Cindy_S

I have 2 free nights in-between time in the Var and a stay in Paris. This will be my first time in Provence so I thought I'd spend the 2 days/nights there instead of returning to Paris early.

Which city would you recommend? And where would you suggest I stay? (trying for under $100/night, with toilet and shower in room)

Relevant info:

I'll be coming from the Les Arcs/Draguignan train station the morning of Oct 22 and carrying my luggage. I'd prefer not to have make tons of connections.

I'll need to travel (train) from wherever I am on Oct 24 back to Paris.

I speak French, am 54, would like to "soak up Provence" atmosphere, may be interested in a museum or may just want to walk about. Time is limited so I'm probably not going to venture all that far from the train station (quick subway or taxi ride ok, but certainly not out to the suburbs, for example).

Not a "night life" person; quiet reading or maybe a film or theatre would be more my style.

Aix and Arles were also suggested as options, but Avignon and Marseille seemed possibly more interesting (rather arbitrary decision). If you have a strong feeling about either of these, please let me know!

Thanks for any advice,

Cindy

kraines

Definitely Avignon! We spent two weeks in Provence and loved the area. It would be great if you had a little more time to rent a car and see the countryside and small towns. It is beautiful. One of my favorite places in Europe.

StuDudley

Definatly Avignon or Aix. I prefer Avignon because of the history, & it seems larger than Aix. However, I perfer a leisurly lunch in Aix at Deux Garcons on the Cours Mirabeau over lunch anywhere else in France.

My wife prefers Aix over Avignon because of the shopping (we're in our early 60s - not interested in clothing or trendy stuff - mostly home decorating & cooking) .

Both cities have interesting architecture. We prefer the Tues, Thurs, & Sat outdoor market (plus the daily market on Place Hotel de Ville) in Aix over any market in Avignon.

If you are female and really want to "soak up Provence" - then I think Aix would be the better choice.

Stu Dudley

mimipam

Hi Cindy,
Well I would have a hard time rating these places. Aix was great- you can do everything on foot except Cezanne's house is a very long walk (take the bus). Avignon has the Pope's palace and I only spent one day there. There is a little train that will take you on a city tour. There is a lovely garden area which we only saw the entrance to. I also enjoyed that. Now I am probably the only one who will say good things about Marseille. I spent only one day there as well but had a very good and full day. As you know it is on the sea and you can take a boat to Chateau d"If and other islands. Marseille is very diverse with a lot of North African culture. The harbor area is interesting with the fishing boats and fish market early in the day. The restaurants of course have fresh fish. My son lived there for about a year so he was our "guide" and that may be why I enjoyed the city so much. We arrived by train from Nice. Now what might be a major negative for you is that you would be on your own and Marseille might not be as safe for you. Also, Marseille may not give you a real feel for Provence like Aix. Aix has nice markets where you might be able to purchase food - we only bought fruit there. Aix is really a walking town and might fit your purpose better. Happy travels!

tarquin

Marseille's hotels are geared to business travellers and are fairly expensive. I also think you would feel more comfortable as a solo woman in Aix, but my own choice would be Arles. It feels more "Provencale" in a distinctive way, has an extremely good market if you have any time at all on Saturday the 24th, and has a marvelous museum of Provencale life. And some nice shops.

Suja

I would choose Avignon over Aix if you are interested in History. Avignon is very charming, the Pope's palace is interesting and if you are staying two days, you could rent a car and go to Nimes and Pont du Gard. Nimes amphitheatre is wonderful and the 2000 year old Roman bridge at Pont du Gard is something I will never forget.

However if you just want to soak up the atmosphere, Aix is lovely. Choose a market day to stay if you can. I loved looking at the flower market, but on market day there are a number of markets all over town.

Hope you enjoy your trip !!

kerouac

Marseille and Avignon (intra muros) are radically different and equally fascinating cities. If you really want to save money, you can compare the Etap Hotel Marseille Vieux Port to the Etap Hotel Avignon Centre, which are both around 50€ a night and both very well situated. You can compare them on the www.accorhotels.com site and then you have to start thinking about whether you are interested in experiencing a big city with big city activities, a subway system, and an extremely charming seaside location or a medium sized city extremely geared to tourism and therefore rather sleepy in October. I love Avignon and go there every year, but personally I would choose Marseille for this month.

Cindy_S

Wow, I'm glad I asked! Thanks to all of you for the info.

I've been swayed by StuDudley and mimipam and have reserved a train to Aix. Really sounds like the place for someone (me) who wants to be able to walk to everything, to have some things to do, but mainly to relax and enjoy a "Provence atmosphere."

It's sounding like Avignon would be best with a car or other transport for sites near-by. And I'm realizing that I'd be frustrated by Marseilles; I'd want to spend much more time than 1 1/2 days! Aix is sounding like the perfect size.

So my next question is: Any recommendations for a hotel? My desires (aside from the obvious of clean and safe) are central, elevator, shower and toilet in room, nonsmoking room (or at least not tobacco scented), not incredibly noisy. I'd like to pay under 100 euros/night, but could be a bit above.

Cindy

mimipam

Cindy we stayed at the Hotel Cezanne in Aix. They have a website. It lists the price as 159 Eu which looks like too much but you could contact them to see if they will book for less. It was a very good location for us and breakfast was included. I hope others will have more suggestions for you that is more in your price range but if you can go this much I think you would like the hotel and location.
Happy travels.

mimipam

After looking at the website it looks like they have redone the rooms. When we were there the rooms were a bit "quirky" but very comfortable.

kerouac

Here is a site to check out to find the proper price:
http://www.aixenprovencetourism.com/aix-hotels.htm

Christina

I like both Avignon and Aix, so think either would do. I don't know why you'd think Avignon would be better for someone with a car, it is probably the place with the best transportation connections around there (of all types). Except maybe for Marseille, but I think Avignon has more tours for tourists and things like that. I think it would be easier to get places from Avignon than Aix without a car, actually. Maybe it's changed, but you couldn't go anywhere by train from Aix without transferring at Marseille, I believe. Also, Avignon and Aix are the same size, not sure you are aware of that. Aix has some beautiful parts of town and architecture, though, so be sure to walk around, not just hang out on Cours Mirabeau. I really wouldn't have chosen Arles, I didn't like it that well.

I stayed at this 2* hotel once in Aix and liked it very much. It's a great location, near the museum and a couple blocks from the main street, and also not too far from the train station (the old one):
http://www.hotel-cardinal-aix.com/