Cadouin

Visit Cadouin, Aquitaine

Cadouin is an attractive village a few kilometres south of the river Dordogne, in a wooded valley between Bergerac and Sarlat.

Exploring Cadouin

The centre of the village is a small central square with a medieval market hall, a cafe and an ensemble of traditional Dordogne buildings, and of course the abbey. The village continues a little way up the hill in both directions and is a very pleasant place to explore.

Cadouin Abbey

Cadouin is best known for its Abbey which was founded by a hermit in 1115 and which in 1119 was given to an order of Cistercian monks. The church and buildings were constructed during the middle of the 12th century.

The Abbey became a major pilgrim destination in the Middle Ages because of a piece of cloth thought to be part of the shroud of Jesus Christ. Pilgrims visiting the shroud included Richard the Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

In the 1930s the cloth was shown to date from the 12th century and the abbey immediately lost its role as a pilgrimage destination, but the abbey still continued to attract lots of visitors. The main attraction now is its beautiful gothic cloister and carved capital stones. Within the cloisters you can also see some medieval frescoes.

Cadouin Abbey is now listed as a World Heritage Site with UNESCO as part of the pilgrimage route to Compostella. The ‘shroud’ and details of eight centuries of pilgrimages can be seen in a small museum in the Abbey.

Some of the original Abbey buildings now house a particularly beautiful youth hostel.

Visit near Cadouin

One very small but picturesque little village close by is Urval, while the 'incomplete" bastide town at Molieres is also recommended.

Close to Cadouin, you can also visit the Grottes de Maxange. Only discovered in 2000, these caves have a particularly impressive selection of rock formations to enjoy, spread out over about 200 meteres. The large crystalline sections are very interesting - and all very carefully lit to make the most of the unusual shapes and designs.

See Aquitaine and Dordogne (the region and department for Cadouin) for more travel ideas...

Photos of Cadouin

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Suggested places to visit near Cadouin, France

Distances shown are direct, driving distances will be greater.

More suggestions: Limeuil 8km; Beaumont-du-Perigord 10km; Belves 11km; Le Bugue 13km; Monpazier 14km; Saint-Cyprien 15km; Les Eyzies 18km; Font-de-Gaume 18km; Chateau des Milandes 19km; Chateau de Commarque 19km; Chateau de Biron 20km;

Cadouin tourist information: sights and attractions nearby

Jardin de Planbuisson - remarkable garden (5km) : Abbaye de Cadouin (Le Buisson-de-Cadouin) - religious monument (5km) : Jardins de la Bourlie - remarkable garden (6km) : Eglise de Saint-Hilaire et Eglise de Saint-Nicholas (Tremolat) - religious monument (8km) : Eglise Sainte-Croix (Beaumont-du-Perigord) - religious monument (9km) : Eglise de saint-Pierre (Audrix) - religious monument (10km) : Abbaye de Saint Martial (Paunat) - religious monument (11km) : Eglise Notre Dame de l'Assomption (Belves) - religious monument (11km) :

See more places and a map at places near Cadouin