wallybrenda

We will be staying A week in the Luberon and have been looking at 2 bedroom gites on the website Luberon.com.

We will be out and about each days, hiking, visiting hill top cities, markets etc. will likely eat lunch out and dinner in some nights ( who can resist the lure of the markets).

Thinking of Mererbes or Gordes but wondered what other areas we should consider - saignon and your thoughts on being based in a hilltop city.

Thanks!

bdesaul

Personallyiwould shy away from actually staying in the hilltop towns. My wife and I spent two weeks in St. Rent area recently and just did day trips from our B&B which was perfect as it was a great central location with easy acces to numerous hill towns.

Christina

I wouldn't stay in Gordes myself, it's chockful of tourists and not that easy to get in/out. I guess if you were staying there, maybe somehow you could get a resident's permit, not sure for a tourist, though. But on the other hand, I don't find Menerbes that interesting per se, but it doesn't seem as full of tourists, so I think it would be better. I don't think there are any hotels in it, for one thing. Of course the only reason one is staying there are due to those books by that British guy, whom I can't stand myself. I stayed in Roussillon once and you can actually drive through it and it's not that bad, although of course popular on the tourist trail. But it's not as mobbed as Gordes. Not sure if you consider that a hilltop village or not, actually.

I suspect that if some gite says it is in Menerbes, it may really not be, though, so be sure to check the real locations of such rentals. If you just want to be around that area, then it's easier to find such rentals as they usually are within a few km of where they say they are in terms of the village.

BTW there is no such website as luberon.com as you name in your post. If you click on that link, you get nothing. If you mean luberon.fr, they don't have much on there. I couldn't even see one in Menerbes, but the one at Gordes clearly states it is "near" Gordes, not in it, which is what I would expect for many of them. That one is really this place (much better info) http://www.mas-heliante-luberon.com/ And it isn't in Gordes, it's some km away.

I do see one in Joucas on there with 1 BR, you might consider that location, it's not as popular with tourists, thank goodness, but is a hilltop village. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joucas
http://www.beyond.fr/villages/joucas.html

I almost stayed there once, but changed plans.

Christina

I meant 2 BR, this is the gite I was referring to (it even has AC)
http://luberon.fr/tourisme/hebergeme...ucas+2643.html

Christina

BTW I found out Joucas has its own website for gites http://www.joucas.fr/hebergement/git...e40d6f82e4fa98

KathyWood

The hilltop towns (perched villages) date back to medieval times, with more modern construction often in the surrounding area, usually below what remains of the old walls. So you'll find truly ancient and very interesting architecture in these villages, plus beautiful views of the surrounding countryside. The views in the Luberon-- particularly on the north side of the Luberon mountains-- are truly spectacular.

When you're looking at rentals, I'd consider where in the village the rental is located and how much "hill walking" might be required on a daily basis to get to the boulangerie, the alimentation, and eating places. (The amount of vertical walking-- often on cobblestones-- may or may not be an issue for you.) It's good to have services and restaurants you can walk to... some villages don't have many. I'd also find out about parking and what's available near the rental.

We've been spending time in the Luberon for 12 years. On our first trip we rented a cottage in Saignon and it's still one of our favorite villages... simple and beautiful. Much of the village sits high on a big rock, so it's pretty flat. You can walk up to the very top of the rock for spectacular views (pretty much 360 degrees). But the village is very small. There's a tea shop/bread depot (so you can buy bread there) and a few small restaurants and shops. The larger town of Apt is five minutes by car, where you'll find lots of services and a fantastic Saturday market.

For the past 11 years, we've been able to spend several months a year in the village of Bonnieux. We now have our own apartment there and think it's the ideal Luberon village. Our apartment is near the bottom of the village and we can easily walk to everything we need. We enjoy the lifestyle and being part of the community. Bonnieux is also a great central location in the Luberon and for day trips in other parts of Provence. And although there are tourists, it has very little "tour bus" traffic like you'll find in Gordes and Roussillon. (These two villages are quiet in the early morning and in the evenings, but very busy during the day.)

You also mentioned hiking... it's outstanding in the Luberon, with many marked trails and circular walks.

But there are many great areas to base within Provence and then many special villages within those areas. Some villages are more isolated and offer another kind of experience. Many of us here have different favorites. I'd think about your priorities and which rental and village seem to appeal to you most. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time wherever you end up.

Kathy

KathyWood

I think wallybrenda is referring to www.theluberon.com, which is a rent-by-owner website focused on rentals in the Luberon. The website is also a great resource for information about the Luberon.

Also, none of the places we're talking about in the Luberon are "cities." There are a few "towns" in this area which have big supermarkets and lots of services: Apt, Cavaillon, Manosque, Pertuis. But mostly there are villages of 3000 people or less (some very small), including people who live in the surrounding countryside.

Kathy

wallybrenda

Thanks for the advice....we are all fit, so walking the hills won't be an issue. While we will be traveling in mid September I am guessing there will still be a fair bit of tourism, so traffic in and out of these popular villages could be a detergent. I will check out the village of Bonnieux as well.

Kathy...can you recommend any hiking resources or personal favorites?

Thanks again!

Rubicund

At least the traffic will be clean!

I've stayed in Gordes and loved it. Yes it was busy during the day, but we were out anyway and returned as the daytrippers were leaving. It was a fantastic place in the evening, with several wonderful restaurants.

