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Gorges de Verdon to Eze - where to stay along way?

Gorges de Verdon to Eze - where to stay along way?

Old Apr 24th, 2017, 07:49 AM
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Gorges de Verdon to Eze - where to stay along way?

Looking for some advice for a nice village/hotel/B&B for a one night stop over in early June.

My fiance and I will be spending a Mon night in Moustiers,then making our way to Eze for a Wed/Thurs night stay. We are struggling to decide where might be a great spot to spend the Tues night, stop along the way. Looking for cute town, pretty scenery.

Grasse? Mougins ? St Paul de Vence ?

Any ideas? Thanks in advance!
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 08:26 AM
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Entrevaux
http://www.beyond.fr/villphotos/entr...o-gallery.html
or Annot. Entrevaux may not have a hotel - Annot does). I think you might enjoy the nearby Gorges du Cians and Daluis more than the Verdon gorge - we did!!

I would not stay in either Mougins or Grasse. I would choose Tourrettes sur Loup instead of St Paul in that region.

Stu Dudley
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 08:52 AM
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I suggest Tourettes-sur-Loup as well, although Châteauneuf-du-Grasse would also be nice. But the prize would be Le Hameau, just outside St-Paul-de-Vence. Perfect for a honeymoon!

http://www.le-hameau.com/fr/

We stayed there several times, and anyone to whom we've recommended the inn has loved it as well. Beautiful little place set in an orange grove, with a horizon pool and rooms that are all different. Try for one with a terrace, or perhaps the one set all by itself in a garden.
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 09:08 AM
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We've stayed at Le Hameau twice also. Best part is that it is not IN St Paul - but a short walk away.

Stu Dudley
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 11:42 AM
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Another possibility is Vence, about ten minutes from St. Paul. It's a very pretty village with many restaurants (we loved La Farigoule) and is at one end of a very scenic road leading to nearby Tourettes-sur-Loup and on to Gourdon if you're game. It would be a great place to break your journey.
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 01:10 PM
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Thank you all! We just booked le hameau - looks gorgeous. Looking forward to our stay there - and thank you for helping us check one more pre-wedding task off our list!
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 05:11 PM
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Stu-
could you please expand on your preference for the above 2 gorges versus ...verdon?

FWIW, we followed your itin for Gorge du Tarn and enjoyed that, and thought we'd go for Verdon ('grand canyon of europe', et al), but you indicate those two are better. In what respect(s)?
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 05:34 PM
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>>Stu-
could you please expand on your preference for the above 2 gorges versus ...verdon?
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 05:51 PM
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We ( son, daughter-in- law, 10 year old granddaughter ) spent a week last June climbing in the Gorge du Verdon. We liked it and had a great time, but it does get very crowded especially the roads around the canyon. Moustiers is wonderful and we had dinner there several evenings. It's a place well worth visiting.
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 03:07 AM
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We are staying in Moustiers...and were hoping to Kayak in the Lac, hoping to enter the first part of the gorges. Has anyone kayaked there?

I know there are kayak excursions from Castellane, but we were torn and heard great things about Moustiers...so anyone have an experience kayaking right there, and how far you got into the gorge itself (away from the open lac)?
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 05:50 AM
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If you Google-Earth the Lac/Gorge and zoom in, you'll see that there are some SUBSTANTIAL rapids pretty close (maybe 500'?) to the Lac.

Perhaps a wing-suit? or a helicopter ride?
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 09:15 AM
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The Warrior game was a blowout!!

Whoever calls the Gorges du Verdun the "Grand Canyon of Europe", needs to spend more time in the Grand Canyon of the US. I don't think the Verdon Gorge is even the best gorge in France - the Tarn Gorge and it's many tributary gorges are the most interesting and diverse, IMO. The Gorges Superior du Cians and it's neighbor the Gorges de Daluis (one hour inland from Nice) with their many "cute little villages" is also more scenic & colorful than the Verdon Gorge. I'll even give a nod to the Gorges de l'Ardeche because of the nearby Aven d'Orgnac cave and the newly opened Chauvet cave replica.

The US Grand Canyon is more expansive and quite a bit more colorful than the Verdon Gorge. The US Grand Canyon is more "accessible" because of the many "easy to get to" walking paths, parking lots, restaurants, hotels, etc around the El Tovar Hotel area. However, this commerce does not spoil the grandeur of the Canyon at all. When I was in High School, a group of us took a multi-day Easter Break camping & hiking excursion through a section of the Grand Canyon. It was breathtaking.

