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Spring 2020 Provence France Itinerary HELP
My wife and I ( both in our 60's) are traveling to Southern France and Barcelona the end of April and beginning of May 2020. (April 19- May 5)
Here is our itinerary: April 18 fly from US April 19 Land at CDG in Paris Take TGV train from CVG to TVG Aix-de-Provence Rent a car Lodging 3 nights Aix-de-Provence- AIR B&B Day trips to surrounding towns and enjoy Aix-de-Provence April 22 Visit area Lodging 4 nights Avignon - AIR B&B Enjoy Avignon Day trips from Avignon - Luberon- Gordes- Thouzon Caves- L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue - Possible French cooking class April 26- Travel to Arles and stop at Carrières de Lumières?? Lodging two night Arles - Air B&B near arena or B&B Le Mas de Peint ?? We would like to take in a non-lethal bull fight while in the area ( any suggestions) Visit Camargue April 28 Tavel to Nimes visit Pont du Gard- Lodging two nights in Nimes - Appart'City Hotel near arena If the Roman Games are in town we would get tickets April 30 Return car at TGV Morning TGV train to Barcelona Lodging five nights in Barcelona - AIR B&B apartment Rambla Catalunya area Public transport and foot tour Barcelona for four days May 5 Fly back to US Please review and offer advice. Air travel is booked and confirmed All lodging is booked but can be changed Thank you in advance for your help All suggestions of schedule changes or places or events to visit will be apopreciated |
First, please don't pick your car up until you've been in France for at least a day or two -- mounting evidence indicates that driving after crossing multiple time zones is not safe for you or anyone else, and nothing you can do will eliminate the problem except giving your body time to adjust.
I thought the Carrières de Lumières extraordinary and am very glad I visited. Consider booking in advance. I recently returned from a trip to the area and will post a trip report when I can. You might want to watch for it.... |
You'll need an International Drivers Permit to go with your regular license.
Day trips from Avignon - to me St-Remy-de-Provence and nearby Les Baux are musts - not far from Avignon - just to east a bit. St Remy is a nice old town that many here seem to prefer to Avignon itself as a base - especially if driving - Avignon can have horrendous driving at rush hours. But, the draw here is the asylum van Gogh put himself in after slicing off an ear in nearby Arles and where he painted furiously - many of them have copies now standing where van Gogh did them - Arles, a really nice medium size city worth of look - great markets - has similarly put copies up where they were executed. Les Baux is a medieval hilltop fortress -up top is bare rock with the fortress remains and views for miles. |
I too am planning a spring 2020 trip similar to yours. We are 2 mid 60’s couples in the early stages of planning. This is what we have to date: Paris 4 nts Lyon 1 Arles 4 Barcelona 3 Seville 1 Porto 3 Lisbon 2 Flying into Paris & home from Lisbon. All travel will be by train, except we’ll fly from Seville to Porto. We will likely rent a car in Arles & do a Rick Steves driving tour. We have not started looking at accommodations yet. We would like to stay in airb&b’s or small boutique type inns. We’d prefer easy access to the towns restaurants, etc. I’m overwhelmed with all the info right now! Where did you start your search? |
Hi TTAndy,
Do check out KJA's Trip Report, you won't regret it. Its not long enough, but it'll do. And also take note of everything that Pal says here. They know a great deal about the area. Pal: 'This is my opinion about....' Zebec: 'You are correct, sir!' Welcome back 'P'. I am done. The land of Peter Mayle. |
Originally Posted by zebec
(Post 16964153)
Do check out KJA's Trip Report, you won't regret it. Its not long enough, but it'll do.
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If you rent a car in Arles and drop it off in Spain, you'll be looking at some hefty extra charges. Someone has to deport it back to France.
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You may be interested in my travel blog posts from Provence and the South of France https://travelfam.wordpress.com/category/france-2015/ https://travelfam.wordpress.com/cate...ce-spain-2016/ Bon voyage!
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That's a lot of countries to drive through. You may be interested in my travel blog post from our Paris-Bordeaux-Barcelona-Madrid trip https://travelfam.wordpress.com/cate...ce-spain-2016/ bon voyage!
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We are only driving in the Provence area. All other travel is by train
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BTW, I've finished my trip report. It long, but searchable.
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...rance-1669406/ |
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