Great Experience with Taxi du Gard Provençal
Sep 25th, 2010, 11:07 AM
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Great Experience with Taxi du Gard Provençal
Last month my family and I visited Provence and we stayed in the wonderful town of Arles. In planning the trip we knew we wanted to visit some of the nearby sites such as the Pont du Gard and Uzès but we didn't want to deal with the hassle of driving. In my search for tour companies I found that many were based out of Avignon but we kept looking until we found one that would pick us up and drop us off at our hotel in Arles, and also offered an itinerary that sounded appealing. Well really the latter wasn't the problem, all of the itineraries of all of the companies sounded appealing! So much to do and see in that part of France, it's hard to narrow it down and just choose one itinerary. (Plenty of reasons to go back in the future though, that's for sure.)
Okay so my search led us to the Taxi du Gard Provençal website: http://www.taxidugardprovencal.com/ which looked like it had what we were after. I sent an e-mail to them and promptly heard back from the owner Sylvain (I believe he owns the company with his wife, but we did not meet her as he ended up being our driver for the day). His message outlined a few variations on the itinerary for the day from which we could choose and he made sure to let us know it could be tailored in any way to fit our needs. His English was great and his attention to detail seemed to be meticulous, based on his e-mail. This scored big points with me right off the bat, and my assessment would later prove correct as Sylvain was the absolute perfect guide!
We decided to choose a tour that included the Pont du Gard, Uzès and Nîmes. Also, even though I don't know much about wine, I had recently developed an affinity for a rosé that I had been drinking all summer and had realized that the château where it is produced - Château de Campuget - is in Manduel, only 15 kms from Nîmes! So I asked Sylvain to take us there for a quick look around at the end of the day we had scheduled. I didn't really know what to expect, I've never even been to a wine tasting here in the US! But mainly I just wanted to see the rocky soil and smell the air and look at the pretty chateau, and well, just be there! And so with that our day was arranged, and Sylvain promply confirmed. We paid for half the tour in advance and arranged to pay the rest on tour day.
When the day arrived Sylvain showed up at exactly 9 o'clock as scheduled. Throughout the whole day he was courteous, thoughtful and professional. He was a calm and quiet presence and a very good driver. He took us exactly where we wanted to go and stopped off at sunflower fields for us to snap a few photos, and any time we asked a question about something we passed he offered to stop if we wanted to get a better look. Also it was a swelteringly hot day, upper 90s, but his air conditioning in his spotlessly clean car worked wonders. This was crucial. Standing by the side of the road waiting for a bus to Pont du Gard in almost 100 degree weather would not have went well for my family, my husband is not good in the heat, and we knew we had made the right choice.
We got to the Pont du Gard first, before most of the crowds arrived. Afterward we visited pretty little Uzès, where we had lunch, wandered the streets and climbed the tower of the Duchy d'Uzès. By the time Sylvain took us to Nîmes we were getting a bit worn down by the heat and this is where having him really was a life saver. We started by viewing the Roman distribution tank for the water arriving via the Pont du Gard, then drove to the Maison Carrée and followed with the Arènes, but we were really dragging by now, the heat was oppressive. Having a driver with a nice air conditioned car who could drive us right up to all of the main sites was amazing! We then drove right up to the entrance of the Jardin de la Fontaine, where we tried to get ice cream but it melted so fast it was more like ice cream soup! And we then finished our tour of the city by winding up to the Tour Magne at the top of a big hill. Really if we had tried to do Nîmes on our own on such a day I don't think we would have gotten as far, nor would it have been nearly as enjoyable. I KNOW we would not have climbed up to the Tour Magne, that's for sure!
So back toward Arles, with the Château de Campuget the only thing left on our list. I was becoming a bit worried; my husband and son were definitely ready for the pool at our hotel, they don't drink even wine, I don't know what I'm doing at a winery...especially a French one! I am in over my head! What was I thinking!?! Would it be snooty? Would I make an ass out of myself? Okay, now we're there!
