bridge, you are in the old section of town. Look for the underground parking lot (it’s huge), and park there. Emerge from the lot, and retrace your route to take some pictures of Albi from the bridge. Albi buttons up tight at lunchtime, except (June through Sept) for the fabulous Cathedral Ste Cecile***. My Green Guide says that the Toulouse Lautrec Museum** is closed for lunch (except July & Aug), but I’m not sure that’s the case. Perhaps call ahead (number is in the GG) to confirm opening times. Toulouse Lautrec is one of the few artists that I like, and I really enjoyed this museum. It’s located in the Palais de la Berbie*+. Don’t miss the gardens outside the palais. Follow the walking itinerary described in the Green Guide. This is an interesting city. There are informational plaques (also in English) affixed to the outsides of buildings. They describe the architecture & related historically significant events. Many of the old buildings had fallen into disrepair and had been slated for demolition in the 1970s. Instead, the City had refurbished them & they now provide “social” (low- income?) housing.

After visiting Albi, retrace your drive and this time stop & visit the perched village of Cordes sur Sel**, another TMBVoF. Park your car as high up on the hill as possible – the walk up from the base of this town is a killer. Cordes is quite touristy (like St Cirq), but it’s an interesting village. Follow the walking itinerary in the GG.

If you anticipate getting to Albi after 10:00AM, perhaps visit Cordes in the morning, and Albi after 2:30 when the stores start to open again. I have more energy in the morning, & I usually like to do the “main event” then.

Have dinner at one of the restaurants in Najac.

Some thoughts about additional things in the Gorges de l’Aveyron area

Montauban*-. The picture of the arcades in the Green Guide makes this town look quite appealing, and it actually has some good “bones”. However, it’s in a little “disrepair” and we did not enjoy our visit there that much.

Caussade. The Monday morning market here knocked my socks off. The food section of the market is fabulous. It winds through town and in late Sept, there were about 10 vendors selling 8 different “pedigrees” of Cepe mushrooms. I think this market draws a huge number of people from the surrounding areas. It is not a tourist market. It’s one of the best we’ve seen. We enjoyed sitting & watching the locals shop for their stuff. There is also a section of the market selling household goods, fabric, lace, cars, and garden materials. There is a nice garden store near the large parking lot at the north end of town.

Toulouse*** There is frequent train service to Toulouse from both Montauban and Caussade. You can take the train to visit Toulouse as a day trip.

Saturday

Time to head out of the Gorges de l’Aveyron area & on to Toulouse, so you can fly home tomorrow.

This is a very beautiful drive and you will visit one of our three favorite bastide towns along the way. Leave Feneyrols and go to Bruniquel. At Bruniquel, take the pretty D964 south to Castelnau de Montmiral. Along the way you will pass the town of Larroque. We have driven this route several times & always wanted to stop here, but we never did – it seemed like such a cute spot. Stop & visit Castelnau de Montmiral+ (another TMBVoF). Like I said – this is one of our three favorite bastide towns. Read the description in the GG under “Gaillac”.

If you want to visit another nice bastide town, continue towards Gaillac (not worth a stop), and then just before Gaillac turn southwest on the D988 and proceed to Lisle sur Tarn and visit (see description also under “Gaillac”)

Take the freeway into Toulouse. Get out the Red Guide, and try to navigate your way into town toward the Matabiau train station, where you can return your car. We’ve stayed at two hotels near the station. The Mermoz, (05 61 63 04 04 reservation@hotel-mermoz) where rooms are 97 E, and the President (05 61 63 46 46 contact@hotel-president.com) where rooms are 55 to 70. Both are convenient for dropping off the bags, and then driving to the train station to return the car & walk back to the hotel.

Toulouse*** is one of our favorite big cities in France. You can find out all you need to know about it in the Green Guide. Take the three walking itineraries in the Guide. You can easily do them all in ¾ of a day if you don’t spend a lot of time in the museums. We were last there on a drizzly, cold, late September Saturday evening and there was one of the largest gatherings of people I’ve ever seen. It seemed like the entire town was out wandering the streets – it was quite festive. Most of the crowds, however, were on the main shopping streets. We ate at Emile on both of our visits to Toulouse. The restaurant is located in a nice square, and in the summer the tables are set up outside. The food is good, but not as good as the Jardin des Therms or the Gorges de l’Aveyron. There is a simple Michelin 1 star restaurant called Cosi Fan Tutte that we checked out, but it’s Italian (this is France), and the menu did not seem that interesting & it was a little pricey for Italian fare. Michel Sarran, a Michelin two star, seemed like a good bet. For a two star, the prices seemed OK, but it was closed both times we visited Toulouse (closed on Sat).

