Hi there,
I am looking for suggestions and help with what could loosely be described as an itinerary for a week in Provence starting Sunday 30th September. So here is the story so far..
Sunday: arrive Carcassonne airport (cheap Ryanair flight!!) pick up hire car and drive to Bonnieux where we will base ourselves for four nights. Any suggestions for dinner in Bonnieux that night??
Monday: Hiking.. possibly Bonnieux to Lacoste or St Veran easy hike as described on Slowtrav website. Any dinner suggestions for that night in Bonnieux.
Tuesday: Drive of Luberon villages possibly to include Gordes market and picnic lunch with goods from market.
Wednesday: Possibly visit to Avignon followed by dinner at Le Fournil that night.
Thursday:Move to hotel in St Remy where will be staying the remaining 3 nights of our holiday.Visit Les Baux and St. Remy. Think it might be possible to walk between the two??
Fri: Private Tour of wineries with Guide in morning. Afternoon for leisurely lunch and possible snooze after wine tasting!!! Lunch and dinner suggestions welcome for St Remy.

Sat: Pont du Gard, Uzes
Sun: back to Carcassonne

I know that Bonnieux and St Remy are quite close but availability of accommodation meant a move. We are not into big drives or cramming everything in as we are only a short flight from France and feel we will return to the area many times- though this is our first visit to the region!! I know we have cleverly (!!)managed to avoid St. Remy market by being in Bonnieux at the time and vice versa and we have also managed to completely miss the Isle sur la sorgue market which we would dearly love to visit but that was the way it worked out unfortunately. Any ideas or suggestions for places to eat, ways we could improve the itinerary etc would be really gratefully appreciated.

Thanks so much

Cailin

Well, if you're hikers and don't mind spending the day crossing les Alpilles you could walk between Les Baux and st-Rémy. It's about a 20-minute drive, but I'm guessing it would be a 3-hour walk each way, on very mountainous territory.

Cailin, one comment about your Saturday itinerary: It's market day in Uzès, so I'd recommend going there first. You'll have a better chance of finding a decent parking spot and you can spend a very leisurely morning in my favourite market. Pause for coffee mid-morning at one of the cafés in Place des Herbes. Stay for lunch in Uzès, then drive the short distance back to Pont-du-Gard for the afternoon ... It's a day you'll never forget.

Anselm

Depending upon where you arem in Bonnieux, it's about a 25 minute drive to La Feniere--just past Lourmarin on the road to Cadanet.

We spent 3 days in Bonnieux last October. We had the good fortune to get a great deal (luxurylink.com) for the Bastide de Capelongue including breakfast and dinner.

If you want a great (but expensive meal), it's worth it.

That said, the market at Gordes was very nice. We also really enjoyed Rousillon. Neat little town with some nice shops and nice hike/walk thru the red rock canyons.

Hi everyone.. thanks for your comments and suggestions.
StCirq, we are not serious hikers at all but do enjoy getting out in the countryside.. perhaps we might reconsider and drive to Les Baux!!
Anselm, I will definitely switch Uzes and Pont du Gard around as suggested- sounds wonderful- thanks.
Ronz, is la feniere a restaurant?
astein, we are staying in Bastide de Capelongue also but without the meals included!!! I think we will splash out one night though. I take it you think it was worth it. The hotel looks lovely on the internet. We will check out Roussillon hopefully too.
I am getting very excited now. Thanks everyone!!
Cailin

The food at Capelongue was terrific. Quite expensive if not included in a package, but worth it for the experience. Great, elegant country French. Not fussy, not overly staged, just excellent (picture individual racks of lamb presented in a cast iron French oven roast over bunches of fresh local rosemary). The cheese cart is just unbelievable (probably 50 cheeses).

The luxuxylink deal made it so that room + dinner + breakfast was less than they normally change for just dinner. We got seriously fat over a 3 day period.

We found the wait and hotel staff to be excellent and very friendly. There were comments that the chef (Edouard Loubet) could be a bit stand-offish, but we found him to be charming and quite friendly. He takes pride in his work and it shows.

The hotel is really nice but not at all stuffy. Very upscale, but we didn't feel at all odd trudging thru with our hiking boots.

For the time being you'll have no choice but to drive from St. Rémy to Les Baux (unless you walk along the main road). The hiking trails are all closed due to risk of fire... everything is "red" posted until further notice.

Here are some recommendations for dining in the area :

St. Remy

Jardin de Frédéric
Small, cozy restaurant with a small outdoor terrace. Good seafood dishes. Friendly owner and service is good.
Closed Sunday and Monday lunch
Dress - Casual
8, boulevard Gambetta Tel: 04 90 92 27 76
Menus offered at 25 and 28 euro (dinner) 16 euro (lunch)

La Serre

Charming restaurant in an old greenhouse in the village - chef is the grandson of Gaston Lenotre. Very good, inventive food, reasonably priced.
Dress - casual
8, rue Commune Tel: 04 90 92 37 21

Many seem to like the Bistrot des Alpilles...

La Maison Jaune is a higher end restaurant and not inexpensive.

Two Café–restaurants that offer good value for the money:

L’Industrie – 21 blvd. Mirabeau
Les Variétés – 32 blvd. Victor Hugo

If you get to Arles:

Arles

Jardin des Arts - Totally non-smoking

This is a great spot for lunch. On the main walking/shopping street, in a restored building overlooking a garden. There are daily menus as well as a large choice “a la carte”. The salads are large and excellent.
Lunch service only.
38, rue de la Republique
Tel: 04 90 96 10 36



L’atelier de Jean-Luc Rabanel

Opened in March, 2006 by the former chef, and creator of the only registered organic restaurant La Chassagnette in the Camargue. This is a small restaurant in the heart of the shopping area. The theme remains the same – organic, fresh and inventive.

They have various lunch formulas at varying prices
Dinner – 50 €
7, rue des Carmes
tel: 04 90 91 07 69



Les Baux de Provence

* Riboto de Taven
In the Val d'Enfer, just below the village of Les Baux. An excellent Michelin one star restaurant for thirty-five years, they've turned in their star and are no longer serving a varied menu. They've become a country inn and serve a dinner with a set menu . Call in advance to see what they're serving - and if they have room. The menu changes with the seasons, but always includes regional dishes. Beautiful garden and terrace with a view of the village of Les Baux. Dining on the terrace in the summer months, otherwise indoors in what was once the bergerie (sheepfold).
Dress - Dressy casual, although no ties required for men.
Tel: 04 90 54 34 23
Menu is usually around 45 euro



Maussane-les-Alpilles (five minutes from Les Baux)


L’Oustaloun

On the village square, this hotel restaurant has a small menu, but the food is excellent.


Patricia

That's excellent Patricia. Thank you!!
My mouth is watering at the thought of all of those restaurants.
Thanks for your help.

Cailin

Bookmarking.