Provence (with teenagers) – trip report
Feb 18th, 2006, 01:25 PM
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Provence (with teenagers) – trip report
My wife and I, and our two kids (15 and 12) visited Provence for a week last June after a week in Paris. Some thoughts from our trip, with an emphasis on the teen reactions
- We rented a house in one of the Luberon hill towns for a week. Just hanging out in the village and getting into the rhythm of the place was wonderful. My daughter (who’s aesthetically inclined) particularly enjoyed the hilltown atmosphere, and exploring the streets, castle, etc.
- My son (not interested in aesthetics or history, but enjoys the outdoors and sports) got into petanque/boules (bocce in Italy/US) in a big way. We played most evenings, with the local senior citizenry happily showing us how it was done. Even bought a boules set to bring back home.
- One of the true highlights for all of us and especially for the teens – and something we hadn’t read much about – was canyoning in the St. Auban canyon just east of the Verdon gorge. As part of a small group with a guide, you wear a wetsuit and go down a small river canyon by all means necessary: rappelling, ziplining, sliding down rock slides, squeezing through rock crevices and jumping into pools from 10-20 ft above. Incredible! No skills necessary – my 12 year old daughter loved it. The main issue is to feel OK with jumping from a height into the water – I never got completely comfortable with it, whereas my kids would keep doing it repeatedly. Check out the website of the company based in Castellane that we used: www.aboard-rafting.com
- Castellane is a 2-3 hour drive from the Luberon – but what a drive! We were in peak lavender season, and there were hillsides covered with lavender in a small detour off the route (search for Stu Dudley’s posts and ask him to email you his lavender routes if you’re interested). And then there was the Verdon gorge itself, which is a spectacular, albeit slow, drive (but don’t believe the hype about it being similar to the Grand Canyon – not even close).
- We stayed in Avignon overnight, as a base for points west of the Luberon: Pont du Gard/Nimes/St. Remy/Les Baux. My wife and I checked out the Pope’s Palace and surrounding areas (kids skipped due to history overload), but the street action in the evening was of more interest to them (I’m talking performers, lest you get any ideas). Avignon was lively enough, but certainly oriented to tourists (old-town Nimes felt more “local”).
- Swimming below the Pont du Gard (which is a do-not-miss sight) is fun, especially on a hot day. You can also kayak there, but it was too hot for us to do so. There’s a hike you can do along the ruins of the aqueduct leading to the Pont du Gard section which is fun because you experience the garrigue countryside and are also pretty much alone – we only saw one other party. There’s a part of the hike where you can even clamber onto the old ruined acqueduct and see the Pont du Gard in the distance. Also, good inexpensive restaurant (inexpensive by restaurant standards) at the Pont du Gard on the bank opposite the visitor center.
- The central old-town part of Nimes was surprisingly charming. My daughter was distraught that she had to be torn away from the shopping to check out the coliseum (well worth checking out – even she had to admit it) and head out to the ruins at Les Baux.
- We took the advice of the guidebooks and got to the ruins at Les Baux de Provence after the tour buses were gone (this is apparently one of the most visited tourist sites in France). Best time to get into the ruins above town in the summer is just before closing, because they don’t throw you out when it closes. There were no more than a dozen people there, and there were still a couple of hours of light (we were there close to the summer solstice). In that setting and with no crowds, it was absolutely magical. Of particular interest to kids were siege weapons and locations where captives were hurled to their death. Good stuff.
- Checked out the Wed AM market in St. Remy – much more touristy than the Sunday Bastille market we saw in Paris. But it was still fun to put together a picnic and head to Van Gogh’s sanatorium, which if you’re an art lover would give you goosebumps. And picnicking among the same cypress trees that he painted, and looking at the Alpilles, was amazing (my son of course was completely unimpressed). I’d recommend that you find a few “hooks” that your kids can get into before the trip, so they have a sense of context and ownership. For Paris, the ones we had were the French Revolution and WWII, for Provence it was the Romans and van Gogh.
