What's on in the Dordogne and nearby?
Discover the vibrant cultural scene of the Dordogne, in the enchanting Southwest France. Immerse yourself in the wide range of annual festivals and events throughout the year.
Stay informed and make the most of your visit with this comprehensive month-by-month guide for 2024, ensuring you don't miss out on any of the exciting happenings in the Dordogne and its surrounding regions.
The Best Dordogne and nearby regional
Festivals and EventsÂ
JANUARY:
- 'Bande Dessine/Comic Strip Festival' is a massive 4-day event (3rd largest in the world) held at the end of January in Angouleme (Charente)
- Truffle Festival Sarlat is an event held on the third week of January celebrating every aspect of the Perigord Black Truffle (Dordogne)
- La Fete de la Truffe is on the last Sunday in January in Sorges, home of the Truffle Museum and the Logis Hotel Restaurant with its Black Truffle menu. The festival attracts a huge crowd with demonstrations, cooking competitions and a giant banquet (Dordogne)
FEBRUARY:
- Arnac Pompadour (France's National Stud) holds horse racing and horse-related events every month from February to October (Correze)
St Jean de Cole Floralies
MARCH:
- Fest de L'Oie this annual goose festival is held over 2 days in early March in Sarlat- le-Caneda with geese parading through the town, cookery demonstrations and much consuming of all things goose (Dordogne)
APRIL:
- Chateaux en Fete is held on the last two weeks of April when over 80 Dordogne Chateaux open their doors, some on selected days for festivities (Dordogne)
MAY:
- Fete de la Fraise in Beaulieu Sur Dordogne is held on the second Sunday in May in celebration of strawberries and includes the making of an 8ft strawberry tart (Correze)
- Jazz Pourpre en Perigord on from 17 - 26 May 2024 featuring jazz concerts across Bergerac (Dordogne)
- 'Fetes des Fraises et des Fleurs' strawberry and flower festival in Dordogne's strawberry capital, Vergt on the 3rd-weekend in May with up to 15 000 visitors (Dordogne)
- 'Fetes des Fromages Fermier' celebrating cheese in Rocamadour on Whit Sunday (Lot)
- 'Les Floralies' in Saint Jean de Cole is a huge floral festival held on the second weekend in May attracting over 10, 000 (Dordogne)
World Music Festival in Perigueux
JUNE:
- Rendez-vous au Jardins where on 31st May-2nd June over 2200 gardens from historical to private open across France (an event also held in 20 other European countries) to promote all aspects of gardens.
- The 'World Music Festival' on 21st June celebrates all types of music with loads of free events across (France)
JULY:
- Filibree is an annual 3-day festival celebrating Occitan du Pergord (the local language and culture). Now in its 103 year, its location moves annually throughout the Dordogne. In 2024 it will be held in Tocane-Saint-Apre between 5-7 July (Dordogne)
- The 6-day annual Cognac Blues Festival has been going since the 1990s and is on in early July (Charente)
- The 'Fete d'escargot/Snail Festival' held in La Coquille on the second weekend of July, promotes the humble snail (Dordogne).
- On the 14th, the 'Bastille Day' bank holiday is celebrated across France with villages holding fetes and communal get-togethers followed by music into the night ending in a bang in a great show of fireworks (France)
- Festival des Jeux du Theatre ( Film Festival) in Sarlat is now in its 72nd year and runs for the last 2 weeks in July, featuring over 18 shows, with actors, directors etc (Dordogne)
- Festival International des Arts du Mime et du Geste, Mimos in Perigueux on 3rd - 7th July 2024. Founded in 1983 in honour of Mime artist Marcel Marceau that celebrates the nonverbal use of the body to entertain such as mime, puppetry, clowning, hop-hop etc (Dordogne)
- 'Fete du Cognac' is a massive 3-day music festival held at the last weekend in July. Expect major names and in 2024 it includes the Pretenders (Charente)
JULY-AUGUST:
- 'Ete Musical en Bergerac' During the first two weeks of August find live music and traditional dance across the backdrop of historic sights and monuments in Bergerac and the surrounding area (Dordogne)
- Vesere Festival is a well-established annual month-long event featuring classical music in all its forms. In 2024 it runs from 8th July - 12 August in the Brive area (Dordogne)
SEPTEMBER:
- Vintage Days in Perigueux is a three-day event at the beginning of September, celebrating everything vintage from fashion and dancing to car parades and over 100 vintage vehiclest line the streets around the centre. Shops and restaurants all join in giving the city a wonderful atmosphere (Dordogne)
- Heritage days on 21st-22nd September where many places of interest normally closed to the public are open for viewing (France)
- Hot Air Balloon Festival in Rocamadour on 28rd-29th September 2024 which is a huge festival in a stunning location (Lot)
The chestmut festival in Dournazac
OCTOBER:
- Fetes de la Chataigne (Chestnut Festival) Dournazac on the last weekend in October (Haute Vienne)
- Rue des Metiers Art held in Nontron brings together the best artisans in a delightful setting. This is THE show for rural arts and crafts (Dordogne)
NOVEMBER
- Fete de la Pomme ( Apple Fair) held on 5 November in Sainte Anne Sainte Priest to celebrate all things apple (Haute Vienne)
- Gourmet Book Festival held bi-annually on the odds, in Perigueux where authors promote their cookery books, includes food tastings, local produce, cookery demonstrations etc (Dordogne)
- Le Foire au Dindons (Turkey festival) is held annually in Varaignes on 11 November celebrating with turkeys running through the village plus a bourru and chestnut fest (Dordogne)
- Beaujolais Nouveau Day is traditionally held annually on the third Thursday in November to celebrate the first bottled wine of the year (France)
DECEMBER
- Christmas market in Limoges (Haute Vienne)
- Christmas market in Perigueuex (Dordogne)
- Foire au Chapons ( Capon Festival) held on 10th December in Blond when more than 10 000 visitors go to see the Brotherhood procession and Capon racing (Haute Vienne).
Things to See & Do
Mialet
The charming village of Mialet is located in the Dordogne, South West France in the Aquitaine region.
Top 12 Attractions
There are so many places to visit and things to do in our area. To give you a little taster we have created a list of our top 12 favourites.
What to See in Our Region
There are countless places to visit within a 2-hour radius of Miallet. Here are the main sites including drive time and distance.
Where & What to Eat
Eating out is a fabulous experience in this part of France and there is a huge variety of establishments to choose from.
Festivals & Events
Annual calendar of festivals & events in the Dordogne and nearby departments.
Sports & Outdoors
The North Dordogne or Perigord Vert is a perfect location for those with a great affinity to the great outdoors.