Les Eyzies-de-Tayac

Sitting comfortably under a limestone cliff, Les Eyzies is the doorway to the prehistoric capital of France. Early Homo sapiens (the species to which we humans belong) lived about 40,000 years ago, and skeletal remains of Cro-Magnon man—along with other artifacts of Aurignacian culture—were first found here in 1868. Today a number of excavated caves and grottoes are open for public viewing. The tourist office can give you the lowdown on all of them; it also sells tickets for most sites, and you should reserve here because a surprising number of tours sell out in advance.