We've done a bunch of research including reading Rick Steve's Provence guide and still confused...Please help us decide.

We are currently planning to visit Nice and Provence (Avignon, Arles etc) and also Nice area...

1. Is Avignon, Arles, St Remy...and surrounding worth it? We've been to Rome many times...(planning to stay in St Remy). Which area to base for 2 days?

2. Nice
- we have a 1 year old, should we rent a car in June? Planning to visit Nice, Monte Carlo, Cap, etc...(3 days)

We have a total of 5 days in the Provence/Nice area...it's 2 1/2 drive...Where should we base in Nice? with car or without car?
We are going in early June. We've driving in Italy before...the Amalfi coast area, not as bad as people thought. We love having the car because it gives us the flexibility to go to different places...much easier than public transportation. We loved having the car in Positano...our hotel had parking. Most people said not to drive in Amalfi Coast...?

My point is, we've driven in small towns on Italy before and therefore hope to do the same in Nice. Or is this a nightmare in Nice area?

Where to stay?

Thanks for all your input!

Since you've read the Rick Steves book and still have many wide-open questions, the next thing to do is to get the Michelin Green Guide to Provence and the one for the Côte d'Azur. Start researching the sights that you want to see, check out the recommended itineraries, and then return here with specific questions.

What do you mean by "worth it"? Provence has some of the most important sights and sites in France.

There are many aspics of Provence so I advice you to read an over all book on the area.

My Wife & I have vacationed for over 25 weeks in the Cote d'Azur & Provence area. I developed a 20+ page itinerary for touring this region, that I've sent to over 500 people on the Fodor's and aol travel boards. E-mail me at [email protected] if you want a copy.

We always rent a car - even when staying in Nice for 6 days at a stretch. If you can drive the Amalfi Coast, anything in the south of France will be a breeze - except for a small section of the Gorges de Verdun.

Stu Dudley

Know that the Provence of Mayle's books and other writers is not the Provence of Nice and further up that coast. But each has it's own beauty though I find the Coté D'Azur much more crowded.

tetrabit

I strongly recommend a car especially when you have a 1-year old child with you. Driving in the south of France is a breeze, however try to avoid Nice during rush hours, especially Promenade des Anglais and Quai des Etats-Unis. Also try to avoid driving to St Tropez via the N98, it's a nightmare.

Personally I think Nice is a bit shabby. The surrounding towns are much nicer, the likes of Villefranche-sur-mer, Cap Ferrat, Antibes, Juan-les-Pins etc. I don't know your budget for hotel but Hotel Welcome (3***) at Villefranche-sur-mer is very nice.

St Remy de Provence is a good base. From there you can visit Les Baux, Menerbes, Gordes, Roussillon, L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue and Pont du Gard - all very nice towns with their own characteristics. Once again the roads in Provence are very good and well signed.

Have fun!

I am looking for lodging and a town to stay in on the Riviera that is "intimate" and yet accessible to Nice and other locations by train or bus. Thoughts?

I'd try San Raphael.

You might try Antibes -- such a great city, and although I accessed it by car I believe it has easy train and bus connections. I stayed at La Bastide du Bosquet, a beautiful oasis on the edge of the old city. www.lebosquet06.com/Anglais/Intro/Intro.htm

I like staying at Le Perouse in Nice because it was a short walk to the markets and restaurants in old nice.

I've already checked michelin...etc...what I was looking for was people's personal experience. I know everyone's got their own opinions...

Thanks Stu & Swagman for some great advice, we will get the car in Nice then. I think we might be staying near Old Nice ...does anyone have any recommendations for apartment?
Thanks again.

I totally agree with cigalechanta on the La Perouse. It was beautiful, right across the street from the water, had a lovely courtyard restaurant and pool, and we could walk from there to the cafes of Old Nice and the boardwalk area on the beach easily. We did rent a car and take day trips, but getting out of Nice was a nightmare, especially during rush hours! It reminded me of NYC during those times! Once outside of Nice, the roads were great and we found everything easily. We also stayed in St. Remy for 2 nights at the Hotel Les Ateliers, which was very nice and quiet, also right in St. Remy and steps away from their really great Wednesday morning market. I loved Les Baux and the Pont du Gard....also visited Arles, but other than the ruins, didn't find it too exciting. Also loved St. Paul Vence. I didn't care much for the larger cities like Aix.

In Nice, check out the Mercure Promenade des Anglais. It's a good hotel, part of the Accor chain, with a great location; some rooms have sea views. From the hotel it's just a walk of a few blocks to Vieux Niece.

BTW, you do NOT need a car in Nice. Parking is expensive, and most of the sights are within walking distance of central Nice. We usually begin our visits to Provence by staying in Nice without a car, renting one when we move on to another part of Provence.

Skip Nice (except for day trips) and stay further down the coast. Antibes is wonderful, and we found a little city we really liked: Frejus. We would stay in that area which is good for travelling around -- you do need a car outside of Nice. Nice is horribly crowded, but the Chagall museum is wonderful! The train goes direct to the central part of Nice; I wish we had taken it! And there are car rentals next to the train station if you are leaving Nice.

dmkujat, I loved staying at L'Hotel in St Remy. We had such a goodtime we even played pool as the screen behind us in the theatre was playing "Some Like it Hot." It was originally a movie theatre. You can't believe you are actually downtown once you enter inside with the Alpilles loking down.

I know....we stayed in that little building with the movies playing day and night...thought it was really weird when we got there, but then we thought it was pretty cool. A little odd walking in there late at night with no one around...just that big movie screen with Burt Lancaster looming large and some bizarre music playing! Definately a place I won't forget! Best of all it was so close to everything!