8 days at:
£599
land only

Dordogne Family Adventure

Tripcode: FVQ

Countries visited: France

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Our Clients’ Reviews

Average Review Rating: from 10 reviews.

Gordon Branchett

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2012
Holiday was excellent mix of free time and activities. Weather was great and the Dordogne area was very beautiful.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
We really enjoyed the canoing and cycling activities. The distances covered are probably further than we would have selected if we had been on our own and the cycling had a few hills and was conducted on a hot day, however we all completed the trip even the youngest.
What did you think of your group leader?
Mark was an excellent leader and manager. Nothing was too much trouble, he was extremely good with the children and was definitely above and beyond.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
The cost of the advertised trains is extremely inaccurate and you will be looking at approx £240 each, which definitely bumps the price up if you have a larger family. All the families on our trip arrived in various ways and it may be worth investigating alternatives.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Good holiday, thoroughly enjoyed it and made more enjoyable sharing it with the other families.
Exodus Response
Please note that this review (and those prior to it) refer to the 2012 Exodus operated tour ‘Dordogne Familiy Adventure’ which has now been replaced by the similar 2013 tour operated in partnership with our sister company The Adventure Company.
- Exodus Staff
Nikki Brennan

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2012
An enjoyable family holiday in beautiful countryside with organised activity on most days.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
The day's cycling was superb. 25 km and some good hills. Beautiful scenery and a great challenge for the kids.
What did you think of your group leader?
He made the trip through his endless enthusiasm, local knowledge, ability to speak to the children and boundless motivation.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
It is a long way to drive. Break the journey up by staying overnight in a campanile motel. This made it easy.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Highly recommended. For our trip, the other families and their lovely children were a real bonus.
Diana Stewart

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2012
The guide was excellent, knowledgable, patient and fun with children. The scenery was beautiful and the activities fun and challenging. The only downside was a lack of camping space.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Completing the cycing and canoeing activity days.
What did you think of your group leader?
See above!
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
The group ate out together every night so budget for that and have a lantern for returning afterwards in the dark.
Paul McGirr

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2012
This holiday was perfectly pitched at family groups with plenty of activity to occupy adults and kids alike.This trip certainly lives up to the high standards that Exodus set.The beauty of an Exodus trip is that it always does exactly as dexcribed.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
The first day walking and then canoeing was beautifu,l and the cycle through the fields was exceptional.
What did you think of your group leader?
Mark was organisation and calmness personified with a firm hand on both the adults and kids in the party.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
It was a little chillier than I had expected, possibly due to the location in river valleys.
I have camped extensively in southern France during the summer previosuly and had not found it this cool, so lesson learned.
I had brought a 1 season sleeping bag - a 2 season bag is a must.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
A great trip - many of the parents expressed the desire to upgrade to small 2 or 3 star hotels - I think the kids enjoyed the camping, but possibly worth thinking about.
Also , the final days canoeing went for quantity rather than quality -my crew found the 23km a bit long, I had no issue with the length, but it did place an onus on us to keep movign rather than taking time to enjoy the river slowly.
stuart herritty

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2011
This would be hard to beat for a start point of activity holidays for families with younger children. Comparatively easy to get to, fairly low intensity exercise and European standard camp sites make for an out door experience without going too far from your comfort zone.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
All of the activity days were fantastic and pushed us out to enjoy the area in a way that would have been easy to miss if it had been an option within an ordinary family holiday.
The Dordogne is renown for the Chateau and the river canoe trips take you past severally truely beautiful scenes. The steady down stream pace allowed for plenty of time for taking in the scenery as well as horse play and swimming in the river.
The walks were the toughest for the children as it was very hot on both days. That said everyone made it including our 7 year old and still had the energy to do something with the rest of the day. For adults the walks are strolls and the pace was not hard with plenty of breaks for littler/unfitter legs to catch up.
The cycling was a really fun day and a tandam was found so that even the youngest could participate. The route is gentle for most people as the bikes have good gears for the few climbing bits of the route but beware the tandam as it has v. v. basic gears and you can't count on little ones to pedal!
What did you think of your group leader?
Mark was an excellant leader throughout the trip, making everyone feel involved, answering questions and ironing out any little issues quickly without fuss.
He was "on duty" for the whole holiday and helped the group to bond and explained in detail all the activities and options as they arose throughout the week.
You could not wish for a more helpful organiser.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Due to engineering work by SNCF none of our group travelled down by train. You don't need a car for the trip but it is useful if you want to explore the area on your one "rest" day. If you do drive research your route and try to pick one that avoids Paris or gets you past really early in the morning. (we hit traffic that delayed us for 1.5hrs both ways). In total from the Channel tunnel to the camp site, round Paris, it is a 8 - 9 hour drive with about 60€ of tolls.
Don't over pack! this is camping and the whole week is really casual.
We have a vegetarian in the family and the French clearly don't believe in non-meat menu's. We struggled to find alternatives to pizza and cheese omelettes.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I can't imagine a lovelier location (especailly the second site) and a more enjoyable break for a start to activity holidays. It's safe, not too challenging while pushing you to experience things that you would miss if you didn't have the group.
There were 4 families in total on our trip and as much to them as to Exodus I have to say thank you for a great holiday.
Carol Whelan

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2011
We had a fantastic holiday - lots of great activities, well balanced holiday with plenty to do but also with time to relax by the pool etc A great way to see the Dordogne.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Kayaking, with the children jumping in the river off the boats and swimming downstream. Seeing all the wildlife and just enjoying the scenery. Stopping off on the way to jump in the river off the rope swing!
Also loved the full day cycle - my son said the downhill at the end was better than a ride at Disney!

What did you think of your group leader?
Mark was great - very helpful, happy to change things around to ensure we all had the best time including organising a barbeque for us on the last night in camp.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
The activities are as described in the brochure - so they are full days but great fun. At the end of the day we were tired but soon revived with a swim in the pool.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
This was our first Exodus holiday and we had a brilliant time. The other families were great company, there was a good mix of activities and down time. It was very relaxed and Mark was always there with help and advice. Would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys an active holiday.
Garrett Duffy

DORDOGNE FAMILY ADVENTURE - FAMILY HOLIDAY

Written August 2011
A terrific holiday for younger children,varied activities,not a boring minute and plenty to keep the adults interested as well
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Canoeing down the Dordogne was an amazing experience-just pretend you have it all to yourself!
What did you think of your group leader?
Mark had time for everyone adults and children,had great patience and worked really hard to make sure we all had a good time
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Consider a car if you want to visit some of the other sights while in this amazing part of France such as the cave paintings of Lascaux. However you do squeeze in a lot of sights and experiences in one brief week without a car
Is there anything else you would like to add?
We really loved this part of France.It is packed with history,picturesque chateaux and amazing caves. The scenery is beautiful and this holiday takes you right to the heart of the area.Thanks to Mark and also the other families in our group for a great time