Overwhelmed - Camargue 1 day
 

My husband and I will be in France for about 3 weeks in Sept. We would like to visit Camargue for 1 day, with emphasis on birds and nature in general.
The day we plan to do this we would be coming from Cassis, then spend the night in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer (or any other place in the area, actually; nothing is booked yet). Camargue is a big place, and there is no way to see it all in one day, so I was thinking a birding guide might be helpful to take us to the more interesting places.
Can you recommend one? I tried a couple and got no response.
We are not opposed to just driving around ourselves, but I really don't know how to select a few places to stop. I really ned help...
Thanks

Here is the official website for Camargue guides. If you need an English-speaking guide, there is a contact at the bottom of their page.

https://www.guide-nature.fr/visites-nature/

On the road to Saintes Maries de la Mer is the Parc Ornithologique from where you can see the birds of the Camargue up close. It´s the best bird watching location in all the Camargue.

kerouac, that site never came up when using Google in English. Looks great, and I'll email them about a guide. Thanks.

Sarastro, if we can't find a guide (of if we decide to go without one), at least we know to include that location. That site suggests about 1.5 hrs at that location, so we'll have time to explore other areas, too. Thanks.

Besides the Parc Ornithologique, which is certainly the best place to see birds, there is little guarantee that you will encounter all the wildlife of the Camargue, or the cowboys, or whatever. I've been in the Camargue at least a dozen times and seen very little of that. OTOH, Aigues-Mortes is a wonderful town and you should not miss it. Ste-Marie-de-la-Mer is just meh, IMO. The very best thing about the Camargue, IME, is having a meal at La Telline, if you can find it.

I don't think you need a guide or even a list of places to stop. Just drive around and keep your eyes open and stop and buy some red rice.

StCirq,
So maybe a better day would be to just stop at the Parc Ornithologique for a couple of hours, then go to Aigues-Mortes and spend the night there instead? We would only have an afternoon there...
Thanks

Whatever you decide, don't forget mosquito repellent.

There is a farm museum near the bird sanctuary which might be of interest. These sites are on D570, and you probably can turn off on D38C which becomes D58 to Aigues-Mortes. That still can be done as a day trip.

Oh, I am thankful for this piece of advice! I am a mosquito magnet, and this was not on my radar. Thanks!

I should have remembered the mosquito repellent. They are really nasty in the Camargue.

Yes, I would spend a night in Aigues-Mortes.

The more I read about Aigues-Mortes, the more I want to spend some time there. So I think we'll have just a couple of hours stop in Camargue (no need for a guide in this case), then spend the afternoon, and maybe a couple more hours the next morning in Aigues-Mortes. From there, we'll be on our way to Gordes for a few nights there.
Thank you all, this was really helpful.

Do try to find this place (it's not easy - it's just a fisherman's house on a rather lonely road, or at least it was last time I found my way there): Restaurant La Telline : spécialité produits Camargue

No set menu when I've been there, just what Monsieur has managed to catch that morning, cooked in an open fire. Delicious! They used to have a dog named Idée who would come and remove your napkin when dinner was over and deposit it in a basket in the kitchen, but she's likely long gone.

I think the main square in Aigues-Mortes is one of the prettiest in all of Europe. If you're adventurous, try eating bull's tail while you're there. It's a relatively small place; you won't need more than a couple of hours to take it all in, but do climb up the ramparts as well as walk through the town.

La Telline sounds wonderful, maybe we'll stop for lunch there. It's on Google maps, so hopefully not that hard to find.

We eat ox tail and love it, I guess bull's tail is similar so we'll definitely try it. It's probably prepared differently, and it will be interesting to compare recipes. Thanks.

Five years ago, I made a photo report about Aigues-Mortes on a hot summer day.

Aigues-Mortes | Any Port in a Storm

Loved it, kerouac, thanks for sharing. I guess the heat explains why the streets were so empty :)