- Also wonderful near St. Remy is Glanum, worth a stop for the Roman ruins – sort of a mini Roman Forum.
- We didn’t get to Arles and Aix because it would have been too much for us – we spent the other three days just checking things out in or near our village.
- The old ruins of Buoux fort are well worth a trip if you’re staying in the Luberon area – very atmospheric, desolate and an interesting hike for kids (including cave dwellings); but see caution on heat below. And Sunday lunch at the Auberge de la Loube is great (and is still so despite being featured by Peter Mayle in A Year in Provence) – on the terrace, cicadas humming, good wine flowing; we were the first to arrive and the last to leave (kids were fobbed off with card games and books).
- For all your activities in the summer that involve physical exertion, make sure to do your activity in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid the heat (except the canyoning which is in water). On our days in the local area around our town, we’d generally take it easy in the house in the middle of the day. Even on the two days described below when we were touring in the west of Provence, we’d have a long lunch in the middle of the day.
- Finished off with a day and a half in Cassis, on the Mediterranean coast (it would have taken us too long to get to the better-known places on the coast further east). The countryside outside Cassis is lovely (Cezanne country), but Cassis itself was disappointingly honky-tonk. Still, it was interesting to see French honky-tonk; also, the looks on our kids’ faces when they saw the topless women on the beach was almost worth the trip there. Took a boat ride to the calanques, which are over-rated, but there wasn’t much else to do. Bit the bullet to try the “authentic” overpriced bouillabaisse – and indeed it was very overpriced, although the local dry Cassis white wine is superb.
- Took the TGV between Paris and Provence – it worked out great. Rented car through Autoeurope (check how much trunk space you need when booking).
- Finally, many thanks to Kevin Widrow, Cigalechanta, Anselm and others for their help on the forum pre-Provence, and to Stu Dudley for emailing me his impressive list of recommendations. Hope my post gives back to others a small part of what I’ve gained from them!
- We rented a house in one of the Luberon hill towns for a week. Just hanging out in the village and getting into the rhythm of the place was wonderful. My daughter (who’s aesthetically inclined) particularly enjoyed the hilltown atmosphere, and exploring the streets, castle, etc.
- My son (not interested in aesthetics or history, but enjoys the outdoors and sports) got into petanque/boules (bocce in Italy/US) in a big way. We played most evenings, with the local senior citizenry happily showing us how it was done. Even bought a boules set to bring back home.
- One of the true highlights for all of us and especially for the teens – and something we hadn’t read much about – was canyoning in the St. Auban canyon just east of the Verdon gorge. As part of a small group with a guide, you wear a wetsuit and go down a small river canyon by all means necessary: rappelling, ziplining, sliding down rock slides, squeezing through rock crevices and jumping into pools from 10-20 ft above. Incredible! No skills necessary – my 12 year old daughter loved it. The main issue is to feel OK with jumping from a height into the water – I never got completely comfortable with it, whereas my kids would keep doing it repeatedly. Check out the website of the company based in Castellane that we used: www.aboard-rafting.com
- Castellane is a 2-3 hour drive from the Luberon – but what a drive! We were in peak lavender season, and there were hillsides covered with lavender in a small detour off the route (search for Stu Dudley’s posts and ask him to email you his lavender routes if you’re interested). And then there was the Verdon gorge itself, which is a spectacular, albeit slow, drive (but don’t believe the hype about it being similar to the Grand Canyon – not even close).
- We stayed in Avignon overnight, as a base for points west of the Luberon: Pont du Gard/Nimes/St. Remy/Les Baux. My wife and I checked out the Pope’s Palace and surrounding areas (kids skipped due to history overload), but the street action in the evening was of more interest to them (I’m talking performers, lest you get any ideas). Avignon was lively enough, but certainly oriented to tourists (old-town Nimes felt more “local”).