KathyWood

wallybrenda, here's some info for you about hiking in the Luberon. And mid-September will be a very good time to visit.

http://www.theluberon.com/activities/hiking-luberon

MarySteveChicago

We stayed in Gordes this summer, but at the base of the hill. Our B&B host said one could walk to the village but the hot days prevented that. We would choose Gordes again with the many restaurant choices and nicer shops. Driving to the top and down on the scissor type road was easier than it appeared. We even came to a stop by a wild pig standing in the road staring us down! I didn't find the village overly crowded even in June.

Menerbes is charming but quiet and small. I did enjoy the market.

Didn't get to Bonnieux but could see it from our window! Mary

DebitNM

We stayed at a lovely gite in St. Saturnin les Apt in mid Sept for 2 weeks. It is fully equipped from A to Z with all the comforts of home.

http://www.accommodationinprovence.com/

The village is a short stroll and it has a nice. albeit small weekly market. A chateau and lots of hiking trails right out the door. We were able to do many day trips. It was a super convenient location - easy to get to all areas of Provence.

We would never stay in a highly visited village like Gordes or St. Remy etc. We prefer being in a quieter location and being able to visit other village and then being able to "go home" to relax each night. I don't want to be swamped by tourists, deal with crowds and cars 24/7.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ugh-france.cfm

Christina

wallybrenda, I'm not sure you understand about the traffic -- you are not even allowed to drive into Gordes unless you are a local resident. So tourists have to park at this lot at the bottom of the hill. So if you had some gite in-town (whihc I rather doubt), I don't know that you would even be allowed to drive to it, that's what I meant, as you are not a resident.

You can drive into other ones I know of that have been mentioned here (there are other villages in Provence or the Luberon where you cannot, also). You could drive through Roussillon and you can drive through Bonnieux, which is also very popular with tourists. Bonnieux is also, of course, very small and I suspect you aren't going to find much right in the village itself to rent, but one never knows. There is a constant line of cars going through it during the day.

wallybrenda

Can anyone advise about visiting local wineries? We have one fluent in French and are very interested unlearning more about the are wine and perhaps visiting a few winemakers. Would it be best to hire a local guide?

Thanks for the advice on driving ...one of the apartments we are interested in is in Menerbes so I will ask about parking. I have also found two interesting rentals just outside of Bonnieux.

DebitNM

FWIW - Our rental car was broken into while in a parking lot in Menerbes in late September. A pretty quiet day, the lot was at the entrance to village, not much traffic. Granted it was empty, they still did damage to car. Of course, could have happened anywhere.

KathyWood

Christina, I visit Gordes on a regular basis. I'm not aware of parking at the bottom of the hill. There's a big public lot at the entrance to the village and another series of public lots just up a bit from the main square with the war memorial. These are all pay lots but both are fairly level and couldn't be described as being at the bottom of a hill.

There are a few streets in some villages accessible only to local residents.

These old villages were built long before cars, so the streets are narrow and sometimes have been configured for one-way traffic. I think the villages do a pretty good job of providing parking lots on the outskirts of the villages, sometimes free and sometimes pay.

(And surprisingly there are quite a few rental options in and around Bonnieux.)

Kathy

KathyWood

wallybrenda, there are many wineries in the Luberon (on both the north and south side of the mountain) as well as "cave cooperatives" you may want to visit (Sylla and Cave de Bonnieux as well as others). Two of the largest wineries are Val Joanis (south of the Luberon) and Domaine de la Citadelle (Menerbes). Both of these have big tasting rooms and shops. Val Joanis has an interesting garden and Domaine de la Citadelle has a corkscrew museum. I don't think you'd need to speak French to visit. Smaller wineries will be happy to welcome you, but you may need to ring a bell to summon someone to the tasting room.

If you're planning to stay in the Luberon you should order the book Provence Byways www.provencebyways.com, which has great suggestions for day trips around the area. There's a section on visiting wineries (including some recommendations), as well as restaurant information.

I don't think you need a guide to visit wineries around the Luberon unless you wanted to do a dedicated day of winery visits and tastings. There are pretty tough drinking/driving laws... also a good reason to have dinner in your base village.

macanimals

I have to disagree with Christina, there are many rental options in and nearby Bonnieux as well as scattered all over the Luberon. Gordes, in our many visits, has always had parking in paid lots (the biggest is uphill from the main downtown traffic circle) and every apartment or gite we've rented (8 or so) has had parking arrangements--even in Roussillon.

One of the advantages of a Luberon location are the wine options. Chateau-neuf du Pape is within reach for the higher end but locally Kathy's suggestions work as well as La Canorgue from "A Good Year" fame. I prefer those nearer to Gigondas and Vaison-la Romaine which are also within reach and make good day-trip targets. Coordinate your trip with a village market in the morning and you have a great day. We've been visiting for over ten years and are still finding gems--good huting!

wallybrenda

Thank you all so much...we are so excited about our month in France and especially the Luberon area. There will not be a shortage of things to see and do, so finding the right base camp to come home to each night has taken a lot of research.

Kathy and Macanimal, we love meeting local winemakers and hearing their passion for the wines so I appreciate your information and any specific suggestions for the smaller wineries would be great.

Brenda

MarySteveChicago

We drove up and into Gordes quite a few times without a hitch during our week therein June. Our B&b host surely would have informed us if that were illegal. Gordes is a must visit imho!