The Lot-et-Garonne lies immediately south of the Dordogne, apx. ninety minutes from  the  Atlantic coast  and a little over two hours from the Spanish border.

Because it carries two of France's principal rivers, Le Lot and La Garonne, the landscape is beautifully verdant and incredibly varied. Broad, fertile valleys wind past picturesque ranges of  hills with the two rivers meeting at Aiguillon.

The economy of the  Lot-et-Garonne is heavily reliant on agriculture, with tourism still in its relative infancy. Consequently the roads are very quiet and, unlike the Dordogne and Provence, few places are crowded even in the height of summer.

You will see growing in abundance, vines, maize, all kinds of fruit, fields of sunflowers, vegetables and many varieties of trees. This is also the centre of the French prune industry. Agen prunes are world-famous! Of course, with the agriculture comes the wildlife; you will find many birds of prey here (look out for magnificent  Black Kites riding the thermals high above).

Our summers are significantly warmer and sunnier than further north, with long settled spells. Rain is not usually a problem as, when it does come, it tends to be very heavy and of short duration.

In June 2004, the celebrated English chef, Rick Stein, visited the area to film the cookery series, "A French Odyssey". The series followed Rick on a journey down Le Canal des deux Mers from Bordeaux to the Mediterranean and  was broadcast by the BBC in September 2005.

The Lot-et-Garonne is France as most people imagine France to be. Warm,  verdant, colourful, picturesque, historic, and very peaceful. With just 305,000 people in a Department of almost 6,000 sq. kms, the Lot-et-Garonne has one of the lowest population densities in all France. It also has some of the best wine, the most beautiful scenery, and the loveliest and friendliest of people - as you will see in the following pages:....