The Gorges du Tarn is viewable from above (like the Verdon Gorge), and also from below on a road that travels next to the Tarn River and past medieval villages, castles, viewing lookouts, hotels & restaurants. There are about 4-6 outstanding caves in the Tarn Gorge with stalactites & mites. There are many locations for kayak rentals along this road also. You can also drive then walk to lookouts above the gorge. Pt Sublime is the most famous. We spent 2 weeks in 2 different gites in the Tarn Gorges in 2015, and we never ran out of things to do & see. Nearby Roquefort (cheese), and Pezenas were quite interesting.

The Cians & Daluis Gorges are red-brick colored. If you have ever visited Sedona in the US, the sides of these gorges are the same color of red. We have a sample of small fallen rocks from Sedona and Cians on one of our bookshelves - the color is very similar. This makes the Cians & Daluis Gorges unique. Like the Tarn Gorge, you can drive along the river at river level and sometimes mid-level on the cliffs. There are dozes of villages to visit in the immediate region also. Entrevaux is our favorite - with the village next to the Var river & the chapel high on the cliff above. The Gorges de Vesubie is yet another gorge within 15 mins of the Cians gorge. Nearby St Martin Vesbuie is quite popular with a river running down one street in town. There are many, many other scenic villages to explore in this Nice Hinterland area.

Unless you take a "boat" excursion on the Verdon river (a little difficult to arrange), you can only view the gorge from lookouts on top of the cliffs (same for the Ardeche Gorge - except for the "arch" section). There are many lookouts. The best views are along the somewhat treacherous one-way Route des Cretes loop. We've driven the Amalfi Coast road many times, and I've lived near the Big Sur Coast for the past 45 years - and the Route des Cretes scared me - there is a need for more guardrails. This gorge is not nearly as colorful as the US Grand Canyon nor the Cians/Daluis gorge. Moustiers is a gem - we've overnighted there twice. But other "cute little villages" in the region are scarce. Castellane is nearby - but it was quite disappointing for us. In lavender season, the nearby Valensole Plateau is spectacular.

Personally, I would only visit the Gorges du Verdon if one planned to take a kayak trip down the gorge. The Gorge is interesting to view from above, but driving there & driving around the gorge and the Route des Cretes takes time away from visiting other "more interesting" sites in the region.

Just my opinion!!

Stu Dudley
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 10:47 AM
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Just a note regarding viewing the gorge from the Verdon River. There are several boat rental places ( mostly pedal boats and small motor craft) at Lac Croix. You can easily make your way along the river for some distance ( a couple of miles? ) It does get very crowded. We saw several kayakers but not sure if they rented or brought their own kayaks. Have also been through the Gorge dubTarn and liked it too. We stayed at the Chateau de la Caze which is fabulous. Far less crowded then Gorge du Verdon. The Gorge du Verdon certainly can't be compared to the Grand Canyon. Such a comparison makes no sense IMO but it is nice just very crowded. Had no problem with the Route des Cretes but then we're from Colorado.
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 11:03 AM
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>> You can easily make your way along the river for some distance ( a couple of miles? )
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 11:27 AM
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Only by boat and it really doesn't give you a good view to the top of the canyon. We were there to climb but if just sightseeing I'd probably give it a miss. As I keep saying it's just too crowded which makes roads and driving a real hassle.
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 12:10 PM
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I'm going to jump in here even though I haven't been to the other gorges under discussion and so can't debate their relative merits.

We drove the Gorges du Verdon in the middle of June 2016, on a beautiful day, and thought it was spectacular. No, it's nothing like the Grand Canyon; that's just silly. But especially from the left, or southern, bank, there were some breathtaking views; we thought the views from the north side were less impressive. As for traffic, there was very little.

The rock formations were stunning, and we were very glad we had done the drive. We obviously didn't do any kayaking, which is a totally different thing. I can't say whether the Verdon is the most beautiful or the third most beautiful gorge in France; all I can say it that we were very, very happy to have seen it. (We then went on to Moustiers for a few hours and were equally happy to have seen that, although it's hopelessly touristy and was packed.)
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 02:01 PM
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Thanks for your opinion, Stu; as your impressions resonated with us in following your other itineraries, we'll incorporate the above in our plans.
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 02:12 PM
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Do you have my Provence/Cote d'Azur itinerary that has more detailed info about that region?? If not, e-mail me at [email protected]. Do so soon, because we are leaving town for a week.

Stu Dudley
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 06:58 PM
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Yes just re-read it tonight
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Old Apr 26th, 2017, 12:18 AM
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I never go into the gorges without the green Michelin guide. Great helps great itineraries with maps and halts.

I like the Verdon much more than the Grand Canyon because it is located in france.

And when it comes to tourism from now on it is France first France first. We will make france great again. The gorges are gorgeous not like Grand Canyon. Total disaster there. They don't speak French there I know it. I have facts. Don't ever go there. Les gorges are fabulous.
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