Jane

Hi - I have a lot of the threads relating to where to stay in Provence (as a base), kind of vague question but I was thinking of Avignon or Aix but maybe somewhere a little smaller, and was wondering if anyone can suggest any low budget accomodation (backpacker style or a little more). I am thinking these may be harder to find in smaller places but not sure. Thanks

ann

I've stayed in budget hotels in both Aix and Avignon - they were the equivalent of a Super 8 or Motel 6 in this country and were very inexpensive but in both cases we had a car so didn't mind that they were about a 10 minute drive to the old city. Parking at the hotels was plentiful and free and parking near the cities was no problem and cost a few dollars. I think I found them on www.france-hotels-online. I really like both these cities as a base for the smaller towns all of which were easy drives. If you're looking for atmosphere in a small town these type of hotels isn't it but if you're just using hotels as a place to sleep and shower they're fine. There were lots of them around the outskirts of both bities.

Jane

Thanks, I will check out that site for hotels. I am still deciding whether to base somewhere smaller than Aix or Avignon for a couple of nights (going for about 7 days) any suggestions?

Gar

hi there, <BR><BR>agrees with above, there are a lot hotels in France that are like american motels (etap, premier class, b&b, Notte, formular 1 (last is not so good) ... They are mostly near the interstate connections, small but clean rooms, cheap (150 - 190 FF a double), the owner speaks a little english (most), breakfast is solala, You can easy book by phone and check in 24 hours if YOu use a credit card. <BR>Try:<BR><BR>http://www.etaphotel.com/etaphotel/index.html<BR><BR>have fun<BR>Gar

chris

here is an excellent website on budget travel in France.<BR><BR>http://www.eurapart.com/<BR><BR>I have stayed at the B&B chain in the Loire Valley and highly recommend it for Budget Travelers. Have also stayed at Formula 1-fine if you're not fussy about sharing a bathroom.

adrienne

Hi Jane,<BR><BR>I've stayed at the Hotel Casino in Aix which is a 2 star I believe. I probably found it in Let's Go. The owners/managers were very nice to us and moved our car to a free parking spot just outside the hotel while we were sightseeing. The hotel is at the southern end of the old town near the Rotounde (large fountain in the middle of a traffic circle) and the TI. From here you can walk to any sights within the town and there are lots of budget restaurants in the old quarter. I can email you my info from home if you want. Friends stayed at a budget hotel in Avignon which they thought was nice and I can get you that info as well. <BR><BR>I liked Aix better than Avignon because there were a lot of good restaurant choices and the morning markets were great as well as the many charming square with people out and about at night. But if you're doing day trips Avignon would be easier to hop trains/buses to other towns. It's more accessible to towns like St-Remy, Nimes, Orange and to the Pont du Gard (don't miss it).<BR><BR><BR><BR>

Christina

Hotels in general are much cheaper down in Provence than in Paris, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding budget rooms. Even 2-star hotels are fairly cheap (probably 300F/night and less), and there are some 2-stars. Three good sources of hotels in that area are :www.jack-travel.com (he has good commentary on budget places), and both www.provenceweb.com and www.gaf.tm.fr will give you fairly comprehensive listings of hotels of all ratings, as will www.avignon-et-provence.com The gaf site is one of my favorites as you can see cities by map and then click on them to get a listing of all hotels or hostels, there are many in some smaller towns in Provence (go to the youth hostels section for those, in addition to hotels). In Avignon, the Mignon hotel is a decent 2-star but is very cheap (www.hotel-mignon.com), as one example.