How to visit Rocamadour and its region? The Gouffre de Padirac and Rocamadour were the focus of my second stop on the Dordogne Valley. I absolutely loved it!
So let me take you on a tour of Rocamadour, the sacred city, and its surroundings, including the superb Gouffre de Padirac, France’s largest underground site! Are you ready to discover what to visit around Rocamadour? Let’s go!
See also: Visit Dordogne Valley
PRACTICAL TIPS TO VISIT ROCAMADOUR
How to get there?
Padirac and Rocamadour are located 55 minutes south of Brive-la-Gaillarde and 2 hours north of Toulouse. Brive-Vallée de la Dordogne Airport is 30 minutes away by car. The two sites are 17 km apart (20 minutes by car). A car is essential for exploring the Lot region. Rent a car here if you need to.
Compare car rentals to find the best price!
Where to stay to visit Rocamadour?
Here are several accommodation suggestions, ideally located close to Rocamadour!
3 accommodation I recommend to visit Rocamadour
LES ESCLARGIES
- In the center of Rocamadour
- Calm and green scenery
- From €120
LE PIRONDEAU
- In the city of Rocamadour
- Charming B&B
- From €110
LE BELVÉDÈRE
- Beautiful view on Rocamadour
- Good price for value
- From €80
How long does it take to visit Rocamadour and the surrounding area?
You can visit Rocamadour fairly quickly; two hours should be enough. For the Padirac chasm, allow 45 minutes for the guided tour and around 1.5 hours in total.
You can book skip-the-line tickets online, as queues can be long during the summer.
Practical tips to visit Rocamadour
Practical tips – For your visit to Rocamadour, you will find a map of the village and the location of the various car parks below. For your information, here are the prices for the Rocamadour lift : €2.80 one way -€4.40 return.
What to bring back from Rocamadour??
As I mentioned in my article on Martel, the region is known for its foie gras, walnuts, and truffle-based products. There are also some very good walnut cookies in Rocamadour and the famous goat cheese that bears the village’s name. But the shops are so touristy (not really in a good way) that I can’t recommend any particular store.
VISIT ROCAMADOUR – THE VILLAGE
Rocamadour spectacular location
Rocamadour is famous for the spectacular location of its village, nestled in the hollow of a huge cliff. It is above all a religious center, a stop on the Way of St. James and a UNESCO World Heritage Site!
To appreciate it, you have to admire the village from a distance. You’ll find a magnificent viewpoint below from the road coming from Couzou (to the south) or at the belvedere, which offers a magnificent panorama of the town and the Alzou Valley in which it is located.
At the bottom, the houses on the main street overlook the Alzou River. A few dozen meters higher up, the churches and sanctuary are nestled against the cliff, and at the top, the castle dominates the valley. You can visit the site from top to bottom or vice versa. For those who don’t want to use the elevator, starting at the top is less tiring, but climbing the floors gradually, especially the pilgrims’ staircase, is very symbolic. I’ll explain why!
Visit Rocamadour : the main street and the pilgrims’ staircase
Let’s start at the bottom of the town on the main street. You enter through the Figuier gate and then the Salmon gate. The houses are cute, but I don’t find the street very interesting as it has become very touristy. There are almost only shops to attract visitors, which spoils the atmosphere of the place, which is still a sacred site.
From the main street, the 216 steps of the grand staircase will take you to the sanctuary. It is this monumental staircase that pilgrims used to climb on their knees as a penance, stopping at each step to pray. Imagine the number of people who have “climbed” these steps!
Visit Rocamadour – the sanctuary
The upper floor of the sanctuary is made up of a beautiful complex built against the cliff, with seven chapels. The most famous is the Chapel of Miracles, which houses the Black Madonna, venerated for over a thousand years! Several chapels are quite unusual, such as the Saint Michel Chapel, part of which is troglodytic. The Notre Dame de l’Ovalie Chapel is even more unusual, as it is dedicated to the cult of rugby (no, no, April Fools’ Day is only a week away!).
The whole site has been renovated and is quite charming, and some of the chapels even offer a moment of peace and quiet. The architecture of the former bishop’s palace, now a museum of sacred art, is also very beautiful. In the sanctuary, you really get a sense of how the buildings merge with the cliff. It’s truly impressive!
Visit Rocamadour and its castle
Outside the sanctuary, the Way of the Cross begins, zigzagging through the trees to the castle. The climb is pleasant and shaded, punctuated by the different stations. At the top, you will discover the castle and its ramparts. You can climb the ramparts (for a fee of two euros) for a beautiful view of the city and the Alzou Valley.
