Getting to Le Mas

Depending on your route, you’ll approach St Marcory and Le Mas either from Belves or Monpazier on the D53.

If you’re coming from Belves, take the road to Monpazier and after about 5 miles/8kms take the first or two turns, on the right side, marked to St Marcory. At the St Marcory village sign, turn left up the hill with the old Ecole Communale on your right. We are the first large barn on your right. Enter through the large open barn doors.

If you’re coming from Monpazier, take the road towards Belves. After about 3.5miles/6.5kms, you will see a water tower on the hill to your right, just after that, turn left towards St Marcory. Follow the road for about 0.6 mile/1 km and take the right hand fork towards Le Mas. You will pass through a farmyard. Fork right just after that at a small triangle. Go down the hill 100m and we are the first place on the left.

As we live in the south of England, we usually take the Brittany Ferries Portsmouth to Caen crossing.

If you choose to cross to Cherbourg you can pick this route up before Tours. Crossings to Dieppe or Calais involve a longer route (miles) but not necessarily a longer journey (time).

Directions Caen to Le Mas – normally a seven hour drive:

  • At the ferry port of Ouisterham follow signs to Caen (route D515)
  • Your route south will take you via the following key towns:
    Alencon – Le Mans – Tours – Poitiers – Angouleme – Perigueux.
  • In Perigueux follow the signs through the city marked Toutes Directions.
  • Just south of Perigueux follow the signs towards Brive-Bergerac-Cahors.
  • Follow signs towards Les Eyzies and Sarlat (route N89). Look for signs bearing right towards Cahors and Le Bugue (route D710).
  • Through Le Bugue follow the signs Autres Directions and then follow signs towards Toulouse and Le Buisson (route D51).
  • At Vic turn right over the river towards and into Le Buisson (route D31/51).
  • At Le Buisson turn left at the T-junction towards Toulouse-Siorac-Belves (route D25).
  • At Siorac pass the Intermarche supermarket on your left and turn right at the roundabout towards Belves and Fumel (route D710).
  • At Belves-Fougaffier turn right towards Belves (route D53) or take the town bypass a couple of kilometres further on.
  • From Belves follow the signs for Monpazier (route D53).
  • After passing the hamlet of Fongaloup on your left, about 7 miles south of Belves, take the right turn signposted towards St Marcory just after a left-hand bend.
  • At the St Marcory sign, turn left up the hill past the old Ecole Communale on your right.
  • Proceed up the hill to the first large barn on your right and enter through archway.

You have arrived!  Please park your cars inside the open barn and not on the grass.

If you’re coming from London or further north, the Channel Tunnel may well be your best route.  The crossing is only 35 minutes, departures are very frequent and booking is convenient and easy via www.eurotunnel.com.

Your route from Calais takes you around Paris: maybe a good opportunity to linger for a day or two.

Directions Calais to Le Mas – generally about nine hours driving:

  • From the French tunnel terminal (Coquelles) take the A16 towards Lille & Reims.
  • After about 6km turn right onto the A26 towards Lille & Paris.
  • After 114km take the A1 South towards Paris.
  • Bypass Paris to the East taking the A3 towards Bordeaux & Nantes and then the A86.
  • Take the A10 towards Orleans, Bordeaux & Nantes.
  • Near Orleans take the A71 to Vierzon then the A20 to Chateauroux and Limoges.
  • Continue on the A20 towards Cahors.
  • At Souillac turn west through Vitrac and Beynac to Siorac.
  • At Siorac pass the Intermarche supermarket on your left
  • Turn right at the roundabout towards Belves and Fumel (route D710).
  • At Belves-Fougaffier turn right towards Belves (route D53). or take the town bypass a couple of kilometres further on.
  • From Belves follow the signs for Monpazier (route D53).
  • After passing the hamlet of Fongaloup on your left, about 7 miles south of Belves, take the right turn signposted towards St Marcory just after a left-hand bend.
  • At the St Marcory sign, turn left up the hill past the old Ecole Communale on your right.
  • Proceed up the hill to the first large barn on your right and enter through archway.

You have arrived! Please park inside the open barn and not on the grass.

The Eurostar from Waterloo or Ashford takes you to the Gare-du-Nord in Paris.

Since July 2017 a new 188-mile (302km) high-speed line is open between Tours and Bordeaux, knocking some 70 minutes off the journey from Paris to Bordeaux. Although the journey from London will involve a change of station in Paris – between the Gare du Nord and Montparnasse – this improvement will mean that the total travelling time from London to Bordeaux will be reduced to just under six hours (5 hours 55 mins) – nice and speedy, but still leaving time enough to savour the passing French countryside.  From Bordeaux the fastest train to Belves, about 8km from Le Mas, takes just over 2½ hours.

Alternatively you can transfer to Austerlitz to catch the SNCF train from Paris to Limoges and on to Belves.

More information is available from Eurostar, SNCF and Trainline.

Rail Europe has a useful map of all the major European routes

Regular flights to Bergerac are listed here: bergerac.aeroport.fr/en/regular-flights/

Bergerac’s Roumaniere airport is only 40 minutes from Le Mas so if you have friends at the house you can probably persuade them to meet you. Or you can rent a car at the airport. If your flight arrives in the evening you’re likely to find most of the car hire company offices closed! We recommend Buggs who are always open.

There are various ways from Bergerac Airport to Le Mas. This is probably the simplest:

  • Turn left on the N21 South towards Castillones.
  • After about 6km turn left on the D14 East to Issigeac.
  • In Issigeac bear left on the D207 to Villereal.
  • In Villereal turn left on the D104/D2 to Monpazier.
  • From Monpazier take the D53 towards Belves.
  • After 5.7km turn left to St Marcory, just after the water tower on your right.
  • Fork right following the sign for Le Mas.
  • Pass through the farmyard and fork right again by the tobacco sheds down the road marked ‘Sauf Riverains’.
  • Proceed down the hill to the first large barn on your left and enter through the open barn doors.

You have arrived!  Please park your cars inside the open barn and not on the grass.

MONPAZIER WEATHER