Camping Brin d'Amour

Ease into Aquitaine explores by starting hols with an easy day or two in Le Bugue, five minutes’ drive from the site – there’s an aquarium and reptile house there that should keep littler family members happy (and the grownup ones too), and a day at the open-air Le Bournat theme park comes highly recommended for anyone who wants to be transported to another time (the year 1900). If that step into history inspires a few more, there are plenty of châteaux nearby: start with Maison Forte de Reignac, a 16th-century pile built into a rock face 20 minutes away, then travel to the spectacular Château des Milandes, Château de Beynac and Château de Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, all within 35 minutes. With one foot in past centuries and one in the open air, wandering around the stunning 18th-century gardens at Manoir d’Eyrignac and the 17th-century gardens at Marqueyssac is a must, and devoting a few hours to Prehisto Parc theme park, 25 minutes from base, will complete the history lesson above ground. It’s underground where things get even more interesting, as this part of Aquitaine has more caves than you could shake a stalactite at and diving below the surface is an essential part of any trip. To do: view prehistoric paintings at Grotte de Font-de-Gaume and Grotte de Rouffignac, explore the largest landscaped cave in the region at Proumeyssac chasm and visit the site of Cro-Magnon man’s discovery at Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil. And that’s just the stuff within 15 minutes…