We get out of the car and go in. They advertise a free dégustation so I'm thinking I'll just have a sip or two, take a quick look around, buy a few bottles and let my family off the hook. But Sylvain is speaking to the man behind the counter in French, they have lost me as my French is rudimentary, I'm not sure what's happening, oh, I guess we're waiting for the owner to arrive? What? The owner of the whole operation? Oui! Apparently Sylvain, bless his heart, has arranged it so the owner would give us a private tour of the estate. And so he does!
Monsieur Franck-lin Dalle himself (apparently named after our esteemed Benjamin Franklin, according to an article I have since read) drove us around the vines giving us a personal tour of his operation that’s been in his family since 1941. This was the exact opposite of snooty, the guy was young and a bit crazy and super cool. It was amazing. We had to run to keep up with him. I guess the story is that his grandfather, who made beer in the north, got shot in the eye in WWII so his doctors advised him to go south for the more favorable climate and less pain for his wound. So in 1941 the grandfather bought the 17th century chateau and vineyards and began making wine with the war raging throughout France. He passed the estate down to his son, who passed it down to his. Anyway Franck-lin took us out and showed us how they grow the vines, which ones were planted when and with which types of grapes, then he took us through the whole bottling process and showed me which bottles were on their way to the west coast of the US! Very cool. Vive Le Campuget!
And what a magical end to a really amazing day. Out of all of the memorable things we did and saw in Provence (and there were many), I think that's the day that will stand out in all of our memories when we think back to our summer trip to southern France. Merci Beaucoup Sylvain and Taxi du Gard Provençal! We can't wait to return to that beautiful part of the world and hire Sylvain for another adventure.
Okay so my search led us to the Taxi du Gard Provençal website: http://www.taxidugardprovencal.com/ which looked like it had what we were after. I sent an e-mail to them and promptly heard back from the owner Sylvain (I believe he owns the company with his wife, but we did not meet her as he ended up being our driver for the day). His message outlined a few variations on the itinerary for the day from which we could choose and he made sure to let us know it could be tailored in any way to fit our needs. His English was great and his attention to detail seemed to be meticulous, based on his e-mail. This scored big points with me right off the bat, and my assessment would later prove correct as Sylvain was the absolute perfect guide!
We decided to choose a tour that included the Pont du Gard, Uzès and Nîmes. Also, even though I don't know much about wine, I had recently developed an affinity for a rosé that I had been drinking all summer and had realized that the château where it is produced - Château de Campuget - is in Manduel, only 15 kms from Nîmes! So I asked Sylvain to take us there for a quick look around at the end of the day we had scheduled. I didn't really know what to expect, I've never even been to a wine tasting here in the US! But mainly I just wanted to see the rocky soil and smell the air and look at the pretty chateau, and well, just be there! And so with that our day was arranged, and Sylvain promply confirmed. We paid for half the tour in advance and arranged to pay the rest on tour day.
When the day arrived Sylvain showed up at exactly 9 o'clock as scheduled. Throughout the whole day he was courteous, thoughtful and professional. He was a calm and quiet presence and a very good driver. He took us exactly where we wanted to go and stopped off at sunflower fields for us to snap a few photos, and any time we asked a question about something we passed he offered to stop if we wanted to get a better look. Also it was a swelteringly hot day, upper 90s, but his air conditioning in his spotlessly clean car worked wonders. This was crucial. Standing by the side of the road waiting for a bus to Pont du Gard in almost 100 degree weather would not have went well for my family, my husband is not good in the heat, and we knew we had made the right choice.
