schnauzer

I have searched long and hard and still can't quite make up my mind. The general thinking on Fodors seems to be stay in St. Remy to be central for touring L'isle sur la Sorgue, the villages of the Luberon, Avignon and the Pont du Gard. Would L'isle sur la Sorgue or Eyragues also fit this criteria? I have found some lovely accommodation which of course is swaying me. We have three nights in this area. Please tell me if you have stayed in L'isle and were happy with the restaurants etc. Also is Eyragues too small for dinners out? We will have a car so transport will not be a problem, but we also do not want to be driving long distances at night to go for dinner. Hope someone can help me. Schnauzer.

Cimbrone

I am not familiar with Eyragues, but L'isle sur la Sorgue is fairly central. And I prefer the town to St. Remy, which I do not find especially charming. (I know that others do.) I only spent a morning in L'isle (for the antiques market), so I'm no expert, but we had an excellent lunch along the stream where they set up the stalls for the market. There were many casual, charming cafes with outdoor seating along here. L'isle also has a very nice, interesting church.

luvparee

I also have not stayed in L'Isle sur la Sorgue but have been to the Sunday market twice now. I love the town and wish I could have spent more time just walking along the waterways and walking around the town without the throngs of people on market day. We wanted to do just that on our trip this past summer, but time did not permit. We did, however, have the best pizza EVER at L'Industrie which (I believe) was called the "Savoyarde" - several cheeses, all of which were the best we had ever tasted! Very creamy and VERY delicious.

We stayed at a B&B (Le Lavandin) in Pernes les Fontaines which was probably a 15 minute drive to L'Isle sur la Sorgue and very easy to get to all the Luberon/Vaucluse villages/towns we wanted to visit.

Enjoy!

joy/luvparee

schnauzer

topping for myself, hopefully to receive some more responses. Thanks to Cimbrone and luvparee.

StuDudley

What days of the week had you planned to visit? If it includes a Sunday or a Monday, then I'de stay in St Remy (don't think I'de want to stay in l'Isle sur la Sorgue on market day, & it's kinda dead on a Monday). St Remy, being more touristy, would probably keep your interests more on a Sun & Mon.

St Remy would provide better access for the Pont du Gard & Uzes, while l'Isle sur la Sorgue for the Luberon & lavender fields around Sault. Probably more restaurants in St Remy.

Stu Dudley

schnauzer

Thanks Stu for the response. We arrive on a Saturday lunchtime,so yes we are definately there for the Sunday/Monday. The accommodation is actually 4kms outside of L'isle sur la Sorgue on the route de Saumane. It is called Le Mas des Busclats and looks really attractive. We were planning on doing the "village" drive on the Monday as I know from all your responses that a lot of places die on the Monday, so I thought this could be a good day. Everyone says to get to L'isle early on the Sunday and I thought well, if I am only 4kms away that should be easy! As we are only there for three nights would L'isle have enough choices of restaurants to keep us happy for those nights? We will probably have some big lunches along the way as well. Thanks for any more help. Schnauzer.

StuDudley

4 K away would be OK. Many restaurants close on Sunday night & Monday, but of the 3 restaurants listed in the Michellin guide, only 1 is closed on Sun & Mon - I guess because Sun is the big market day & people are in town. L'Estellen in Gordes is open.

Stu Dudley

curmudgeon

We stayed in both St Remy and a mas outside L'Isle sur la Sorgue last spring. If we went again, I would choose L'isle over St Remy; I just liked the character of the town better. The distances aren't that great, so if you have a "must see", you can get to it from either location. St Remy seemed more expensive, but not more charming to me.

twoflower

We had thought for a thorough coverage of the region, to stay 2 nights in Vaison-la-Romaine, 3 nights in Goult or Gordes, and 3 nights in St Remy. Is that overkill? Can we do all areas from Ventoux to the Camargue comfortably from just the one spot instead?

schnauzer

Thanks Curmudgeon, Where exactly did you stay, can you remember the name of the Mas? There appear to be quite a few lovely looking places around this area. (I guess they are everywhere really, but you know what I mean)
If you could remember that would be great. Schnauzer

gabriele

We stayed outside of Isle sur la Sorgue and preferred that town to St. Remy. All area sights are easily doable from this base - no need to move around. Look at mappy.com for driving times.

curmudgeon

Schnauzer, Took a bit of digging, but I found it. Le Mas des Hirondelles. http://www.mas-hirondelles.com/

It is out in the country a ways, between L'Isle and Fontaine-de-Vaucluse. Nothing really fancy, but very pleasant folks with quiet and nice rooms at a reasonable price. The pool looked nice, but it was still a bit cool to use when we were there. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. There was nothing much within walking distance, but town was just 5 minutes by car.