I'll be in Provence for a week in late June, probably staying in Joucas. I'm mindful that Stu Dudley has said that on Sundays and Mondays, many places are closed, meaning less/no shopping and less photogenic. My first two full days in Provence will be Sunday and Monday.

I would appreciate some input on how best to spend those two days. Among my planned visits:

Avignon
Uzes
Luberon villages
Stu Dudley's lavender drive
Aix-en-Provence

We are leaving on a Sunday and plan to visit the Isle-sur-la-Sorgue market in the morning before catching the train from Avignon to Paris.

I've already been to Arles and Les Baux, although my travel companion has never been to Provence, so return trips might be in order. We are not interested in wine.

Any suggestions?

Pont du Gard is very interesting with hiking trails for a longer visit.

Stu is right on. These little villages close up tight on Sunday and Monday. Sur la Sorgue is a great option for Sunday as is the recommended Pont du Gard.

Sundays and Mondays are great days to just get in the car and drive - there is so much natural beauty throughout Provence. Oppede le Vieux would be a nice place to explore - it doesn't have a lot of shops anyway and it's an extremely interesting place to visit. And by the way, I love Joucas!

You know...after re-reading your post I see that you will be in Provence in June. The villages may not close up as seriously as they did when we were there in the considered "off-season" of late October.

I was thinking of combining Pont du Gard with Uzes on a single day, since they're out the same direction, so that probably means going on a day other than Sunday or Monday.

I like the idea of Oppede - I loved it on a previous visit and really didn't spend enough time there.

I'm thinking Stu's lavender drive would likewise be a good closed-day itinerary, since the lavender fields won't be closed!

I stayed in Joucas on my last visit and absolutely loved it, not least because it's little touristed but soooo convenient. I'm planning on staying at the same place this time, a lovely little B&B with a spectacular view down over the valley - cheeeep too.

Still looking for more ideas....

Hi AnL,

Here is what I have planned for our upcoming Sunday and Monday in Provence.

Sunday
Visit L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue (market), Fontaine de Vaucleuse, Gordes**, Rousillon** (open Sunday), pkng at train sta in IslS

Monday
Visit Colorado de Provence** (near Rustrel) Bonnieux*, Lacoste, Menerbes*, Oppede les Vieux*

Hope this helps.

Most shops in St Remy are open on Sunday, but about 70% of my wife's favorites are closed on Monday morning, although some (not all) open Monday afternoon around 2:30pm (this was in early June last year). Shops will be open in Gordes & Roussillon on Sun & Mon.

The lavender route would be great on Sunday. A few shops in Sault will be open. You could start the day with a visit to Gordes & Senanque Abbey (best in the am before the day-trippers arrive), and then continue on the Lavender Route. When visiting Gordes, follow the walk in my itinerary to see the most interesting parts of Gordes, IMO.

Stu Dudley

I don't see the scenic Dentelles de Montmirail on your list. It's an easy drive from Joucas (one of my favs too) through Venasque (where we spent a week).

Vaison-la-Romaine (old town), Séguret, Gigondas and Crestet are each well worth a visit.

The entire area is so pretty and interesting that I don't agree with it being any "less photogenic" on one day or another...

I don't travel just to shop, so shops being closed don't mean much of anything to me. I go to historic sites, drive the countryside, take walks/hike, etc. I don't recall Sunday/Monday being any big issue in those areas that I even noticed. The thing is you have picked some very big tourist sites and those places are always open. Aix is a large city, so believe me, all of Aix' shops are not closed on Sunday/Monday, if any. Ditto Avignon.

Sundays I go to the flea market
In isle-sur-La-Sorge.
Lunch at the Jardin du quai
by the railroad station.

I've been to Aix on a Monday in mid June, and most shops were closed in the morning (a few on the Cours were open). Louvered aluminum shutters or iron bars were pulled down over many of the pretty storefronts, and the shopping streets were not nearly as scenic as they are when shops are open. Museums, churches, cultural sites, and some restaurants were open. Several shops opened after lunch. We were in Avignon on a Monday once, and the same there. Most shops in Bonnieux were closed on a Sunday when we were there in mid June. The Green Michelin Guide to the Cote d'Azur warns that most shops in Old Nice are closed on Mondays.