- Swimming below the Pont du Gard (which is a do-not-miss sight) is fun, especially on a hot day. You can also kayak there, but it was too hot for us to do so. There’s a hike you can do along the ruins of the aqueduct leading to the Pont du Gard section which is fun because you experience the garrigue countryside and are also pretty much alone – we only saw one other party. There’s a part of the hike where you can even clamber onto the old ruined acqueduct and see the Pont du Gard in the distance. Also, good inexpensive restaurant (inexpensive by restaurant standards) at the Pont du Gard on the bank opposite the visitor center.
- The central old-town part of Nimes was surprisingly charming. My daughter was distraught that she had to be torn away from the shopping to check out the coliseum (well worth checking out – even she had to admit it) and head out to the ruins at Les Baux.
- We took the advice of the guidebooks and got to the ruins at Les Baux de Provence after the tour buses were gone (this is apparently one of the most visited tourist sites in France). Best time to get into the ruins above town in the summer is just before closing, because they don’t throw you out when it closes. There were no more than a dozen people there, and there were still a couple of hours of light (we were there close to the summer solstice). In that setting and with no crowds, it was absolutely magical. Of particular interest to kids were siege weapons and locations where captives were hurled to their death. Good stuff.
- Checked out the Wed AM market in St. Remy – much more touristy than the Sunday Bastille market we saw in Paris. But it was still fun to put together a picnic and head to Van Gogh’s sanatorium, which if you’re an art lover would give you goosebumps. And picnicking among the same cypress trees that he painted, and looking at the Alpilles, was amazing (my son of course was completely unimpressed). I’d recommend that you find a few “hooks” that your kids can get into before the trip, so they have a sense of context and ownership. For Paris, the ones we had were the French Revolution and WWII, for Provence it was the Romans and van Gogh.
- Also wonderful near St. Remy is Glanum, worth a stop for the Roman ruins – sort of a mini Roman Forum.
- We didn’t get to Arles and Aix because it would have been too much for us – we spent the other three days just checking things out in or near our village.
- The old ruins of Buoux fort are well worth a trip if you’re staying in the Luberon area – very atmospheric, desolate and an interesting hike for kids (including cave dwellings); but see caution on heat below. And Sunday lunch at the Auberge de la Loube is great (and is still so despite being featured by Peter Mayle in A Year in Provence) – on the terrace, cicadas humming, good wine flowing; we were the first to arrive and the last to leave (kids were fobbed off with card games and books).
- For all your activities in the summer that involve physical exertion, make sure to do your activity in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid the heat (except the canyoning which is in water). On our days in the local area around our town, we’d generally take it easy in the house in the middle of the day. Even on the two days described below when we were touring in the west of Provence, we’d have a long lunch in the middle of the day.
- Finished off with a day and a half in Cassis, on the Mediterranean coast (it would have taken us too long to get to the better-known places on the coast further east). The countryside outside Cassis is lovely (Cezanne country), but Cassis itself was disappointingly honky-tonk. Still, it was interesting to see French honky-tonk; also, the looks on our kids’ faces when they saw the topless women on the beach was almost worth the trip there. Took a boat ride to the calanques, which are over-rated, but there wasn’t much else to do. Bit the bullet to try the “authentic” overpriced bouillabaisse – and indeed it was very overpriced, although the local dry Cassis white wine is superb.
- Took the TGV between Paris and Provence – it worked out great. Rented car through Autoeurope (check how much trunk space you need when booking).
- Finally, many thanks to Kevin Widrow, Cigalechanta, Anselm and others for their help on the forum pre-Provence, and to Stu Dudley for emailing me his impressive list of recommendations. Hope my post gives back to others a small part of what I’ve gained from them!
Feb 18th, 2006, 01:57 PM
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Thanks for your reports on Paris and Provence with teens. We travel with our boys who are currently 12 and 14. We hope to get to France in the next few years. I've saved your reports for future reference. 
Feb 18th, 2006, 02:24 PM
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Thanks again for a great trip report krishnan!
That canyoning trip sounds like A LOT of fun. I went to the website and the photos were amazing. (Were you able to get photos of your own????) We will be staying in St.Paul and that's just 1 hr from the Castellane area.
I have 2 questions.
