We will be coming from Annecy to Aix-en-Provence (six nights) and then on to Avignon (four nights). I hadn't really thought that we might like to visit the coast but am now having second thoughts. We will have a car - wondering if it will be worth the time to drive to the coast from Aix, cruise along some of the beach areas, and.maybe even spend a night in one of the beach towns there. We are fine with leaving our Aix house rental overnight. This part of our month-long road trip will be in mid-September.

Any suggestions for a coastal town that would be a good choice for such a plan? Best route to take to do this?

Cassis from Aix will be your best choice - by far. But parking is difficult. Stay overnight. We really didn't enjoy Cassis that much - until we stayed overnight.

Stu Dudley

I agree with Stu on this. A one-day van tour to Cassis picked us up at our Aix hotel. I can't help with the route, but it seemed like a reasonable drive and the town is so sweet. We took a boat tour of the calanques. We were there on a market day...parking places reduced on those days? Can anyone clarify?

FWIW, if you decide to visit Cassis as a day trip, we have always had luck finding a space in the municipal parking lot called Les Mimosas in the ave Augustin Isnard. It's a short walk to the port from there. Obviously, if you stay overnight, this won't be a problem.

Other lovely day trips include Sanary-sur-Mer and the hill town of Le Castellet. A somewhat longer drive gets you to Bormes-les-Mimosas, with its beautiful old town way up the hill.

I know this isn't what you're asking about, but other easy day trips from Aix include Ansouis, where the chatelaine herself provides a tour of the chateau (only in French, no supplementary materials available in English), and Curcuron, with its famous etang (pond).

This isn't a universal position, but we really enjoyed driving around the base of Mt Ste Victoire. From the south side especially, as it rises from the vineyards, it's quite impressive up close. The north side isn't as photogenic (more wooded), but there are still some lovely views of the countryside. Stops along the way include the barrage (dam) de Bimont and the village of Vauvenargues, where Picasso lived and where he is buried. I read somewhere that the chateau, which goes back centuries and passed through the hands of various French aristocrats,is being turned into a boutique hotel (of course), although I don't know where this stands right now.

I have on my list: Sanary sur mer, Porquerolles, Calanquues National park, Antibes, St Tropez

I did it again- that boat sailed.

All oceans look alike. The Mediterannean looks like the Atlantic. Both look like Lake Michigan, which looks like the Pacific

My coastal town would be Marseille, recently designated one of the top 50 cities in the world by somebody or other.