We were told that we had to visit, Sarlat on market day so we dutifully made our way on the Wednesday (as Saturdays were transit days). And I have to say I am glad we did the Wednesday as it is only half a day. The town was very busy and finding parking was pretty difficult, but thats normal for a busy day. The twon was packed and the market in such a beautiful town really gave it some atmosphere, but you did feel a bit squeezed in and with a dog, it did make it a bit difficult. We got some usually touristy things, pate and some confit de canard and then went and sat down. I was lovely wondering through the same streets after the market had gone to really appreciate the town and the buildings. I would recommend a visit, just know it will be busy, and i'd suggest going for Wednesday as then you can appreciate the quiet after as well.
After my son gained his degree, we treated him and his girlfriend to a tour of France. After about a week, we found ourselves in Sarlat and the market was in full flow. The hand-made cheeses, the huge varieties of fish, the fresh fruits, the foie gras, the smells of the garlics and pipe tobacco and the cries of the traders all worked their magic on my son who simply said "The is the REAL France"! That's recommendation enough!
Wondering through numerous vendors along quaint narrow roads. Such smells, fresh produce and wide variety of everything! Go if given a chance and sample the variety of foods, produce and pastries!
Sarlat Market. fantastic food stalls amongst medieval buildings. Vanilla Pods in bunches, Paella cooking in huge pans, buskers, cheese, artisan breads.... everything to stock up your picnic for later in the day. If its strawberry season, work out the varieties that are best for you (there's a few) and eat up big. They are the most amazing flavours to cross your taste buds. Plenty of reasonably priced restaurants with truffle (special mushroom) infused meals. Worth it to find out what all the fuss is about. (**NOTE) The town is closed for road traffic in the peak of summer. there are plenty of carparks nearby. Walk the streets. you cant really get lost and you discover a lot of little out of the way gems. 4 visits to Sarlat and will still go back. its so central to everything along the Dordogne river. Even if you stay elsewhere around the river, dont miss the market. Go Saturday morning after 08:30 and get your picnic supplies for the day.
My friend and I were on a weeks tour of the region staying in Souillac so we arrived by coach. A blessing as I understand the parking is quite difficult, but I would think well worth it. It was market day and what a market. It meandered for what seemed miles and such a variety of foods, with little tasters along the way. A lovely assortment of goods, I bought a beautiful tablecloth at a very reasonable price. The town iitself was a revelation, it was beautiful. I know we saw it at its best, sun shining, flowers abounding but the buildings were absolutely stunning. We wandered up and down streets finding something to marvel at at every corner. Stopped for coffee at a little pavement cafe whilst giving our feet a rest and watched the crowds Oohing and Ahhing until we mossied on ourselves. We had lunch in a fabulous small family run restaurant sitting in the sun in the courtyard and enjoyed a lovely meal cooked there and then. Sorry I didn't note the name but there are so many choices that you would be hard done not to find similar around the town.We enjoyed it so much that we made up another party and booked a taxi so that we could go back, [do our holiday shopping even though no market] and see the rest of the town. We treated ourselves to some crepes that time [near the market square] working on the principle that we had done so much walking that the calories were insignificant!Would highly recommend a visit. The whole area is lovely but that is another "review"
Whilst staying in Sarlat the second day we were there was the day of a large market that took over the whole of the town. It brought such a vibrant atmosphere and there were so many stalls with lots of everything.
Spending a week in dordogne, the recommendation from everyone is the wed or sat market, we went there wed. , certainly worth seeing this old town center filled with market stands, we did see another 5 markets in the days before and this was the least authentic. Yes a number of sellers are the same as at the other markets in the area, but here were practically only the tourist stands left, plenty of bus tourists (which we have not seen in dordogne before), the most interesting part of the market was , for us at least, lowering the prices in stalls as well as high street the moment the bus loads were gone, alas everywhere in the world the same game, and the human lemmings do as they were to do.
Wow, what a spectacle, this huge Saturday market virtually takes over this entire lovely historic old town from about 9am-1pm. Huge variety of things to just look at and photograph - fruits, black truffles, garlic, assorted dried meats, wines, fruit, foie gras, clothes, books, shoes etc etc. Buy some jambon, local cheese, fruit and a bottle of wine plus bread and head on down to the river about 15 minutes away for a picnic!
Sarlat Saturday market draws large crowds of both locals and visitors. It offers an amazing array of local foods with duck confit, foie gras, cheeses, breads and wines most prominent in the narrow streets of the old town. It's a great place to shop for high quality picnic items. The clothing and hardware stalls up on the main street are less exciting.
I have always wanted to visit Sarlat for her foie gras, truffles and walnuts. The Saturday market did not disappoint. I managed to purchase all these treasures. Had my 1st walnut caramel tart and walnut chocolate cake, yummy! However, I was hoping to find other items eg. a truffle slicer. As I could only afford 2h there, I spent it all at the open market, I did not venture into the shops. Do give yourself more time if you wanna truly explore the whole market. I noticed some stalls started to pack up around 1pm. Parking was ok. We parked near the entrance to the market.