one short day in Provence
 

My daughter and I are on a cruise arriving in Marseille at 8:00 am I have a rental car and have been to this area twice. I planned to show her Arles, Les Baux and anything else close. We have to be back to Marseille by 4:30 at the latest. Any suggestions. Am also renting a car in Monte Carlo and have till 11 p.m.
Any suggestions on a great day. I have been reading a lot but do love hill towns and my daughter really wants to buy some of the tablecloths of Provence I read about Biot for the blue and white pottery. Is that something I can do while near Nice? Thanks, have enjoyed reading the postings.

Almost any town of any size will have either a Souleiado (Pierre Deux here in US) or Les Olivades shop where beautiful cotton tablecloths,napkins,etc. can be bought. They are expensive, but the cotton is lovely; hardly needs to be touched up with iron after laundering. Olivades is slightly less expensive than Souleiado. Both probably have websites.

Have a wonderful trip!

From Monte Carlo (I assume this is a separate day?)it's not far to Nice, and in Vieux Nice you will find a number of fabric shops carrying a wide variety of tablecloths at prices considerably under those of Soulieado. One shop is right on the Cour Saléya: the Perle d'Azur. Others are in the winding streets of the old town but are easy to find as you wander along sightseeing, which you should certainly do.

On the way from Monte Carlo to Nice you can visit the hillside village of Eze, from which you'll have spectacular views of the Mediterranean coast.

I don't know that Biot is famous for blue and white pottery; the town is actually known for its glass-blowing. When we were there all I saw was the distinctive glass, with bubbles inside the pieces. But there's an excellent art-glass museum there.

I have several blue & white canisters (garlic, shallots, salt, etc) that are from Biot. I'm pretty sure there is a Biot store in old Nice (I think that's where we purchased several of ours).

You can find lots of fabric stores in old Nice, like Underhill said. Also, lots in St Remy. Personally, I would visit St Remy instead of Arles.

What day will you be visiting these places? Most shops will be closed on Sunday & perhaps Monday morning in Arles. Most shops will be closed on Monday morning in old Nice. Most shops will be closed every day for a 2 hr or so lunch, starting at 1:00. Exception may be some shops in les Baux.

If this were my trip, I would go to Aix and spend the entire time there. It has fabric, pottery shops, etc (my wife's favorite shopping town in Provence). Aix is much closer to Marseille, and it would save you about 1 to 1 1/2 hrs worth of driving. I've never been on a cruise, but if you pick up the car & get on the road at 9, you will probably get to Arles & parked & into the town at 10:30. See the town till shops close starting at 12:30, then have a quick bite (if that's possible in France), and off to Les Baux - getting parked & into town at 2:00. See Les Baux till 3:00 (quick visit) then back to the car return office at 4, and back on the ship at 4:30. Not much room for errors, or getting lost in Marseille, or stranded!!!! Again, if this were my trip, I would take a taxi to/from Aix (difficult parking).

Stu Dudley

VERY difficult parking!