Where to stay in or around Ladornac

Below are a few useful websites for lodging. The first two are perhaps the most useful as they have a complete list of everything in the area closest to Ladornac. Beware- they are in French! You will have to click on 'hébergement' to get to the hotel area. I recomment looking at 'chambres d'hôtes' (bed and breakfast type places that are often very comfortable and reasonable).

http://www.brive-tourisme.com/hebergement

http://www.ot-terrasson.com

http://fr.europa-bed-breakfast.com/html/gite-chambre-hotes-departement_dordogne_24_1.html
This is a very useful website for lodging. It is all in French, but I believe it is fairly self explanatory for a non-French speaker as well. 
http://www.france-voyage.com/en/

A very useful website in English! Here you will find a list of provinces to your left, so click on Aquitane first, then to your right you will see a box, and click on "towns". Followed by clicking on "Dordogne" and then finally La Dornac. From here you will be able to find information on hotels, "gites" (vacation houses for rent), bed and breakfasts, etc. 

Others... 
http://www.francethisway.com/places/a/la-dornac-dordogne.php

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Resources-g187081-Maps-Dordogne_Region_Aquitaine.html

How to get to Ladornac from Canada

Flying:
http://www.momondo.com http://www.edreams.com http://www.vayama.com
If you're coming from overseas, there are several options. The nearest airport to Ladornac is in a small city, Brive-la-Gaillard, and flights here are generally very expensive. I would recommend either flying into Bordeaux or Toulouse and then taking the train from there. You could easily spend a few nights there and enjoy getting to know France a little better. Or fly into Paris as it is often possible to find cheaper flights here. Flight prices fluctuate, and I have been able to find flights in mid-October to Paris, Bordeaux and Toulouse for all around $1000 CDN round trip. It is ultimately up to you. 

From Paris, Bordeaux, Toulouse and other main cities in France, the simplest option is to take the train to Brive  (http://www.corailteoz.com/reservation.php#). The website is only in French and is also a little touchy, so if you have any difficulties let me know. 

From Brussels, the easiest option is to take the SNCF through Lille (http://www.voyages-sncf.com/). Alternatively, you can go through Paris and take the teoz.

Renting a car:

http://www.rentacar.fr/location-de-voiture-BRIVE-la-gaillarde-202.htm 

If you plan on staying in Ladornac for several days, I would advise renting a car as everything is quite spread out (it is the countryside after all!). If you have a car, it will give you the freedom to explore the region, which otherwise might be quite limited. You can rent a car directly from the train station in Brive:

The above website is in French, so if you have any troubles, please contact me (or try google translate!).

REMINDER: If you're coming from overseas and wish to rent a car, please remember to take care of any international license requirements:

http://www.bcaa.com/wps/portal/BCAA/travel/road_trips?rdePathInfo=xchg/bcaa-com/hs.xsl/2281.htm

If you don't want to rent a car and are only planning on staying for a day or so... don't fear! Please contact me (losskyetmilne@gmail.com) as soon as you have an idea of your plans, and I will arrange for you to be picked up at the train station. If you have other friends who will also be going by train, please try and coordinate your travel plans with them to simplify the process.

Lots of people have asked me why we have chosen to marry in Ladornac. Here's why:

Ladornac is a beautiful village of approximately 400 inhabitants in the region of Dordogne, the province of Aquitane, France. Daniel spent much of his childhood here, and it is here where his parents and grandfather currently reside. It is exquisitely beautiful- think charming stone houses and châteaus scattered about, rolling green hills, fields of lavendar and a strong tradition of excellent food. It's the landscape of a fairytale.

The first time I came here in August 2009, I was enchanted. Daniel and I already knew we wanted to marry, and when he took me to explore the attic of the little 14th century church just a couple metres from his parents' house, I started fantasizing about one day marrying him there. Only two seconds later, Daniel confessed that he dreamed of marrying in this church when he was a little boy. That pretty much settled it then and there- whenever that blessed day would arrive, this would have to be the location.

However, we have other reasons for marrying there aside from fulfilling a fanciful dream. Practically speaking, it is far simpler than Brussels, our current place of residence. While it does take a bit of added steam to get there, it is worth the effort. Rather than asking our guests to brave the mayhem of Belgian traffic and the endless maze of unindicated, one-way streets to find their way to the church and then to the reception, we prefer a more relaxed ambience. Just imagine- after the wedding, casually sipping a glass of champagne, chatting with old friends and new, basking in the light of the warm October sun... your only care in the world being that you'll eventually have to cross the street to go to the reception and spend the evening feasting and dancing.

So.... do those sound like good reasons??

Oh, and don't forget the food- we would be hard pressed to find food of such quality and accessibility here in Brussels (if you didn't already know, both Daniel and I are pretty big foodies).