We had a cheeky overnighter in Perigueux in late April and found this ancient city had so much to offer we could have stayed a week. We lucked a little third floor apartment right in the heart of the old town in the Place du Coderc where they have a brilliant fresh food market Saturday morning selling all the specialties of the Périgord region: truffles, confit du canard, foie gras and nougat.
We parked our car down by the L’Isle river where we found this sign –
Which we had the tourist office confirm was indeed free parking, then used the tourism office illustrated and numbered map to navigate to all the historical sites, ancient ruins and squares dotted across the Historical old town and the Galo-Roman district .
Here are some of our favourite sites in Perigueux:
The quirky ‘hut on stilts’ – L’eschif (Lookout Post) – right near where we parked on the L’Isle river used to be embedded in the old wall (above)
The Giles Lagrange building in the old Mayor’s office Square with its square tower housing a spiral staircase (above)
The Saturday market on Place Du Coderc (just below our apartment!) (above)
The many tiny squares that pop up out of little alleyways, each boasting a terrace restaurant or two, a shady pergola and often a fountain – referred to as the Rue de la Clarté et Galleries Daumesnil
The Mataguerre tower – one of 28 defence towers of the town – accessed via alleyway streets of Rue de L’etreiur
The Barris bridge – which gives you a great view back to the town and access to a walk along the Voie Verte bike/walking track
And in the Gallo Roman city of Perigueux:
This area was very well signposted (follow a red painted line on the ground) and had lots of fabulous information boards. Highlights were The Jardin des Arenas built on the old amphitheatre which rivalled the Saintes Ampitheatre for capacity (seated 18,000) and was buried deep beneath the current garden we walked through, then the crumbling remains of the Château Barrière where dogs were chasing balls oblivious to the history that towered over them and finishing with the most spectacular site of all – the Tower of Vésonne – an incredible 24 metre tall Gallo-Roman temple built in the 11th Century. You have to see both sides (the other side not pictured is still fully intact) to see how imposing this relic is.
