I'm looking for great spots, unique experiences, anything seen as a special thing to do and see in the area.

Hi J,

Where in the south of France?

Ditto Ira

Cote d'Azur, Provence, Languedoc, Ardeche, Camarque, Roussillon, Midi Pyrenees, Pays Basque, Dordogne, Lot???

A list of the "great spots" would take you at least 6 months to explore. How much time do you have??

Stu Dudley

We'll be staying near Nice--so I guess anywhre within 2-3 hours. Thanks!

We'll be there 10 days to 2 wks.
I'm looking for unique experiences--like eating on a cliffside, or a charming little shack on the beach with great mussels...things, places or experiences that were unforgettable that I can build into my trip....

A trip to EZE is nice. Actually I like to shop, drink wine, and lay on the beach in Nice.

Between Marseille and Cassis are the Calanques. Take a boat ride or have a picnic tucked into one of the Calanques.

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/photo.voyage/calanques_photos/

Here's information on the boat tours.

http://calanques-cassis.com/en-vau.htm

There is a little village between Beziers and Sete where you can walk into the restaurants and grocery stores "totally nude." That's my favorite spot. It is called Cap D'adge. Beautiful beach for the all-over tan, too.

JES....while based in Nice, take a ride into the hills and explore Tourettes Sur Loup..wonderfully maintained medieval city...charming, small town atmosphere...have dinner at Grand Mere's..excellent, open pit cooking, wonderful couscous dishes, also.
The Maeght Foundation in St. Paul is a marvelous museum/gallery to visit also, as is the Matisse Chapel in Vence and the Chagall in Nice. The massive market place in old town Nice (on Saleya) is not-to-miss...I agree with the toher, we can keep you busy and entertained for months!
We just returned from a very enjoyable visit, stayed in aformentioned Tourettes sur Loup (actually 5 kms outside the town)..

Stu T.

Proper spelling (double "r" ...Tourrettes sur Loup)..I should say that Grand Mere is very reasonable at about 30-35E's for TWO, with wine. Their entrecote with frites is superb.
Stu T.

Another fan of Tourrettes sur Loup we were staying at the Auberge des Gorges du Loup at Le Pont du Loup that sits below the beautiful perché village of Gourdon. The nis L'Aigle is a restaurant there with an incredible view. We drove one dy tp Torrettes and had lunch at the excellent Auberge de Tourrettes. This is a wonderful village full of talented craftsmen whose works are top quality.

These are such great suggestions--exactly what I was looking for--thank you!!
Jay--Eze is a definite--it looks beautiful.
Cegal--great suggestion on the boat. My hubby will love that.
Gourdon looks amazing and you restaurant suggestion is perfect (I looked it up--wow!)
Wally--that is great. Time for me to start dieting....Woul we feel funny in clothing (is it an all nude community)?
Tower, your suggestions sound great.

Please keep them coming! Also--for transport do you suggest rental car, train or bus?

We always rent. It gives you way more flexibility.parking in Nice is doable but a pain.

Do you have any recommendations on where to rent?

Also, Tower and Cegal--is Tourrettes sur Loup a day trip from nice, or do you recommend staying over? Is it a good stopping point en route to another must see location in that area or direction?

An easy ride from Nice. You could stop in St Paul and St Paul-de-Vence on the way. You vcould lso spend a lunch time at Villefrance by the seaside having lunch. You could drive to Biot, famous for it's hand blown bubble glass.

That sounds great.

We're still trying to decide if we need a car or not or if it will be more of a hinderance. How expensive are trains? Do they leave you off in central locations? Does it make sense to have a car for part of the time and train part dependent on the locations we go to?

I've only visited by car in Provence, and a small one at that because the villages have very narrow roads. The trains do not stop at the many small villages. The only time I've taken the train was from Paris to Avignon, and from Avignon to Isle Sur-la-Sorge, Orange,
mimi, who does not drive

Rent a car and drive from Nice to Monte Carlo and stop in every little village along the way, it's just amazing. Have a great trip.

JES
TSL can be visited on a day trip easily..about 35-40 minutes from Nice, through Cagnes sur Mer and Vence...you can also do Gourdon that day and St. Paul on the way back. Visit the glorious Maeght Foundation in the latter...
Mimi..the Auberge in Tourrettes is closed as of two weeks ago when we were in TSL...we stayed at the Chambres d' Hote Beauvallon about 5 kms west of TSL..a beautiful villa restored by a charming Brit couple ...unbelieveable rate of 95 E's.
Stu T.