michael_cain_77398

According to my calendar, I should be arriving in Arles right about now ...

My conference in Marseille has been rescheduled for January, and the French government seems intent on hosting it. I should use my e-credits to re-book my flights in the next couple weeks. My original plan was to take two weeks vacation to explore Aix, Arles, and the countryside. Now I'm not sure, and am looking for advice.
What I love about France is being outside on the streets or in the countryside, just wandering and exploring, and eating as I go. I like museums, but usually an hour or two is enough.
I'll be in Marseille for ten days for work; that's a given. I'm trying to decide if I should just fly in and out, or spend a week or two in Aix, Arles, and/or Nimes despite the cold. And I'm from the tropics - I will be cold, regardless of how "warm" it is.
I'd be interested to hear anyone's experiences on visiting Provence in January.
An alternate plan is to fly into or out of Paris, though I have a better idea of what Paris is like when it's wet and cold.

thursdaysd

Back in the late 1800s wealthy Brits used to spend the winter in Nice and other places on the Côte-d’Azur. And Pau, for that matter.

kerouac

I find Provence too dependent on "good weather tourism" -- so except for the big cities, things will be dead in January. The cities in the north are very much alive all through the winter, and the people know how to keep warm.

Christina

A lot of people think southern France is in the tropics for some reason. I'm sure it's better than the UK, but it's not some paradise in winter, you can look at the latitude on a map. It's just a little warmer than where I live in the US (Wash DC) in January.

There really isn't any reason to be cold if you dress properly, though. January is a pretty dull month for roaming around outdoors if you ask me. Fine if you are going skiing in the Alps, though.

I don't know how wealthy you are or how much free time you have, for me, I would never spend that much of my money and previous vacation time to spend a lot of time touring PRovence in January. Just not a good investment to me.

michael_cain_77398

I'll be in Marseille for ten days for work, so it's not a matter of wealth or time. It's a matter of: I will already be there, so should I take advantage of this and tack on an extra week or two. In June the answer was easy!

I'm from the tropics. I will be cold almost anywhere in Europe in January. I've been to a couple different European cities in December over the years (Amsterdam, London, Munich, Paris, Venice), and in a lot of places the winter markets and the holiday decorations and the pure energy on the streets were enough to counteract the cold. Venice in particular was cold wet and grey ... and empty of tourists. It was magical. But January, I suspect, will be colder wetter and darker than December.

That's what I expected. And I know somewhat what to expect out of Marseille (though, with the world situation, there's a lot I can't predict). Do you think towns like Aix-en-Provence or Nîmes are large enough to be alive in winter?

mjperry

Paraphrasing Audrey Hepburn, Provence (Paris) is always a good idea. We had a great time driving around Avignon, Aix and other Provence towns on a 10 day trip from Paris to Nice. Here is a blog link that may be of interest to you https://travelfam.wordpress.com/category/france-2015/

StCirq

But mjperry, you were there in June. January is a whole different ballgame. Have you ever been in Provence in the dead of winter (emphasis on "dead")?

michael_cain_77398

I was under some pressure at work to re-book, so I'll go for four days in Paris prior to the Marseille conference, and five days somewhere in the south after. It'll be between Nîmes, Aix-en-Provence, or Arles. Ideally I'll want somewhere that will have interesting sites if it's cold wet and mistrally, but somewhere near beautiful countryside if the weather is beautiful.

mjperry

Never been there in the winter but I have read about the Mistral courtesy of Peter Mayle and I'm sure it's quite different from my experience in June. Even so, I might be willing to trade some of the crazy drivers and tourists to visit Provence in the off season. Actually, I think it would be great to a Paris/Nice trip in January.

kerouac

Oh, Provence should definitely be visited at least once in the dead of winter, if only to know that it is not the ideal time to ever return. But since the OP will have already been there for awhile, I don't see any reason to extend the misery.

StCirq

Most of the crazy drivers are probably French, and they'll still be there unless they're off in Bali.

michael_cain_77398

Update: though I asked about Provence, I'm actually finding a fair amount of interesting activity next door in Languedoc and Gard. In a normal year January sees a black truffle festival in Uzès and a big flamenco festival in Nîmes. I see excited winter bird reports from Brits in the Camargue (I'm not a birder, but enjoy wildlife in general). As you all predicted, I'm not finding much at all going on in Aix-en-Provence or Arles. Some of the sites I was really interested in, like the Carrières de Lumières in Les Baux-de-Provence, seem to shut every year in January and February.

I finish work on a Friday afternoon, and don't fly out until Wednesday. I won't decide yet, but I'm currently thinking that basing myself in Nîmes for my five free days would be the most rewarding option. I know it's not one of the favorite towns for visitors to the south (there are few fans on either the English- or the French-language forums), but I think I might like it.

Though who knows if 2021 will be normal.