Judy

I should preview as my post above is unclear. We went to Gigondas for a noon lunch and then to the winery for our tour and tasting.

Brad and Angelina were at the winery as the Perrins produce their Miraval rose.....or did before they split up.

StuDudley

>>The Perrin family, who owns Beaucastel also owns l'Oustalet restaurant in Gigondas.<<

l'Oustalet is our favorite in the region. We've dined there at least 6 times over the past 14 years. We had an excellent dinner there in late June this year during a massive rainfall & thunderstorm. I actually prefer dining inside over dining outside at night.

Stu Dudley

justretired

Hi Lauie,

I love Provence and am thrilled you are going there and to Barcelona. So far, you are staying in Nimes and near Aix which are only about an hour apart. From Nimes, you can certainly visit Arles, St Remy, and even Avignon and the Pont du Gard, but you will need to make some choices because there is so much to see and do. You can also go south to the Camargue, and visit Aigues Morte. From Aix, I personally would go north (the Luberon villages of Peter Mayle) or south towards Marseilles and the Calanques.

A few years ao, Larry and spent 3 weeks based in Bonnieux, in the Luberon, and it was neither the first nor last visit we made. As I said, lots of choices indeed.

Best, Margie

laurieco

I have so much to consider! I'll have to make my mind up fairly soon. I will definitely keep checking back to see if anyone has any more suggestions, and I'll keep you posted on what I decide.

laurieco

I just booked a night at Espace de l'Hers at Châteauneuf-du-Pape for Sept. 8, so this will be our third night. I wanted to reserve two nights here but only one was available so I took it. Will arrive early and they can hold our luggage while we visit the winery. Should we make a reservation at the winery in advance?

Not sure where we will spend the next 4 nights. Can either do 1 and 3 or 2 and 2. I'm so confused, it's giving me a stomach ache.

Judy

You will need a reservation for a winery visit. I'm not exactly sure when their harvest starts......some wineries do not offer as many tours during that time.

laurieco

Thanks Judy. I'll email the hotel. I just booked two nights in Gordes at http://www.jasdegordes.com/en/

Just need the last two nights now.

KarenWoo

Hi Laurie,
We have been to Provence several times to visit our daughter who lives there with her family. I never had to stay in hotels so can't help you there. But I want to say we enjoyed visiting Aix when my daughter lived there. (She now lives somewhere else.) She was on the outskirts of the old town, so we could either walk to old town or she would drive. Driving wasn't bad at all, but of course she knew her way around. We love Aix!

Other towns we visited and enjoyed, just in case you need some suggestions, are:
Gordes, where you staying - it's beautiful
Roussillon
Les Beaux
Loumarin - lovely castle just outside the town center
L'Ise Sur La Sorgue - great market on Thursdays. Sunday market is too crowded.
The Camarque - you must go there if you have the time. Pink flamingos galore!! The real ones - not the plastic ones.
Cassis - boat trip to the Calanques
Menerbes
Bonnieux
St. Remy - visit Glanum & asylum where Van Gogh lived and painted
Egalieres - not touristy at all - people live there - wonderful market on Fridays - have lunch at Cafe Progress

So much to choose from and not enough time.

StuDudley

>>Les Beaux
Loumarin
Egalieres<<

Les Baux de Provence
Lourmarin
Eygalieres

In case anyone needs to Google them.

Stu Dudley

laurieco

Thanks. I thought it was going to be between Cassis and l’isle sur la sorgue, but now I'm not so sure. I think DH would rather the drive to Barcelona be a little closer.

StuDudley

>>> I think DH would rather the drive to Barcelona be a little closer.<<

I thought he "welcomed" the 9 hrs worth of driving between Nimes & Barcelona???? The train between Barcelona & Nimes is 0 hrs driving. And you would definitely save at least 1 day's car rental cost, plus $175 worth of road tolls and gas. The train from Barcelona to Nimes it is about $63 coach & $100 1st class pp each way and takes 3 1/2 hrs. We ALWAYS take trains in similar situations (we took 3 trains this past June in France). The train is VERY relaxing. The Autoroute between Nimes & Barcelona is not, IMO.

