Does anyone have any insight into when the lavender is expected to start blooming this year? We are planning to visit from June 14-19 and would love to see some lavender, but I know it has been a cool and rainy spring in Europe this year.

Also, are there any particular areas within Provence where they tend to bloom first?

Thanks!

NYC -

Lavender blooms first at lower altitudes. So if you'll have any chance at all to see some (not too likely given the cold spring we've had) your best bet is in the valley between the Luberon and the Mont de Vaucluse (around the villages of Roussillon, St. Saturnin, etc.) .

Alternatively, as a general rule, seems like the lavender int he Drôme Provençal tends to bloom earlier than around here, so maybe that could be an idea. I'm not an expert regarding the Drôme, but maybe contact one of the tourist offices there and ask before driving up.

- Kevin

We were in Provence for the last 2 weeks of June in '10. I believe that they had a cool spring that year too. On June 30 the lavender was mostly green - turning to blue/purple in some places. This was around Sault. In the Luberon (where Kevin mentioned) there was a wonderful field just south of Gordes where the lavender was in full bloom - but again this was in late June.

We've made about 8 trips to Provence in June, and I don't recall ever seeing massive lavender fields blooming as early as June 19 - except when they've had an exceptionally hot spring - and that was only twice.

Stu Dudley

We were in Provence the third week in June several years ago. The weather was cool and the lavender was not in bloom in fields. We saw lots of blooming lavender in small sgardens in individual plants but not in fields.

Even when there hasn't been a cold spring, mid-June is early for lavender to be blooming.

Also check out the Lavender Museum.

many years we have seen the lavender in late August when they turned a mauve color or the lavender was burned n early September to make a new growth. At that time, the air was spectacular in it's burst lavender scent.

Hello,

Any more updates on the lavender blooming ? We will be in Provence next weekend, June 22-23 and while it is not the focus of the weekend, if there is some blooming it would be nice to see. Thanks !

Just a quick update as we are now back from our trip: as many others have noted, it was a cool spring and hence the lavender is behind schedule this year. We saw a few areas with partial blooms in St Remy as well as in the Luberon, near Menerbes, which were gorgeous. My guess is it will be mid-July for full bloom. But had a lovely time in Provence despite the lack of lavender, and will certainly return!

Suggestions on where to see Lavender between St. Remy and Grenoble in the 3rd week of July? We will be traveling on a Sunday and I know that there isn't much open on Sundays. We wouldn't mind taking a detour off the main route. In response to another post a nice Fodorite sent me a map of lavender areas and I remember that most of them were north of St. Remy so I thought that lavender hunting might be a good activity to break up our 4-hour drive on that day. (I know that it isn't 4 hours to Grenoble, but we're actually headed to Valloire.)

Cindy,

There really isn't any lavender to speak of north of St. Remy. The best viewing is east of St. Remy on the Albion Plateau around Sault. I'd recommend heading that way and then working your way over to Sisteron and the following the route along the Alps to Grenoble. Gorgeous driving the whole way and you should get more than your fill of lavander !

- Kevin

There are plenty of lavender maps online, I think website has a pretty comprehensive one and info on the separate areas

http://www.beyond.fr/themes/lavender...-provence.html

bm