Hello,
On May 23, we are flying to Paris, and then traveling to Compiegne for our daughter's wedding. Her fiance is French, and she just moved to Aix en Provence where she will be starting a new job. So on May 26, we are taking the train from Compiegne to Aix.(Already bought the tickets.) While my daughter is working, my husband, myself, and our younger daughter will have 5 full days (Monday to Friday) to sightsee in Aix and the surrounding area. Then we fly from Marseilles back to the U.S. on June 1. We plan on renting a car when we arrive in Aix, but I haven't rented the car yet. Will do that tomorrow.

My daughter is new to the area, & because she doesn't know how much time she will have for sightseeing before we arrive, I'd like some advice on which towns/village to see. We like just about everything: beautiful scenery, small cities & villages, the coast, lavender fields, wineries, museums, beautiful architecture, good food! I have been reading Frommers Provence & the Riviera. We want to spend our first day (Monday) sightseeing in Aix; then we would pick up our rental car in Aix on Tuesday, and have 4 full days for sightseeing. Keep in mind we have to be back in Aix in the evening, because we are staying with our daughter in her apartment. We might stay overnight for one night somewhere else, but haven't decided yet. Depends on money.

Our future SIL has suggested Nimes, Avignon, Cassis, the Calanques, and Nice. Based on my research so far, Avignon looks beautiful & a co-worker highly recommends it; Arles and St. Remy look nice, too. A day trip to the French Riviera (such as Nice) would be nice, too. Arles is 50 miles from Aix, so that is doable in one day.

How far is Avignon from Aix?
How far is Nice from Aix?
Are there any other towns I should consider?
Any towns I should delete from my list?

I know we can't see everything on this trip, and hopefully we will be back for more visits.
I appreciate any ideas/suggestions.
Thanks,
karen

Use maps.google.com for driving distances/times.
It sounds as though you already have some ideas as to what you'd like to see for your day trips. If you have time, I'd probably add some of the "perched villages" of the Luberon such as Gordes, Bonnieux, Menerbes, Roussillon, etc. They are all pretty close together so could be done in one swoop.

It sounds like a wonderful trip to be celebrating your daughter's marriage as well as to sightsee!

Thank you grandmere; I like your suggestion of the "perched villages" and will do more research on them. Where are the lavender fields located? When do they bloom?

We are now thinking that Nice is too far away for day trip, taking into consideration traffic at that time of year.

Thanks for the tip about google maps.

Can you recommend some restaurants in Aix or any other of these towns? I don't think we can fit in everything. Should we drop Nimes?

Late May is a little early for the lavender. We have seen a little in protected gardens in early June. The most amazing display we have seen is at the Abbaye de Senanque near Gordes. We were there in early July when it was in full bloom.

I think all of the ideas you have on your plate are fine. I personally would not do a day trip to Nice given the alternatives. That is pretty far for a day trip from Aix.

There is a lot of lavender in the general area north of the Durance, but I agree, your time period is too early to focus on that or even think about it much in terms of your planning. If you are interested, you can read lots of web pages with routes and maps, like this one http://www.beyond.fr/themes/lavender_th.html

I'd probably drop Nimes if you don't have enough time, give preference to Avignon and Arles and some villages. I'd drop Nice, more likely. Avignon is only a little farther than Arles from Aix, not much difference in distance by the major highways (ie A54 or A8), it's about 50 miles. Nice is more like 100 miles.

YOu really have enough time in 5 days to see Avignon, Arles, some villages, and Cassis if you want.

Two years ago we based in Aix for a few days in April and did day trips to Gordes-Rousillon-Bonnieux, Arles and Avignon. Don't forget Pont du Gard... it is better than you might expect! You could pair it with Avignon or Arles.

Although you're too early for lavender, in May you should see some glorious poppy fields.

Just read your fabulous report on Paris and the Loire valley. You have totally inspired me! In fact I was going crazy trying to decide how to spend my 8 days in Paris and ending up in Ile De Re. I think you have settled that for me We will be going over the first week in July. As i have been to Paris twice I think we will only spend a couple of days there and then head to the Loire valley. I would love to end up in either La Rochelle, Ile de Re or the small island you mentioned. If you have any thoughts on this please let me know!
As far as Aix and Provence my daughter and I began in Nice, drove up to the gorge du verdon and stayed at this fabulous place Le Moulin du Chateau! It is in St Laurent du Verdon and I think you would love to visit there. It is about an hour or two out of Aix and a lovely easy drive. Not expensive so maybe spend a night and eat their fabulous spectacular dinner! Edith and Nicholas are just wonderful people! The best ever!
I am not sure how far St Paul de Vence is but it is a charming little village with fun shops. A bit touristy however but beautiful in the hills. We had a quick five day trip on that one. Another time my husband and I went from Avignon through Les Beaux down to Cannes which was just beautiful. You can't go wrong! Lucky you to have all of these wonderful visits to your daughter and new son in law. Sounds perfect! Enjoy the festivities!

Thanks to everyone for your advice.Christina, I like your suggestions on what to drop and what to see. I think we will forget about the lavender fields, based on what everyone has said.

Centeno, thanks for your compliments.Is your trip for a total of 8 days? We were gone for two full weeks, so I don't think 8 days is enough for Paris, Loire Valley and La Rochelle or an island. In case you are staying longer than 8 days, we didn't spend any time in La Rochelle, but it did look very nice & interesting. We enjoyed Ile de Oleron, so that would be a nice addition to your trip, & very different from Paris & the Loire Valley, obviously.

What a nice opportunity. Best wishes to your DD and her almost DH. We sandwiched a Provence trip between 2 stays in Paris. If you want to read where and how we went, please click on my name and look for the following TR title:

Trip Report: A Provence Sandwich

We didn't drive at all. On another trip, we visited Avignon and Arles from our Montpellier base and made Nice a base also.

Sounds like a nice trip, Kwoo. You're too early for lavender,so I wouldn't bother looking for that. You might consider heading out to the Camargue, though, Aigues-Mortes in particular.

I loved seeing the Pont du Gard as a day trip from Aix. We also went to Les Baux, Avignon, the hill towns like Lourmarin and of course Aix itself (which we loved). Trip report is here: http://www.markandmonica.com/Travel/...012/France.htm

Wow!!! Thank you everyone for your trip reports and recommendations. I know that we won't have enough time to see everything, but hopefully there will be more trips to Provence in our future!

Kwoo do you think if we did 2 days Paris, 3 in Loire and 3 on Ile de re or ile de oleron it would work? The driving didn't seem so far from place to place. I thought we would pick up the car after two days in Paris, do the Loire Valley, drop the car off in La Rochelle and bike on Ile de Rei before we take the TGV back to Paris and home. I know you were so lucky to have so many days in Paris! And....your son-in-law speaking French and knowing his way around! Definite Pluses!
All fun and wonderful. Excited for your trip to Provence. You will love it!

centeno, you really need to start your own thread. Jumping in on this one is confusing for everyone, especially since the OP isn't going to the Loire or La Rochelle.

But since you ask, no, I don't think that's a particularly good plan.