Paris to Sarlat

We%26#39;re travelling by train from Paris, ultimate destination is Sarlat... we%26#39;ll be renting a car... what are your thoughts about going as far as Brive and renting car there, then driving to Sarlat?

Have seen somewhere that transfer from Brive (via train) is somewhat more difficult...

We%26#39;re travelling first week of August, can%26#39;t wait!

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You could do that. We are doing the same thing in July and renting the car right in Paris. The drive is about 6 hours and we are making a day of it. We found the rental price is about the same, but of course if your rent there then you have to buy the train ticket.

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We%26#39;d thought of that but heard driving in Paris is a nightmare... do you have concerns? Have you rented your car yet? From whom?

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We have driven in Paris before and yes it is busy, not sure where you live but i find toronto can be jsut as busy. an option is to pick up the car at an airport, that way the worst of the city driving is over. We rented from novacarhire.com

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Hmmm, we%26#39;re in Guelph so used to Toronto traffic... airport idea is a good one since we%26#39;ll have to return and fly out early next day... rethinking the train thing now.

When are you going in July? We%26#39;ll be in Paris last week of July and Sarlat area the first week of August.

Can%26#39;t wait!

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we are in France for just 2 weeks this time july 7 to 22

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I have done this several times (also have driven once or twice from Paris). I would take the train down from Paris to Brive and get the car in Brive (several agencies, including Avis and others you would recognize, right at the train station). I think this is the easiest way to get into the area (less stressful and faster than driving down).

You could also go to Perigueux by train and get the car there, which is more to the west in the Dordogne and interesting in its own right as well as close to other places such as Bergerac, Brantome and Hautefort. In either case, be sure you don%26#39;t arrive on a Sunday as the rental agencies will be closed on a Sunday.

Have a great trip - that%26#39;s a wonderful time of year for the area.

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Hi, We%26#39;re thinking of doing the same thing (driving from Paris to Sarlat) and are nervous about congestion in August, or is this not a huge issue once on the autoroute? It%26#39;s much cheaper than the train (there%26#39;s 5 of us) at this point and all going well, isn%26#39;t much longer time wise. We%26#39;re thinking of getting the rental car in Gare du Nord (bad idea?). One of the deciding factors for us (apart from price) was that our return date into Paris is a national holiday (15th) and the car rental office at Brive is closed. We felt it better to spend that day driving than head back a day early. Will getting into Paris that day be awful or will most of the traffic be coming out? Please advise, or utter some reassuring words...it all looks so easy on the Michelin site!

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We are also planning on either the train or car to Sarlat, next year, but we have driven out of and into Paris, last trip, and it was awful. Getting out, 6 lanes or more converge into about two on a roundabout! Driving into Paris took us forever, once we got into the outskirts. Give yourself a lot of time, because traffic hits a snail%26#39;s pace there. I%26#39;m thinking of picking up at the airport also, to avoid driving right into the city. Good luck, whichever you do.

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Do yourself a favor -- don%26#39;t drive in Paris unless you absolutely have to. (We live here, and it takes an act of God to get us to drive in the city.)

It%26#39;s busy, the driving rules can be a little dodgy, streets are narrow and one-way,and parking is a nightmare -- hard to find and very expensive.

Pick up your rental car at the airport, or at one of the offices outside of Paris -- it%26#39;s not uncommon for it to take an hour or more JUST to get to the autoroute, and iwth a 6-hour drive, who needs one more hour?

Once you%26#39;re on the autoroute, it%26#39;s pretty easy -- not very picturesque, but efficient.

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We are picking our car up at Place D%26#39;Italie. It looks like a fairly clear run to the Periph and then the A6 and A10 out of the city for us.