caroltis

For those of you who have stayed in Roussillon area - we will be driving from Nice to a rental house in Roussillon. Is Cavaillon the closest town with a good size grocery store?

Betty1

We were in Ménerbes in 2006 and did our grocery shopping in Apt, which is much closer to Roussillon than is Cavaillon. There is a Leclerc or something similar on the N100 on the western side of Apt which should be convenient for you. In case you don't already know, you should also buy your gas at one of these "grandes surfaces," as it is usually about 10-15 centimes less per liter than elsewhere.

I hope you enjoy your stay in Roussillon, one of my favorite small towns in the area.

StuDudley

Yep - there is a huge Leclerc just outside of Apt. Best large grocery in the region. When we were there, it was closed on Sundays and during lunch. Often groceries won't have fresh fish (or any fish other than frozen) on Mondays.

Stu Dudley

jelane

We are in Menerbes right now, and we always do our shopping in Auchan in Cavaillon. We got some wonderful salmon there yesterday. I would recommend getting your vegetables at one of the market close by on your day of arrival. These towns look far away on some of the maps but are so close by. If you have any questions I will be in this area for another ten days.
This is for Stu, should we take our kids for last day to Sault, or to Aix. We have done all the villages around here, they have only tomorrow left..They have mentioned Cannes but think that is too much for us in one day.

caroltis

Thanks all. We shopped at the Auchan in Cavaillon last year when we were in Menerbes - I couldn't believe how massive it was!

Nice to know Apt has a LeClerc - that will be nice and convenient. Stu thanks for the "heads up" regarding closing at lunch - I wouldn't have guessed that.

Indeed, it's wonderful buying our fresh produce and fish at the village markets - we were very pleased last year with the beef we purchased at the grocery store. I think I posted this question once before but do any of you have a recommendation for the "local brand" of coffee that tastes most like Starbucks (sadly, we are in a Starbucks Italian Roast rut and nothing seems to measure up!). I'd love to not have to pack our own coffee but this may be the best solution.

Jelane, what is the price of gas in the area now? If you haven't eaten at the Veranda yet, I recommend dinner there - we had a lovely meal. The owner was a very sweet young man who at the time said he was dreaming of leaving Menerbes and moving to the Napa Valley to open up a restaurant there.

Again, thanks all!

StuDudley

Sault vs Aix

You go to Sault for the pretty scenery around there, and for the Lavender - which I understand is late this year. You've probably already visited more interesting villages than Sault itself.

Aix is a large city with the best shopping in Provence (according to my wife).

Which one for tomorrow?? - it kinda all depends on what things you have already done. If you've driven around the Luberon quite a bit, visited all the small villages, but not Avignon or Arles - I would go to Aix. If you have visited Avignon, Arles, Nimes, Uzes, etc - spend more time in the countryside around Sault - and perhaps you'll see some lavender starting to turn purple/blue.

One experience we really enjoy is people watching at lunch on the Cours at Deaux Garcons in Aix. Tomorrow is market day in Aix also - get there early (and reserve for lunch in advance).

Stu Dudley

kevin_widrow

Actually the Leclerc in Apt stays open all day, including lunch - the ideal time to go is around 1:30PM when the place is relatively uncrowded.

Saturdays late afternoon are awful during the season as this is when all the gite "arrivals" are loading up for the week ahead...

-Kevin

crazyfortravel

I was just in Sault last week and there were no lavender blooms yet. In my opinion, the drive to Sault is pretty but the town holds little interest without the blooming lavender IMO. There are many other towns that are much more interesting.