Stu Dudley

laurieco

It's not 9 hours! The car is reserved but we can still cancel as it is not paid for. If we took the train to Nimes, we would need to rent a car there for the week in France, and return it to a different place, and then hope we get a train back to Barcelona from where we end up, which is looking like Collioure. DH just doesn't want a long drive BACK to Barcelona so we can ditch the car and enjoy our time in Barcelona. From Collioure, we could be back in BCN pretty early and really get the most of our two days there. Since we were there 5 years ago, we don't need to see all the usual stuff, but I do want to go back to Sagrada Familia.

Someone on Fauxdor Friends on Facebook recommended Collioure, and it actually looks perfect for our last 2 nights in France. This is our first trip to the south of France (other than my trip with my parents back in 1970) and I am sure not our last. I look at this as a taste of the region. I almost never go anywhere thinking it is my only trip there, and we do go back to places we love, and a few that we believe deserve another look.

StuDudley

>>It's not 9 hours!<<

Sure it is. I have been using www.viamichelin.com for about 10 years, and it extremely accurate - a lot more accurate than Google.

- Barcelonaa to Nimes - 4 hrs without any stops for toll booths, deviations, pottie breaks, food, gas, etc.
- St Remy to Collioure 3 hr 6 mins
- Collioure to Barcerlona 2 hr 15 mins
- Total 9 hr 21 mins. Add 40 mins for "delays" = 10 hrs "butts in the car".

- Barcelona to Nimes by train - 3 1/2 trip, 0 hrs driving
- St Remy de Provence to Nimes 1 hr driving
- Nimes to Barcelona 3 1/2 hrs. Many daily departures

- St Remy to Avignon TGV - 30 mins driving
- Avignon TGV to Barcelona by train 4 hrs, but a 8:43 departure.

There are many, many, many interesting destinations in France. Collioure is just one of them (we've spent 2 weeks near Collioure). There is no need to add all that driving. Just stick to Provence & reduce the tiresome driving between destinations. Spend your driving hours exploring the lovely Luberon Valley instead.

Stu Dudley

laurieco

Okay, 9 hours in total, not all at once! I do see what you are saying but I think the itinerary is a decent one and very doable without driving all day on any one day. We do like to drive (within reason) and recently spent almost a month in Australia and drove all over Tasmania, quite a bit in the Northern Territory, and some in Victoria. It was very enjoyable. DH does like to drive overseas, and I like to drive some, but mostly be a passenger.

So, the itinerary is as follows:

night 1: Barcelona
nights 2 & 3: Nimes (just outside of)
night 4: Châteauneuf-du-Pape
nights 5 & 6: Gordes
nights 7 & 8: Collioure
nights 9 & 10: Barcelona

I think it's a good introduction to the region(s). Perhaps we should have picked one spot to spend the entire week and do day trips from there, but I wanted to experience a few different areas. Next time, hopefully we will have more time. I booked the air back in January and this is what it is, 10 nights, in and out of Barcelona. There is only so much we could do.

StuDudley

Send me an e-mail again & I'll attach my itinerary of things to do around Collioure in your 1 1/2 days there. The itinerary is about "all" of the Languedoc - and the Roussillon region (where Collioure is located) is the last part of the itinerary.

Contact the wineries ASAP. If you plan to visit one on a Saturday, there is a small chance it will not be open.

Stu Dudley

laurieco

Will do Stu, thanks. You have been a great help, and I did enjoy reading your email on the region. I hope to get to more of it next time.

tom_mn

I see no nights is Cassis-- smart, I couldn't wait to get out of there.

yestravel

We enjoy the freedom of driving on trips and I think your itinerary is very doable. For us the journey getting there can be just as enjoyable and interesting as the destination. We've travelled where you are going in both the spring and in September and never had any trouble with the roads as traffic has lessened then. We always find lots to stop and see on the way and love all the little detours we take. Have a great trip!

laurieco

Thanks yestravel. The longest drive will be from Barcelona to Nimes. None of the other drives will be more than about 2.5 hours (back to Barcelona) and the others will be significantly shorter. I also like the freedom of driving and being able to go where we want, when we want.

StuDudley

According to viamichelin.com, Gordes to Collioure is 3 hrs 40 mins if there are no deviations, back ups a toll booths, or if you don't stop for gas or food. I would expect it to take 4 hrs.

Stu Dudley