mdinbc

I am planning a trip to Europe this September, and would like advise on a base for Southern France.
We are a mid-fifties Canadian couple and hope to have a mix of culture/outdoors activites on our first visit to Europe as adults (we both went with our families during our teens way back in the 70's!)
We plan on 3 weeks including:
Jersey Channel Islands - visit family, outdoor activities - 5 days
Brittany/Normandy - 3 or 4 days
Paris - 3 days
.....here's the gap 4 days
Malaca Spain - 5 days meeting friends for relaxing beach days

I am thinking of the train from Paris to either Aix or Marseille and staying in one spot to use as a base for day trips but enjoy good dining and perhaps beach or pool at the end of the day. We could rent a car and do some day trips to Cote D'Azure, Avignon etc.
Is St. Remy too far inland to enjoy the coast? Should we pick a spot closer to the coast to stay and then do a few in-land trips?

Advice please!

PalenQ

St-Remy is too far from the coast to be a practical base for that - Nice is a long haul from this area. St-Remy is however a nice smaller town than Avignon or Arles.

Seems like you'll have enough beaches otherwise - drive your car to near the Spanish border or hop direct trains from Avignon-TGV to Barcelona for trains to Malaga but of course flying from say the Avignon area or Marseille is a lot quicker - you do mean Malaga and not Malaca?

For trains check www.voyages-sncf.comor www.capitainetrain.com- same trains same fares - latter is said to be easier to actually get to work for Americans to book their own tickets online - book way early to get deep discounts.

For lots on trains check www.seat61.com- great info on discounted tickets; www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com.

but 4-5 days in the heart of Provence - the Avignon area is great - Les Baux, the Pont du Gard, Uzes, Arles, the Camargue, Nimes and more all are so nice and in a very compact area - the sea is about an hour by car I'd think - via the Camargue area.

Christina

I would not stay in St Remy if your goal is to enjoy the coast, no. If you want beach/pool, I suppose there must be some places there with a pool, though. If you want beach, I'd stay somewhere east of Marseille. I don't understand the point if you are then going to Spain for a beach vacation, anyway.

You can easily visit Avignon by train from Marseille you don't need a car. But if you want a car, you should stay some place more rural, of course.

zorrosf

If you are expecting the white, powdered-sugar beaches of Florida or Hawaii, you will not find those in Europe (excepting Cannes). Many are stone/pebble beaches and many (especially in the area around Malaga) have "industrial" sand, with a high clay content. OK to look at, but less than wonderful for spending a day sunbathing at the beach.

On your other topic, we have used St. Remy for a base several times and think it is an excellent choice for that purpose. Pick a B&B with a nice pool like Mas des Carrassins (sp?). Easy day trips to Gordes, Bonnieux, Rousillon, Arles, etc. And Glanum is right around the corner, as is Les Baux. LOts of good restaurants within walking distance and cute Farmers Market.

Bonne chance!

PalenQ

If you are expecting the white, powdered-sugar beaches of Florida or Hawaii, you will not find those in Europe (excepting Cannes).>

Well France's Atlantic coast is full of nice brown sandy beaches if you do not need white - especially southern France around the Bayonne area but yes when I was in the Malaga area for a week though the beaches were OK they are like zorrosf says - Torremelinos at least was OK with the group of high school students I once took there for a week - had Sangrias on the beach from vendors!

mdinbc

Good points - we will be spending our last days enjoying the beach in Spain, so no need to be near the sea for these days. I guess I am thinking it is a nice way to spend the evening after a day of sightseeing - stroll along the waterfront and find an outdoor cafe. Perhaps I was overestimating how much i could cover in the south of France in 3-4 days. We would rent a car for those days then i think fly to Spain (from Marsaille perhaps)

St Remy looks nice, and Le Mas des Carrasins looks like a nice relaxing place to stay. Is it close enough to walk to town?

zorrosf

10 minutes walk maximum, unless you get lost

traveller1959

>>you will not find those in Europe (excepting Cannes)<<

Who writes such b***s***?

France has hundreds of miles of beautiful sandy beaches.

The Atlantic coast in the southwest between Biarritz and the mouth of the Gironde is one continuous beach of white silvery sand with a length of 150 miles. The only interruption is the bay of Arcachon. This coast is called "Côte d'Argent" - the "Silver Coast", and with reason.

At the Languedoc, between the Spanish border and the Camargue, there is another stretch of one continuous sandy beach which is over 100 miles long. For daytrips into Provence, Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, would make a perfect base. If you want to see how the beaches look, click here:

http://www.saintesmaries.com/en/home...e-beaches.html

Besides, Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer is a charming provencal town.

Along the Côte d'Azur, you find many most beautiful sandy beaches. For some examples, click on the following links:

http://www.plages.tv/plusbellesplages/liste-var
http://www.plages.tv/plusbellesplage...lpes-maritimes
http://www.plages.tv/plusbellesplage...uches-du-rhone

CarolA

We stayed in St. Remy to explore some of Provence but did not go to the coast. It was great for Arles, Les Blue, Nimes, etc... We really enjoyed staying there.

StuDudley

Les Blue??? Do you mean Les Baux???

Pampelonne near St Tropez is our favorite white sandy beach.

Stu Dudley

Christina

Les Bleus is the name for the national soccer team.