1. There are 2 trips-- the St. Aubon and the Jabron. Did you hear about the difference between the 2 and, if so, why did you choose the St. Aubon.
2. Am curious (being sort of a neurotic mother)--what was the danger / fear factor involved? I know you mentioned that one doesn't need specific skills, but I was wondering if you need to be a pretty brave or adventurous soul to do this.
thanks!
Dina
That canyoning trip sounds like A LOT of fun. I went to the website and the photos were amazing. (Were you able to get photos of your own????) We will be staying in St.Paul and that's just 1 hr from the Castellane area.
I have 2 questions.
1. There are 2 trips-- the St. Aubon and the Jabron. Did you hear about the difference between the 2 and, if so, why did you choose the St. Aubon.
2. Am curious (being sort of a neurotic mother)--what was the danger / fear factor involved? I know you mentioned that one doesn't need specific skills, but I was wondering if you need to be a pretty brave or adventurous soul to do this.
thanks!
Dina
Feb 18th, 2006, 02:56 PM
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krishnan, it is always such a joy to read about someone else enjoying something that you find a pleasure yourself. Thanks for this report.
Now, a question for you: that place where you hiked near Pont-du-Gard, where you could climb on the old acqueduct, is it on the same side of the river as the interpretation centre or the other side?
Anselm
Now, a question for you: that place where you hiked near Pont-du-Gard, where you could climb on the old acqueduct, is it on the same side of the river as the interpretation centre or the other side?
Anselm
Feb 18th, 2006, 05:01 PM
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krishnan,
Loved your trip report. Can't however, believe that you bought a bocce set to bring home. Lordy, those things must weigh 50 pounds! I shudder to think of carrying it through airports, much less paying the excess baggage charges. How did you manage?
We too like the game, but bought a set at Costco for $40.
Loved your trip report. Can't however, believe that you bought a bocce set to bring home. Lordy, those things must weigh 50 pounds! I shudder to think of carrying it through airports, much less paying the excess baggage charges. How did you manage?
We too like the game, but bought a set at Costco for $40.
Feb 18th, 2006, 05:34 PM
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Anselm: Good to hear from you! And thanks again for your help prior to our trip. I don’t recall the answer to your question, but I’ll dig up my book on Provence hikes and get back to you in the next day or two. I also want to give you a little more by way of directions on the hike, since the initial bit was not clearly marked (and the folks I spoke with at the info desk weren't able to help).
Dina: I’m not sure that Jabron was available last summer. It appears a little easier than St. Auban (min 10 years versus min 12). On your second question, there was no real danger. On the other hand, you do have to be willing to jump 15+ feet into a pool of water. The first one is psychologically the hardest – several of us (including me) passed on it and just abseiled (sort of rappelled) down instead. On the next jump, all of us jumped but there was one Swedish girl that took a good five minutes to jump – but after that she was one of the most enthusiastic jumpers! There is also a zipline where you do have to take the courage to step off the ledge and slide down the zipline – again no danger but you have to “just do it” and not think about it. But I believe the zipline and later jumps cannot be abseiled around in the St. Auban trip – and you cannot turn back up the canyon after the first jump! The company’s website info on the Jabron trip though mentions that none of the jumps or slides are compulsory – they can all be asbseiled around. So if you’re unsure whether you’ll do it when push comes to shove, so to speak, you may want to consider the Jabron option, even if it is tamer (and doesn’t appear to have the zipline). But email the company and see what they have to say.
Also, you may want to check out the hydrospeeding, which our daughter was chronologically too young to do. But definitely do one of these trips – we had such a blast! I’d also love to hear about your Provence trip, particularly since we may stay the next time in the Var/St Paul area, with a foray to the coast. (If you don’t mind, alert me on one of my posts when you’ve posted your trip, since I tend to get on the site only sporadically.)
Nukesafe: Ah, but we have zee authentic French version (I just haven’t looked for the Made in China label yet).