Stu - WOW! You are like a computer data center, but with a "personal touch". Thank you so much, these look perfect, and I like your annotations regarding TMBVoF and which GG to use and notes on restaurants, markets and when to grab the camera.

Any chance you'll be in this area of France this summer for a GTG?

Thanks again,
Laura

Not this year - we'll be around Lake Annecy & the Jura for 6 weeks this June & July.

You may want to purchase Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls book Dordogne, Lot and Bordeaux . They live just outside of Puy l'Eveque which probably gives them insight into the area.

Thanks, Gully! I will check it out.

A small village in the Minervois, about 15 minutes from Rieux-Minervois, has been my home for over 5 years now. I've written a lot about this area on my site, Chez Loulou.
There's even a short list of our favorite wineries, restaurants and links to other Languedoc information websites.
Enjoy your trip!

Very close to Rieux, (about 20 km) , don't miss the village of Minerve (that gives the name of the area, le Minervois)
Minerve

quote:

Villefranche de Rouergue

I consider Villefranche de Rouergue market (Thursday morning) one of my fave markets in France, along with Ile sur la Sorghe and Cancal.

Brief thread kidnap:
Once Stu mentioned that some markets obscured the beauty of a village.
It is true in a case like Sarlat. The market is great fun but has so much going on that one forgets to look up and take in the beauty of the whole place.
But markets in bastide towns are something else. The market enhances the bastide and vice versa.
besides Villefranche de Rouergue, Monpazier is a good example of the great bastide-market combo.
-

Chachalaca,
I have meant to congratulate you on your choice of destinations.
Penne d'Agenais is lovely and near a host of other beautiful villages. Bravo.
Nearby are
- Pujol (good eats Auberge Lou Calel or La Toque Blanche)
- Lauzerte
- Tournon d'Agenais (good eats le Beffroi)
- Puymirol is very pretty too, a little too slickly restored.
On your drive to Penne d'Agenais from the Mediterranean, you can have very nice stops at:
- Sète, where I always have an oyster orgy in the market.
- the medieval town of Pezenas,
- Gruissan, on the coast, after Béziers.
- St Félix Lauragais, south of Toulouse.
Villefranche de Rouergue, Puycelci, St Antonin and Cordes sur Ciel, etc., are all lovely, but they are quite far from where you are. For me long driving days somehow defeat the essence of slow travel. Just my predudice…
Bon voyage

Wow! Ask and you shall receive...or build a topic and they will come! I truly appreciate everyone's suggestions and insiders' tips. I need to print out and cross-reference all the suggestions. I tend to lean towards Americana's take on long drives - not my cup of tea. I'd rather "be" somewhere than be trying to "get" somewhere.

Thank you!
Laura

Hello Chachalaca
We spent 2 weeks in Rieux Minervois a few years ago.
The restaurant that we visited more than once was

http://www.southfrance.com/restaurants/lemoulindetrebes.html

Le Moulin de Trebes is on the Canal de Midi at Trebes just east of Carcassonne. The food was good, my husband enjoyed the cassoulet...but the main attraction for me was just to sit on the patio and watch the happennings at the ecluse...
Wish I was there....Jamtart.

Chachalaca
I found an old post...from my diary of what we did when staying at Rieux Minervois...brings back memories.


"........there is indeed a lot to do in this region.We are a couple in our 60's and a few years ago we spent 2 weeks in Rieux Minervoise..the next village to LaRedorte. Here is a very short summary of my diary.
SUNDAY
went to Minerve, a medieval city built on a rock between 2 gorges, very special....and Aigne, a village set out like an escargot, lovely.
MONDAY.
The chateau du Puilaurens via the Gorges de St George...and on the way back Ville Rouge Termenes ..at last a ground level Cathar chateau, beautifully restored.
TUESDAY
drove to Sete, the Venice of the Meditteranean, canals, boats, seafood restaurants, seagulls.
WEDNESDAY
just as far as Lesignan-Corbieres to find an internet cafe...and on the way home stopped off at the local cave..co-op with our 5 litre keg which we filled with very quaffable local red from a gizmo like our petrol pumps for E1 per litre.
THURSDAY
set off on a cloudless day to visit Monsegur via Mirepoix for lunch in the lovely old square there. When we arrived at Monsegur there was snow on the ground (April) so that was a thrill for me :-)
FRIDAY
Lunch on the Canal du Midi at Trebes watching the barges and a visit to Lastours..4 Cathar castles..Caberet has marvellous spiral staircase to the main tower.
SATURDAY
Festival of the Fanfares at Rieux...there are also markets in the town square at Rieux 2 or 3 times a week.
SUNDAY
it rained we played canasta gazing out the widow across the vineyards.
MONDAY
drove to Collioure..lovely fishing village, for lunch and then decided to keep driving south into Spain. We stopped at the first town Port Bau and partook of tapas and a Sangria. So now I can say I have had a Spanish adventure.
TUESDAY
today the Abbey of Fontfroide...and on the way home we climbed Queribus. Did I mention that we are fascinated with the Cathar history in this region? :-)....and then drove back through the Gorges de Galymus, not to be missed.
WEDNESDAY
A visit to the old city of Carcassonnne, well worth a daytrip but we have been there before so spent most of the day wandering along the Canal du Midi ...so beautiful with its overhanging green trees.
THURSDAY
In the morning we drove to Gruissan on the Meditteranean and at 4pm we were back at Homps for a canal boat ride.
FRIDAY
A special lunch at the Auberge de L'Arboussier under trees on the Canal....chocolate mi-cuit for dessert !! A long walk after lunch to a lock to watch and wish.
SATURDAY
set off northwards for our next stop...via Albi to see the Musee de Toulouse Lautrech...Au revoir Minervoise.

