Market
Weekly MarketsFor an introductory French market experience, visit Sarlat’s heavily touristed Saturday market, which takes over the streets around Cathédrale St-Sacerdos…
Sarlat-la-Canéda
A picturesque tangle of honey-coloured buildings, alleyways and secret squares make up the beautiful town of Sarlat-la-Canéda. Boasting some of the region’s best-preserved medieval architecture, it’s a popular base for exploring the Vézère Valley, and a favourite location for film directors. It’s also firmly on the tourist radar, and you might find it difficult to appreciate the town’s charms among the summer throngs, especially on market days.
Well-known markets sell a smorgasbord of goose-based products, and Sarlat hosts an annual goose festival, the Fest’Oie (early March), when live birds and market stalls fill the streets, and Sarlat’s top chefs prepare an outdoor banquet.
Explore Sarlat-la-Canéda
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Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Sarlat-la-Canéda.
Square
Place du Marché aux OiesA life-size statue of three bronze geese stands in the centre of beautiful place du Marché aux Oies (Goose Market Sq), where live geese are still sold…
Farm
L’Elevage du BouyssouThe Dordogne is famous for its foie gras. You’ll see duck and goose farms dotted throughout the countryside, many of which offer guided tours and…
Farm
Moulin de la TourThe humble noix (walnut) has been a prized product of the Dordogne for centuries, and is still used in many local recipes – cakes, puddings, pancakes and…
Market
Église Ste-MarieÉglise Ste-Marie was ingeniously converted by acclaimed architect Jean Nouvel, whose parents still live in Sarlat, into the town’s touristy Marché Couvert…
Cathedral
Cathédrale St-SacerdosOnce part of Sarlat’s Cluniac abbey, the original abbey church was built in the 1100s, redeveloped in the early 1500s, and remodelled again in the 1700s,…
Park
Jardin des EnfeusBehind the cathedral, the Jardin des Enfeus was Sarlat’s first cemetery. The rocket-shaped Lanterne des Morts may have been built to honour a visit by St…
Chateau
Château de PuymartinThis impressive turreted château, 8km northwest of Sarlat, was first built in 1270, destroyed in 1358 during the Hundred Years War, and rebuilt around…
Historic Building
Manoir de GissonTour this mansion, dating from the 13th century, in the heart of Sarlat to get a taste of how the bourgeoisie lived. There's a cabinet of curiosities in…
Tower
Lanterne des MortsThe Lanterne des Morts is a dramatic monument – it's shaped like a giant rocket – that was built to honour a visit by St Bernard, one of the founders of…
Square
Cour des ChanoinesThis attractive medieval courtyard can be reached via an alleyway off rue Tourny or from the Jardin des Enfeus. The passage from Cour des Chanoines leads…
Square
Cour des FontainesAppropriate to its name this picturesque medieval courtyard contains a bubbling fountain. You can find it down an alleyway off rue Tourny or reach it from…
Historic Building
Maison de la BoétieThis striking 16th-century Italian Renaissance–style house opposite Cathédrale St-Sacerdos is the birthplace of writer Étienne de la Boétie (1530–63).
Gardens
Les Jardins du Manoir d’EyrignacWhile it's not quite the work of Edward Scissorhands, these topiary gardens are nonetheless a labour of love, with everything clipped by hand. A…
Chapel
Chapelle St-BenoîtA passage from Cour des Chanoines leads to the Chapelle St-Benoît, aka Chapelle des Pénitents Bleus, a 12th-century Romanesque chapel and the oldest…