Royal

Hi. My husband and I are planning a trip to Provence next fall and want to rent a cottage or villa. We have narrowed our base to either Gordes or Menerbes. I am leaning towards Gordes as it seems to have more shops & restaurants.
I would appreciate any suggestions from the Provence experts that you may be able to provide to help me make a good decision.

Thanks so much

grandmere

I'm not an expert, but we rented a gite just outside Gordes and found it to be a wonderful base for exploring the area.

AnselmAdorne

Royal, is this your first visit to Provence? You've chosen the Luberon as your base, which is an wonderful introduction to the area. I don't think you'll go wrong with either Gordes or Menerbes. I have stayed in Lacoste and Saignon, and would return to either as a base. Others here have been happy with villages such as Goult or Bonnieux. Whichever one
you choose, I'd recommend that you visit the Abbaye de Senanque and the village of Roussillon. There are also numerous scenic drives in the area. (Search for postings from Stu Dudley. He has wonderful recommendations and will kindly send you some suggested itineraries.)

I do have one specific suggestion for you. If you rent a house or villa within a village, be sure to ask the owner about parking. We've rented numerous houses in France; some come with parking, and some don't. It's not a big issue, but you may end up parking on the street or in a public lot.

Enjoy your trip.

Anselm

StuDudley

Both of those towns would work out fine. Most likely, any villa or cottage you rent will not be in the middle of town, but down below. I'm not sure you would want to be in the middle of Gordes anyway. The restaurants we enjoy the most are a little closer to Gordes than Menerbes.

These towns are only 15-20 mins apart, however, and we actually enjoy a 30 min drive through the Luberon valley on the way to dinner in other areas. Don't be concerned about locations of restaurants & shops.

Most of the major sites are a little closer to Gordes, but we're only talking about 15 mins closer.

The restaurants in Gordes are nothing special, except l'Estellan, which is not in the center of Gordes, but down the hill a little near Les Imberts.

I have a 20+ page itinerary which describes my favorite villages, drives, sites, restaurants in Provence & Cote d'Azur. E-mail me at [email protected] if you want a copy - but hurry, because we're leaving for 4 weeks in France next week.

Stu Dudley

Royal

Hi Everyone. Thanks for your responses. This is exactly the info I was looking for.

Think I will stick with my original choice and go with Gordes.

Anselm - thanks for the tip on parking.

Stu - will email you now for that file -much appreciate your offer. Have a great trip.