If there’s one thing the Lot region has taught me, it’s that slowing down allows you to experience more. This part of southwestern France isn’t designed for speed. It’s built for wandering. For long lunches under shady plane trees. Lingering in sleepy medieval villages. For taking the backroads, where sunflowers wave and time stretches out. In this blog, I write a Slow Travel Guide for your time in the Lot.
After years of living here, I’ve found that the best way to explore the Lot is slowly, without ticking boxes or rushing between highlights. Here’s a 7-day itinerary that lets you connect with the region, its people, and its rhythms.
Slow Travel Guide for the Lot
Day 1: Arrival in the Lot & Settle In
Base yourself: Choose a gîte, countryside B&B, or a charming chambre d’hôte. Somewhere with a terrace and birdsong in the morning.
Slow moment: Unpack, take a deep breath, and ease into the pace of rural France. Have your first apéro on the terrace as the sun sets—maybe a glass of Cahors wine and a slice of local Rocamadour cheese.
Local tip: In the Lot, the best days often start and end with nothing planned.
Day 2: Market Morning & Afternoon Wandering in Prayssac
Start with a traditional French market (check the local schedule here, I love the one in Prayssac on Fridays). Wander the stalls of local honey, nuts, goat cheese, and seasonal fruit.
Spend the afternoon discovering Puy L’eveque medieval town.
Dinner: A terrace dinner in Douelle at Chez Malique or at a countryside auberge, don’t rush it. Meals here are as much about connection as cuisine.
Day 3: Canoe or SUP at the Lot
Rent a canoe in Puy L’eveque. Paddle gently along the Lot River, letting the current guide you past limestone cliffs, lazy cows, and herons fishing.
In the afternoon, do as locals do: nap, read, or lie in the grass. You’re not missing out, you’re tuning in.
Pro tip: The rivers are cool and refreshing in summer, and canoeing offers a meditative rhythm perfect for slow travel. Take a swim, relax at the riverside for a snack and be in the moment.
Day 4: Rocamadour, Autoire or Loubressac
Yes, it’s a highlight. Yes, it draws crowds. So visit early in the morning, and not to tick it off, but to quietly experience its cliffside beauty and spiritual roots.
Skip the tour groups and take a contemplative walk up the Grand Escalier or along the Chemin de Croix. Stay for a coffee with a view, then leave before the tourist buses arrive.
Spend the rest of your day nearby in Autoire or Loubressac, some of the most beautiful villages in France, but still peaceful if you avoid midday peak times. There is also a path to a waterfall close to Autoire. Which can be a cooling hike in the forest.
Day 5: Market Picnic & Caves of Pech Merle
Visit Cahors or Limogne-en-Quercy for picnic supplies, baguette, local cheese, olives, and something sweet.
Then head to Pech Merle, one of the few prehistoric caves where you can still see original paintings. It’s a place that demands reverence and reflection.
Picnic by the Célé River afterward. Dip your toes in, sketch the scene, or simply sit.
Day 6: A Day with the Locals
One of the joys of living in the Lot is the sense of community. On this day, I suggest slowing all the way down.
Ideas:
- Join a village brocante (flea market).
- Take a casual French cooking class with a local.
- Spend time with a farmer at a goat cheese or walnut farm.
- Visit a small vineyard, where the owner is also the winemaker, bottler, and your host.
Ask questions, linger, connect.
Day 7: One Last Walk, One Last Meal
Choose a short hike—perhaps the Saint-Cirq-Lapopie to Bouziès towpath carved into the cliffs, or a forest trail near your accommodation.
Spend your last afternoon as the locals do: at the table.
Lunch recommendation: Somewhere quiet, with regional dishes like confit de canard, cabécou salad, or truffade. End with a walnut tart and espresso.
Let your goodbye be slow and grateful.
Final Thoughts from me as a Local
Living here has taught me that the Lot doesn’t shout to be noticed. It whispers.
If you travel slowly enough, you’ll hear its stories: the old man selling plums by the roadside, the cicadas in the pines, the silence inside a centuries-old church.
This itinerary is a suggestion, but feel free to stray, pause, or repeat a day. The Lot will still be here, waiting, without the rush. You are also welcome to retreat with me.
By Joyce Mol – Local explorer & mindful travel advocate living in the heart of the Lot, France.