We've never visited Provence from mid June through August - the "super" tourist season, so I don't know if shops are open on Mondays then. It is French law that shops close on Sundays. Food stores, cultural sites, and some villages that rely almost exclusively on tourism are allowed to be open. If a city or village has their farmer's market on a Sunday or Monday, shops will be open. This is the case with l'Isle sur la Sorgue and Bedoin in Provence, & St Cyprien in the Dordogne Stores in the Marais in Paris are open on Sunday because the Marais was predominately a Jewish area and Saturday is the Jewish sabbath. There was a recent article in either "France Today" or "Paris Notes" indicating that there is a slow movement to relax the Sunday closing laws, but so far not much has happened.

Stu Dudley

>>We've never visited Provence from mid June through August <<

That's mid July through August

Stu Dudley

Many shops are open on Mondays during the high tourist season, as are the large supermarkets that make for good shopping.

FYI, the Auchan and LeClerc stores in the Grasse area were open each Sunday in December. There's some talk of expanded hours in the future.

Monday is a good day to visit churches and museums, as many museums are closed on Tuesdays.

It sounds like Monday might be the day for lavender, since it seems pretty much nowhere is open any length of time then.

We will be there for two Sundays and plan to hit the IslS market on the last one, right before heading back to Paris.

Is Les Baux open on Sunday? (I would guess so, since it's so tourist-oriented?) Perhaps that is another option, combined with St-Remy. Alternatively, we can visit some of the villages near Joucas.

I was way, way under-impressed with Fontaine la Vaucluse - thought it a terrible tourist trap. But then I don't much care for Gordes, either - just the view from the road below. I will try your walk through, Stu, and see if I like it better this time. I did see Vaison, although just the lower town on market day, and did the little jig through Seguret &co. - I had a wonderful lunch somewhere around there. Not sure if I'll want to go up that way again.

Tuck, where exactly is/are the Dentelles de Montmirail? If its primary appeal is scenic, it might be a good shut-shop-day excursion.

Thanks to all of you for your help.

>>Is Les Baux open on Sunday?<<

Yep

>>I was way, way under-impressed with Fontaine la Vaucluse - thought it a terrible tourist trap.<<

me too !!!

>>But then I don't much care for Gordes, either - just the view from the road below.<<

the view from the road is an A+. Around the chateau is B-. Walk down to the lavoire below and it becomes a little more interesting, IMO.

>>I did see Vaison, although just the lower town on market day<<

The medieval upper town is much more interesting

>>and did the little jig through Seguret &co. - I had a wonderful lunch somewhere around there. Not sure if I'll want to go up that way again.

>>Tuck, where exactly is/are the Dentelles de Montmirail?<<

Seguret area

Stu Dudley

Dentelles de Montmirail:

www.beyond.fr/sites/dentelles.html

If you like Joucas, you'll love Séguret. You do have to do more than a 'jig' however and also, you should hike to the top of Oppède Le Vieux. The same for Vaison-la-Romaine and its medieval town.

Fontaine la Vaucluse is time wasted.

And now for a contrary view regarding Fontaine de Vaucluse. We were there in late May, fairly early in the morning (maybe 9:00) and it was NOT a tourist trap. We walked to the source of the Sorgue (THE fontaine - which is a spring-fed pool that supplies vast quantities of water) and met exactly one other couple. The scenery was exquisite. The water was white-water rafting gorgeous. The town, itself, not so much - by the time we got there after our walk along the river there were a few shops open, most reasonably nice, a few selling junk.

By my standards, Fontaine de Vaucluse was a highlight - certainly the equal of the Roussillon ochre trail.

Sam

If you visit the Fountaine de Vaucluse the way knoxvillecouple did (early in the day, in Spring), I think portions of it can be very enjoyable. The Fountaine itself has always been dead/dry when we've been there (June-Sept), but the walk on the footpath along the river from the village to the Fountaine is quite scenic - if there are minimal crowds. I've never found the village to be that interesting (a nice restaurant setting by the river, however), and the shops are the same sort you see everywhere in Provence. We enjoyed the WWII resistance museum. We've visited the Fountaine de Vaucluse several times.

I would suggest to my friend Ira that he skip the Fountain on Sunday, after the market. It will be swamped with other tourists also visiting it after the market. And, on Sundays the French like to go out to places like the Fountain & walk around slowly pushing baby strollers. If you don't mind large crowds, or if you'll be there during the off season, then this will not be an annoyance for you.

Stu Dudley