Caves

In de village of Montignac you will find the famous caves of Lascaux, where caves were discovered with wall paintings of about 15.000 years BC. The discovery was made by 4 young teenagers in 1940. The original cave is no longer open for the public, but instead a large information center has been built in 2016. With the use of new image technologies you can experience all the paintings in an artificial cave.

The cave of Rouffignac (25 minutes by car) is a cave with original rock paintings and engravings of around 14,000 years old. Unlike other caves (such as the Font de Gaume in Les Eyzies), relatively many people are allowed to enter here per day and it is therefore sufficient to be at the ticket office around 9-10 am (during high season). With an electric train you drive into the cave and you can marvel at the prehistoric drawings of mammoths and deer. Highly recommended!

This Gouffre (20km from La Cipière) is also named the Crystal Cathedral and lies close to the town of Le Bugue. A gouffre is a large space underground, in which chalk formed . You will see stalactites (the ones that hang), stalagmites (the ones that point up), draperies, soda straws (as fine as hair) and helictites which grow in all different directions. A visit takes about 45 minutes and a special lightshow makes it all the more spectacular.

On the other side of the river in Les Eyzies you can visit some nice caves. One of them is Le Grand Roc. Here many stalactites and stalagmites have been formed by water dripping down. The visit can be combined with Laugerie Basse which is located just next to the caves and is a so-called 'village trogloditique', a cave dwelling.

At a distance of only 5 km of La Cipière you can find an abri that was inhabited for thousands of years. Thanks to its natural form it offers shelter and safety. There are little old houses and tools which have been rebuilt in order to bring the past to life. The Roque offers you a splendid view on the Vezère valley.

La Madeleine (at 10 minutes by car) is located on the banks of the Vézère and is a (pre) historic residence under the rocks. Some buildings are still intact so you can imagine life in this village. Last but not least: there is also a beautiful view on the river.