gitlecoeur

My husband and I are planning a trip to Provence in July. We have about 20 days, and I'm trying to figure out how to divide our time.

I'm thinking that we should spend about one week seeing the Cote d'Azur using Nice as our base, and then spend the remaining 12 days seeing other parts of Provence. We would probably use public transportation to visit the Nice area, then rent a car to see the rest of Provence. We like visiting museums and other attractions, including ruins, markets, etc., and exploring old or charming towns.

So, my first question is, does this seem like a good division of time?

And second, what towns do you suggest we use as bases for the second part of the trip? Perhaps St. Remy as one base? Any other thoughts?

I appreciate any help you can give!

StuDudley

Do you have my Cote d'Azur & Provence itinerary?? I've sent it to well over 800 people on the Fodors & aol travel forums. We've spent over 32 weeks exploring that area, and I've documented my favoreite scenic drives, villages, markets, etc. We spent 5 weeks there last year, and i'm in the process of updating it with more info from our latest trip. If you want a copy, e-mail me at
[email protected]

It's supposed to rain "cats & dogs" for the next 5 days, so I anticipate spending lots of time on the PC making my changes. I'll send you a copy when it's done - if you e-mail me.

As far as answers to your questions:
1. I would stay in 2 places on the Cote d'Azur - Nice & St Tropez. Both have completly different "looks". Perhaps 4 days in Nice & 3 in St Tropez. Rent a car about the 2nd day in Nice and explore the wonderful Nice Hinterland (see my itinerary). There are just as many cute little villages around Nice as there are in Provence, and the gorges & mountains there are amazing.

2. I have two recommendations for staying in Provence:

A. Rent a gite/house so you can go to market, buy stuff, and prepare it at home for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Get at least a 2 bedroom place with a swimming pool and large garden. Gites come with washing machines, dishwashers, garden furiture, etc. They usually rent from Sat to Sat and are less expensive than most hotels. We've rented 5 different Gites in Provence, and 3 different ones in the Cote d'Azur.

B. If you want to stay in a hotel, for 12 days I would stay 4 days in three different locations. St Remy, in the Luberon near Gordes or Roussillon, and then farther north near Vaison. This will allow you to experience staying in a village (St Remy) and out in the countryside also.

Things to do & see in Provence & the Cote if you have 20 days are too numerous to describe here - see my itinerary.

Stu Dudley

PalenQ

The earlier in July you do either i think is better

crowds accelerate rapidly during July and overwhelm the area in August

late June would be much more optimal in finding better hotels, etc. or at least by mid-July

Jeff801

Because of the escalating crowds through the month of July, you might be better off beginning your trip in the Western portion of Provence and leaving the car in Nice at the end of the trip. Because of good public transportation and tourist facilities, I found the crowds less onerous in Nice than on the highways.

If you do that, and stay in St. Remy, you could make a nice day trip to Arles which has an interesting festival on the first Sunday in July. Be certain to get there early enough for the parade and stay for the dancing and bull fighting (where the bull is the only player who does not risk injury) in the afternoon in the Roman arena.

Underhill

Rather than staying in St-Tropez you might look at the delightful small town of Bormes-les-Mimosas, near the coastal town of Le Lavandou (which has fine beaches). That would put you in a good area to explore Hyères (old and with some Roman ruins) and Cassis (pretty coastal fishing port adjacent to the very scenic calanques). In Bormes, which is quite like Carmel, Ca, with flowers cascading down the buildings set on the hills, we liked Le Mirage. There are any number of good restaurants in the village itself, which is about a 5-minute drive from the Mediterranean.