Dina: I’m not sure that Jabron was available last summer. It appears a little easier than St. Auban (min 10 years versus min 12). On your second question, there was no real danger. On the other hand, you do have to be willing to jump 15+ feet into a pool of water. The first one is psychologically the hardest – several of us (including me) passed on it and just abseiled (sort of rappelled) down instead. On the next jump, all of us jumped but there was one Swedish girl that took a good five minutes to jump – but after that she was one of the most enthusiastic jumpers! There is also a zipline where you do have to take the courage to step off the ledge and slide down the zipline – again no danger but you have to “just do it” and not think about it. But I believe the zipline and later jumps cannot be abseiled around in the St. Auban trip – and you cannot turn back up the canyon after the first jump! The company’s website info on the Jabron trip though mentions that none of the jumps or slides are compulsory – they can all be asbseiled around. So if you’re unsure whether you’ll do it when push comes to shove, so to speak, you may want to consider the Jabron option, even if it is tamer (and doesn’t appear to have the zipline). But email the company and see what they have to say.
Also, you may want to check out the hydrospeeding, which our daughter was chronologically too young to do. But definitely do one of these trips – we had such a blast! I’d also love to hear about your Provence trip, particularly since we may stay the next time in the Var/St Paul area, with a foray to the coast. (If you don’t mind, alert me on one of my posts when you’ve posted your trip, since I tend to get on the site only sporadically.)
Nukesafe: Ah, but we have zee authentic French version (I just haven’t looked for the Made in China label yet).
Feb 19th, 2006, 05:03 AM
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happy to see u have enjoyed it.
Verdon is indeed a great place ! I can recommend to all of you la Bastide de Moustiers in Moustiers Ste Marie. Wonderful hotel and restaurant.
What does honky tonk mean ?
Recommandation : avoid having bouillabaisse anywhere else than in these 4 restaurants (all in Marseille) : Miramar, Brasserie des Catalans, l'Epuisette and Fonfon. Everywhere else it will be over rated !
Verdon is indeed a great place ! I can recommend to all of you la Bastide de Moustiers in Moustiers Ste Marie. Wonderful hotel and restaurant.
What does honky tonk mean ?
Recommandation : avoid having bouillabaisse anywhere else than in these 4 restaurants (all in Marseille) : Miramar, Brasserie des Catalans, l'Epuisette and Fonfon. Everywhere else it will be over rated !
Feb 19th, 2006, 12:46 PM
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Anselm: To answer your question on the hike from the Pont du Gard along the old aqueduct: It’s on the left bank, which as I recall is where the large visitor center is. Here are the instructions from my Provence hiking book: (The instructions assume you cross the Pont du Gard from the right bank), “….then go straight up the steps. This is part of GR 6 (red and white waymarking) and PR41 (yellow waymarking). The maze of paths through the garrigues here can be confusing, so look out for the colored waymarking – you should always be on a strong, clear, waymarked path. [Note: We got a little lost too here – my recollection is that there is also waymarking with a cross over it, which presumably meant that this was the wrong way for that marked route; but we had got a little confused by that marking, not being Grandes Randonnees veterans.] The route goes through a beautiful wood of holly and holm oak. Soon remains of the old aqueduct begin to appear on the left. After about 10 minutes you’ll come across a lane – cross straight over this lane. There are even more substantial remains on this stretch. At a crossing with a lane on the left and a track to the right, go straight ahead up a steep dirt path. There is a beautiful setting not far along, with rocks placed in a circle beneath a huge holm oak on the right – a perfect picnic spot.” Good luck! The walk is not long, but we enjoyed it and I hope you will too.
Benjinho: Thanks for your comments. Honky tonk would be cheap and slightly garish, usually with reference to a bar, but could also be used to refer to a section of town. I may have been a little harsh to use that term for Cassis, but many American beach town sections are definitely honky tonk (and from my reading some English ones too) - perhaps Cassis just demonstrates that the French do even honky tonk with more panache.
Benjinho: Thanks for your comments. Honky tonk would be cheap and slightly garish, usually with reference to a bar, but could also be used to refer to a section of town. I may have been a little harsh to use that term for Cassis, but many American beach town sections are definitely honky tonk (and from my reading some English ones too) - perhaps Cassis just demonstrates that the French do even honky tonk with more panache.
