Tarn et Garonne is known throughout France as an area of rich produce and gastronomy. A patterned landscape of rolling hills, deciduous forests, vineyards, fields of sunflowers, farms and grazing cattle – with a palette that changes to the rhythm of cultivation and the seasons. This area of France still bears the ancient name of ‘Quercy’. Our southern part of the Quercy is known particularly as ‘Quercy Blanc’ for its pale limestone villages perched on rocky outcrops (villages such as Lauzerte, Montaigu de Quercy, Miramont de Quercy, Montpezat de Quercy, Castelnau Montratier..) but we are just on the cusp, where ancient white stone buildings start to give way to the rose-pink brick buildings of the fluvial plains that stretch along the Tarn and Garonne rivers from Montauban to Toulouse.

Drive half an hour East, and you start to climb up onto the Causses de Quercy where the landscape becomes wilder and the land more rocky and less fertile, and where the Tarn and Aveyron rivers carve deep gorges. This landscape of limestone plateaux and deep valleys stretches far to the East and forms part of the Massif Central along with the Grands Causses, Cevennes and Ardeches.

Local places of interest to visit include Moissac, which has a beautiful 12th Century cloisters and Abbey and sits astride both the River Tarn and the Canal des Deux Mers. Montauban with its elegant Place Nationale and the newly refurbished museum dedicated to Ingres and the sculptor Bourdelle, both sons of the city; and Lauzerte, designated One of the Most Beautiful Villages in France. There are countless other beautiful villages to be found perched on hills or set amidst rolling wooded countryside, and you’ll find a market in a pretty rural town nearby every day of the week, plus of course restaurants, cafés and local vineyards for good food and wine.

A little further afield, at around 45 minutes drive, Cahors is famous for its deep rich red wine and the Pont Valentré, a medieval turreted bridge which crosses the River Lot that snakes around the town.

From Montauban you can get on a direct train which will take you to south to Toulouse in around 30 minutes. Alternatively it is an easy 1-hour drive from Vitarelles by car. Bordeaux is around 2 hours by train from Montauban, or 2 hours by car directly from Vitarelles.

There are two swimming lakes near Vitarelles, at 10 and 20 minutes drive, and a large area of water for water sports just past Moissac where the Tarn and Garonne rivers meet, near the village of St Nicolas de la Grave.

Other activities available in the area include golf, kayaking, fishing, cycling, horse riding, accrobranche and, for the more adventurous, skydiving.