I will be very surprised if you cannot find something to fascinate you in this region. We will be back for another fortnight in April, this time in a village close to Montpellier...
Posts: 28 | Location: Lesmurdie. Western Australia. | Registered: 08 March 2007 "

Another hotel where I have stayed twice in Toulouse is the Hotel Icare, right across from the train station. Not fancy, I didn't know a bathroom could be as small as the one I had on the first night. The staff was very nice, and all I had to do to get the train was walk across the street. Around 50E per night.

Jamtart and I have gone to a number of the same places, and all I can say is I second all of his/her recommendations. L'Arboussier on the Canal du Midi was a wonderful lunch, 8 of us rented a "bare boat" on the Canal du Midi a couple of years ago for a week, and its one of the places we stopped. Ventenac, where you can dock the boat right next to the wine chateau, is also lovely. "Doing" the canal that way is very affordable. This area of France (Languedoc) is one that I find very welcoming and relatively untouristy.

Americana; you made my day! You "approved" my itinerary! Silly, maybe, but seeing your a.o.k. made me feel giddy and anxious to "get there"! Thanks for your highlighted stops, many of which include food reccommendations.

Jamtart; thank you for the diary post and the restaurant recommendation. What time of year were you there? I would love to order the cassoulet, but in July? Not seasonal, I know.

Bonnie; thanks for the hotel rec. in Toulouse and the favorable 2nds on Jamtarts recs. It is always good to have a second opinion!

Laura

I spent a few hours in Rieux Minervois last summer---there's a Saturday market, a 5-sided church. It's in a lovely area. There's a good Friday market in Puisseguier (might be slightly misspelled).

I loved the Minervois. Definitely spend time on the Canal du Midi. For me, life along the canal was a highlight. It you bike, it's great fun to cycle along the tow paths (there's even a few wineries along the canal). One of my favorite little villages on the canal is Homps. It's tiny, but very lively because it's the only (or one of the only) places along the canal where the boats can turn around, so it supports several restaurants, cafes and a great wine store that has great tastings twice a week. I guess there's nothing really to see there, it's just a great place to hang out. We always seemed to end up there at the end of the day. It's also near Lac du Jourras, which is a resevoir that flows into the canal, where you can swim, windsurf, paddle a canoe, take a nature walk. There's a bike rental in Homps, or you can rent bikes from a place I highly recommend called Mellow Velos in Paraza (the owner will deliver and pick up bikes anywhere in the Minervois for free--good bikes, good price and he'll rescue you from the road if need be), that is if you're cyclers.

There's also a large, well-known Tuesday market in Olonzac (that's about 2kms from Homps, and a larger town). The bike ride from Olonzac to Lac Jourras is through vineyards and very pretty. You can also get to the lake from Homps, but the ride is unexceptionable, through some concrete development.

Along the coast, I also endorse Gruissan, and I really liked Marseillan (that's not Marseille), near the Bassin du Thau (La Pacheline -- across from the Nuilly Prat sales outlet -- is a great stop for lunch if you like fish and seafood).

I loved the strip south of Sete, with the Bassin on one side and the Mediterranean on the other. You can just pull up your car wherever you can find a spot, and you're on the beach.

If you have time, explore a little in the Black Mountains too. Have a great time. You can't miss with a trip like this. Slow travel in Languedoc is slow, slow, slow ... it redefines the word "slow."

Thanks! I AM looking for a bike! My husband brings his but I'm just a Sunday cycler; nothing fancy and not fast! Thank you for the tips...getting excited!

It's a great area for biking. Pretty flat with doable hills. There's a lot written about the various sections of the Canal, but I think the section that flows through the Minervois is among the loveliest.

I had planned to go back this summer -- had a rental all lined up in Homps -- but because of the exchange rate and high airfares and last year's companions not coming, I've opted for Mexico (need to work on Spanish). But I'll be dreaming of Languedoc.