We got to the Pont du Gard first, before most of the crowds arrived. Afterward we visited pretty little Uzès, where we had lunch, wandered the streets and climbed the tower of the Duchy d'Uzès. By the time Sylvain took us to Nîmes we were getting a bit worn down by the heat and this is where having him really was a life saver. We started by viewing the Roman distribution tank for the water arriving via the Pont du Gard, then drove to the Maison Carrée and followed with the Arènes, but we were really dragging by now, the heat was oppressive. Having a driver with a nice air conditioned car who could drive us right up to all of the main sites was amazing! We then drove right up to the entrance of the Jardin de la Fontaine, where we tried to get ice cream but it melted so fast it was more like ice cream soup! And we then finished our tour of the city by winding up to the Tour Magne at the top of a big hill. Really if we had tried to do Nîmes on our own on such a day I don't think we would have gotten as far, nor would it have been nearly as enjoyable. I KNOW we would not have climbed up to the Tour Magne, that's for sure!
So back toward Arles, with the Château de Campuget the only thing left on our list. I was becoming a bit worried; my husband and son were definitely ready for the pool at our hotel, they don't drink even wine, I don't know what I'm doing at a winery...especially a French one! I am in over my head! What was I thinking!?! Would it be snooty? Would I make an ass out of myself? Okay, now we're there!
We get out of the car and go in. They advertise a free dégustation so I'm thinking I'll just have a sip or two, take a quick look around, buy a few bottles and let my family off the hook. But Sylvain is speaking to the man behind the counter in French, they have lost me as my French is rudimentary, I'm not sure what's happening, oh, I guess we're waiting for the owner to arrive? What? The owner of the whole operation? Oui! Apparently Sylvain, bless his heart, has arranged it so the owner would give us a private tour of the estate. And so he does!
Monsieur Franck-lin Dalle himself (apparently named after our esteemed Benjamin Franklin, according to an article I have since read) drove us around the vines giving us a personal tour of his operation that’s been in his family since 1941. This was the exact opposite of snooty, the guy was young and a bit crazy and super cool. It was amazing. We had to run to keep up with him. I guess the story is that his grandfather, who made beer in the north, got shot in the eye in WWII so his doctors advised him to go south for the more favorable climate and less pain for his wound. So in 1941 the grandfather bought the 17th century chateau and vineyards and began making wine with the war raging throughout France. He passed the estate down to his son, who passed it down to his. Anyway Franck-lin took us out and showed us how they grow the vines, which ones were planted when and with which types of grapes, then he took us through the whole bottling process and showed me which bottles were on their way to the west coast of the US! Very cool. Vive Le Campuget!
And what a magical end to a really amazing day. Out of all of the memorable things we did and saw in Provence (and there were many), I think that's the day that will stand out in all of our memories when we think back to our summer trip to southern France. Merci Beaucoup Sylvain and Taxi du Gard Provençal! We can't wait to return to that beautiful part of the world and hire Sylvain for another adventure.
Sep 26th, 2010, 08:56 AM
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Yes, it was 350 euros. We were a group of three people, with a pick-up at 9 a.m. and the drop-off roughly scheduled for 7 p.m. When I scheduled the tour I remember I didn't want to mention to my husband how much it cost, but afterward we both agreed it was definitely worth it! In fact my husband is the one who keeps asking me if I have written up a trip report for Sylvain yet.
Also I know I skimmed over our impressions of the sites we visited rather quickly (what else to say about Pont du Gard? It is amazing of course...), but I want to add that I was smitten with charming Uzès, what an adorable town that is! We also were really happy with our choice of Arles as a home base. We didn't fall in love with Avignon or Nîmes, we liked them both well enough but after visiting those cities (on different days, one day we took the train to Avignon) we were really glad to return back to Arles in the evening. I guess I prefer more of the small town ambience when it comes to Provence but of course must return soon to test that theory out more thoroughly.
Also I know I skimmed over our impressions of the sites we visited rather quickly (what else to say about Pont du Gard? It is amazing of course...), but I want to add that I was smitten with charming Uzès, what an adorable town that is! We also were really happy with our choice of Arles as a home base. We didn't fall in love with Avignon or Nîmes, we liked them both well enough but after visiting those cities (on different days, one day we took the train to Avignon) we were really glad to return back to Arles in the evening. I guess I prefer more of the small town ambience when it comes to Provence but of course must return soon to test that theory out more thoroughly.
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