StuD - Stores across France, perhaps subject to local review, are allowed to open on some Sundays before Christmas - my local Carrefour at my French base is absolutely mobbed on Sundays before Christmas.

Hopefully the law will change IMO

Yep - we were in Paris just before Christmas '09 & noted the stores open.

Personally, we kinda like lazy Sundays where we wander through villages & watch the Sunday family big-lunch ritual. However, most visitors with tighter schedules than we have, would probably welcome the change.

Stu Dudley

Sunday mornings however are not so quiet in most villages - cafes are packed - lines at boulangeries to get bread for the family post-Mass meal (well no one goes to Mass anymore but still) and lots of medium size supermarkets are open till noon or 1 pm - this is standard IME all over France.

True - there is usually a long line at bucheries & boulangeries.

We stay in Gites, which have a 4:00 check-in on Saturdays & that usually takes about 1 hr. We always ask the proprietor if the local grocery is open on Sunday (so we don't have to immediatly rush out, join the mob doing the same thing, and stock up on supplies). About 80% of the time, the local mid/large grocery is not open - mom-&-pops are. Last year, the market in St Cyprien (Dordogne) was open Sunday morning because Sunday is St Cyprien's market day. The grocery in the town we were actually staying in (Cenac) was closed. I think the groceries in Sarlat were closed also. We moved to the Cantal, and the grocery was closed - ditto for the Loire (near Saumur). This year, when we return to Provence, the grocery just outside of l'Isle sur la Sorgue will be open in the AM, but not the one in the town we're staying in or the huge Carrefour in Carpentras (which is close to our Gite).

We've stayed in 30 different gites (several multiple times). The Groceries in l'Isle sur la Sorgue & St Cyprien are the only 2 that I can recall being open on Sundays (there may be 1-3 others). I don't know what the French people do if they realize that it is Sunday & they don't have food for dinner (often, restaurants close on Sundays also - but you can usually find one open). I guess they do a much better job of planning than I do.

Stu Dudley

Stu Dudley

In September 2006, My friends and I used Tavel, 10 miles west of Avignon as a base for 3 days.. We were easily able to go to the Pont du Gard, Arles and Orange from our hotel: Le Pont du Roy (www.hotelpontduroy.fr.)

We found Tavel to be a very convenient base.. We flew into Paris on an overnight flight from NYC, took the RER to Paris Gare de Lyon, then boarded a 2:20 pm TGV to Avignon. 20 minutes later by car, we arrived at our hotel. Either Avignon or Tavel make an excellent base from which to see the Vaucluse and Bouche du Rhone departements..

Any suggestions for more reasonably priced hotels in this area?
I don't want to spend the 175 euros a room at the hotel L'Europe.Thanks!

I am the OP. We will be in Avignon for three nights in June. I would welcome some restaurants suggestions for dinner near Hotel De L'Europe.

Thanks in advance Fodorites.