TC

Starting to plan a September trip to Provence area. We are two couples looking for a good city to base exploration or a route from small city to small city to explore. Not really interested in the glitzy scene, but more countryside, good wine, good food, beautiful vistas, arts, crafts, history. Would like lots of opportunities for encounters with locals - maybe cooking classes or the like.

Have you had any experiences with renting a house or villa? Any small charming hotels to suggest?

All advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Wayne

September is a nice month in Provence, weather-wise. You didn't say how long you will be staying, or where you will be arriving or leaving, so I can only offer a few suggestions for places to go or see when you get there.

First, you certainly need to get at least one or two guidebooks that describe the area. The green Michelin guide for Provence is good for details of the countryside and routes to follow, and is especially good if you plan to drive----which I strongly recommend you do.

However, guides such as Fodor's are better for recommendations on hotels. And of course, this web site has a tremendous amount of info you can search through.

Since I always enjoy driving and visiting the smaller villages, I will give you some suggestions on such places that I think are particularly interesting. Then you can do a little homework to see what you like. As for renting small houses or villas, there are plenty for you to search. One good site for cottage rentals is www.gite.com. There are lots of others.

Anyway, if you have a week or more (two weeks would be better) you might try to develop an itinerary around these towns that are among my favorites: Lourmarin, Nans-les-Pins, Apt, Orange, les Baux, Cassis, and among the larger towns---Nimes, Arles, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, and Nice.

This isn't a final answer, but maybe if you give these ideas and others a little thought, you could come back to this forum with more specific questions and state how long you plan to stay. Good luck.

Wayne

Forgot to mention---my absolute favorite spot for a charming hotel is the Chateau de Rochegude, about 10 miles northeast of Avignon. Wonderful old chateau and a really good restaurant. I also thought of another village -- Fontvieille-- that I enjoy.

Gino

TC,
You didn't mention the length of your stay. Very important for good feedback.

carolv

Pick up any of Peter Mayle's books (A Year in Provence, Toujours Provence and Encore Provence come to mind) and you will want to just move to the Luberon. We stayed near Gordes at La Bastide de Voulonne and our hosts were wonderful. I love the small villages in that area. I actually hadn't read any of the Peter Mayle books until after I returned home and I needed my dose of Provence! BTW, we were there in Feb. and it was even beautiful then. I hear it gets crowded in the summer, but should be just perfect in Sept. Have a great time!

TC

Thanks all. Actually I didn't mention length of stay or other specifics because we don't have hard and fast parameters set for this trip. We are quite flexible with our time and destinations. At this point we could fly into any city or out of any city and stay a reasonable length of time - more or less. Most likely we will spend a couple of weeks, but could do more. We are traveling with friends who's son will be in Marsielles (sp?), so we will visit there I would think. However, he is quite open to joining us somewhere else if that's a better option. So you see - I am an raw piece of clay for those of you who have gone before to shape.

I have been reading this board and reading guide books and my overwhelming conclusion is - WOW! - there's so much. It all sounds wonderful. How does one ever make a decision. That is why I've asked for your advice as I start my search.

Wayne, do you live in Provence or just visit often?

Thanks again.

RDF

We stayed at Le Mas D'Arvieux en Provence for 8 nites (Route d'Avignon F-13150 Tarascon, between Bellegarde and Beaucaire)
Tel: 011 33 4 90 90 7877 (from U.S.)
They have both a 4-5 room B&B and a small single family house on the property, at which we stayed. It was wonderful, and location was perfect.
The following may seem like overload, but are only some of the places we went to during our 13 day Provence trip:

Tarascon: magnificent castle on Rhone Eglise St Marthe: 12c church
Abbaye de St Michel de Frigolet
Arles: ancient Roman city, Amphitheatre
Eglise St-Trophine (3rd c church)
Flea Market: St. Remy, Sat. largest
Abbaye de Montmajour: 12th c,
Pont Du Gard: Aqueduct/ bridge
Uzes: typical Provence, lunch!
Pont St Nicholas Bridge views,
Glanum: Celtic-Ligurain structures
Les Baux de Provence: raised rock plateau village
Avignon: Palais des Papes; Pont St-Benezet: walkout bridge
Camargues: Jeep rides,wild horses/bulls
Gordes: medevil- incredible view of from road
Chateauneuf du Pape: 14th c, wine! fortress/view from high restaurant-lunch
Roussillon: 'Red' high hill site w/views
Abbaye de Senanque: from Gordes on D177;
Cassis: Calanques, setting/views
Calanques Boat Trip: limestone

Any questions, feel free to ask.
Good luck

JoeG

TC:

Wayne and RDF offer good suggestions. We also found good info from a website - www.provencebyways.com. You may find the trip report we posted - Arles! Train, Plane, Auto. to be helpful.

JoeG

TC

Thanks everyone!