Mar 4th, 2006, 11:18 AM
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Hi Krishnan,
Two more questions...
1. What exactly was your timing at the Les Baux castle? We will be there on June 25, and wanted to get there as late as possible also.
2. Did you and your kids do the audio tour or just walk up? Were things labeled in English?
Thanks,
Dina
Two more questions...
1. What exactly was your timing at the Les Baux castle? We will be there on June 25, and wanted to get there as late as possible also.
2. Did you and your kids do the audio tour or just walk up? Were things labeled in English?
Thanks,
Dina
Mar 4th, 2006, 12:25 PM
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Krishnan,
Nice report and thanks for the tip about the canyoning company near Castellane. Will have to give it a try as soon as the weather warms up a bit. Do you think it would be too difficult for a 9 year old ?
-Kevin
Nice report and thanks for the tip about the canyoning company near Castellane. Will have to give it a try as soon as the weather warms up a bit. Do you think it would be too difficult for a 9 year old ?
-Kevin
Mar 7th, 2006, 07:30 AM
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kirshnan - thanks for the great trip report! Our family (kids 10, 10, and 12) is headed to Paris, Provence and Spain in a coupld of weeks.
At present, we have three nights in Provence and are considering adding a fourth (taking a day away from Barcelona). Our plans now are to base in Avignon - do you have any suggestions for nearby hotels that might be family-friendly in a nearby small town? I'd really rather be out of the city.
thanks for any insight you can offer.
At present, we have three nights in Provence and are considering adding a fourth (taking a day away from Barcelona). Our plans now are to base in Avignon - do you have any suggestions for nearby hotels that might be family-friendly in a nearby small town? I'd really rather be out of the city.
thanks for any insight you can offer.
Mar 7th, 2006, 08:53 AM
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Hi Kevin – good to hear from you. First of all, thanks again for all your suggestions prior to our trip – obviously we had a great time! On your question about your 9 yr old, the company we used had minimum ages for each of their trips (I think 10 yrs was the minimum for the canyoning trips). But you may want to check with other companies based in Castellane if they have a trip appropriate for her age (if you don’t find others, let me know – I have a Castellane tourism website bookmarked somewhere). As to whether a 9-yr old would be comfortable doing it, she should have no problems with the scrambling through and sliding down rocks, or even abseiling. The real question is whether she would be OK jumping – for instance, if she’s jumped off a high dive, she should not have a problem. Good luck!
Dina: We didn’t do the audio guides, but there was pretty good signage in English. As to what time it’s open until – I’d suggest checking the Les Baux website because the guidebook we were using that day had the wrong closing time.
H0b0: I’m by no means an expert on Provence, having spent all of a week there, so I’d suggest you post this question separately to get a response from folks who live there or who visit a lot. But my 2¢ from what I’ve visited is that St.-Remy could serve as a base for you. It’s slightly more conveniently located to the major sights and is easier to get in and out of than Avignon. It felt a little like the Hamptons on the shi shi meter, but not as bad. Or you could look for a smaller village, of which there are many in the Luberon which is where we stayed, but that may be too far for you if you want to be in the Avignon area (and I don’t know of the smaller places there).
Dina: We didn’t do the audio guides, but there was pretty good signage in English. As to what time it’s open until – I’d suggest checking the Les Baux website because the guidebook we were using that day had the wrong closing time.
H0b0: I’m by no means an expert on Provence, having spent all of a week there, so I’d suggest you post this question separately to get a response from folks who live there or who visit a lot. But my 2¢ from what I’ve visited is that St.-Remy could serve as a base for you. It’s slightly more conveniently located to the major sights and is easier to get in and out of than Avignon. It felt a little like the Hamptons on the shi shi meter, but not as bad. Or you could look for a smaller village, of which there are many in the Luberon which is where we stayed, but that may be too far for you if you want to be in the Avignon area (and I don’t know of the smaller places there).