VISIT THE GOUFFRE DE PADIRAC
The Gouffre de Padirac is undoubtedly the must-see site around Rocamadour!
Practical tips for visiting Padirac
The Gouffre de Padirac is only open from late March to early November. It is open every day but opening hours vary, so I recommend checking their website.
Bring closed shoes and warm clothes that you don’t mind getting wet, as it often drips! Underground, the temperature is around 55°F all year round, with 98% humidity…
Admission to the cave: 23€ for adults and 18€ for children aged 4 to 12.
Le gouffre d’entrée
- The entrance to the cave
The first surprise awaits you even before you buy your tickets, as you can see a huge chasm about 30 meters in diameter right in the middle of the village! Looking down makes you feel dizzy: it plunges more than 75 meters into the bowels of the Lot! Suffice to say that the descent is impressive; you can do it by elevator or on foot. The walls of the chasm are covered with vegetation and still full of life. The setting is almost like something out of a fantasy film…
The Padirac chasm was first explored in 1889 using a rope ladder! Edouard-Alfred Martel, the inventor of modern caving, was the first to venture inside. He proved that it was indeed a work of nature, and not the devil’s doing. In fact, Padirac means “the devil’s step” in Occitan. Legend had it at the time that it was the devil who had formed it with a kick! In 1899, the chasm was inaugurated and opened to the public for the first time.
The underground river
Once at the bottom of the chasm, you have to descend a few more steps to reach a depth of 100 meters. This is where the self-guided tour begins, covering several hundred meters through the cave. The atmosphere is mysterious, but the lights should reassure even the most claustrophobic visitors. At the end, you arrive at an underground river several meters wide and 20 kilometers long! However, we only see one kilometer of it.
The river is located 103 meters underground. The collapse of its vault 10,000 years ago caused the formation of the chasm. The underground river is crossed by boat, so there is sometimes a short wait before you can board. But the trip is very pleasant, with only the sound of the oars breaking the silence. Little by little, the ceiling of the Galerie de la Source rises to a height of nearly 100 meters! The dimensions are impressive.
It’s hard to imagine, but there are several kinds of animals at the bottom of the chasm. Bats, of course, but also small shrimp and tiny periwinkles. A whole world thrives a hundred meters underground!
Finally, we arrive at the Rain Lake, where the 60-meter-high “Grande Pendeloque” falls: it is one of the largest stalactites in the world!
Guided tour around the lakes
Then begins an exciting 45-minute guided tour through the galleries of the Padirac chasm. The guide, young but experienced, provides very interesting explanations. It is often a little crowded, but the grandeur of the place makes you forget everything else. You feel like you are literally in a movie set; the photos do not do justice to the real beauty and grandeur of the place!
We start at the Lac des Gours, which refers to the natural dams formed by concretions across a lake or river. They look like they were built by human hands, don’t they?
The tour continues a few dozen meters higher up at the Upper Lake. It is located in the Grand Dome Hall, whose vault reaches 90 meters high. “Impressive” is not a strong enough word to describe the setting… The limestone concretions have carved out a fairy-tale setting. For example, you will see magnificent “stacks of plates,” which are actually layers of concretions formed by constant dripping.
It is also water droplets that seep into the limestone, forming and enlarging cavities and creating stalactites and stalagmites. These develop very slowly. Imagine, they only grow an average of one millimeter per century!
The return trip is again by boat before resurfacing.
OTHER IDEAS FOR PLACES TO VISIT AROUND ROCAMADOUR
If you are looking for other places to visit around Rocamadour, here are a few more ideas! There is no shortage of them in the beautiful Lot department! Below are other articles from this blog dedicated to the most beautiful sites in the Lot:
– Martel and the Dordogne Valley (25 minutes away): I mentioned this in my article about my first stop in the Lot, and this little village is well worth a visit! It offers a peaceful atmosphere and medieval surroundings for a well-deserved break away from the tourists 😉
For my full article on the gems to discover in the Dordogne Valley, click here!
– St Cirq-Lapopie (1 hour away): South of Padirac, you can also discover one of the most beautiful villages in France: St Cirq-Lapopie! It’s worth exploring during a road trip in the secret Célé Valley or in the breathtaking Lot Valley, which is full of hidden gems around Cahors!
– Collonges-la-Rouge and Turenne (40 minutes away): if you continue north, don’t miss these two beautiful villages in Corrèze, which you can also discover on the blog.
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