97 Best Sights in Provence, France

Rivaled only by the even better-preserved version in Nîmes, the arena dominating old Arles was built in the 1st century AD to seat 21,000 people, with large tunnels through which wild beasts were forced to run into the center. Before being plundered in the Middle Ages, the structure had three stories of 60 arcades each; the four medieval towers are testimony to a transformation from classical sports arena to feudal fortification. Complete restoration of the arena began in 1825. Today it's primarily a venue for the traditional spectacle of the corridas, which take place annually during the féria pascale, or Easter festival. The less bloodthirsty local variant course carmarguaise (in which the bull is not killed) also takes place here. Festival season starts with the Fête des Gardians on May 1, when the Queen of Arles is crowned, and culminates in early July with the award of the Cocarde d'Or (Golden Rosette) to the most successful raseteur. It's best to book event tickets in advance.

At this unique museum in the 13th-century Couvent des Cordeliers, you'll learn how the aromatic plants and medicinal herbs of the Montagne de Lure, part of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, have traditionally been grown, gathered, and used in remedies, perfumes, and cosmetics. Explanatory panels, botanical illustrations, plant specimens, and fragrance galleries are used to create a multisensory educational experience in theme exhibits such as Lavender, Pickers & Peddlers, The Druggists, Distillation, Plants & Elixirs, and Plants & Beauty. In addition, activity booklets and special displays help children navigate and understand the exhibits. For total immersion, sign up for one of the two-hour perfume workshops, which are offered for both adults (€50) and kids (€25).

This vast old limestone quarry has 66-foot-high stone walls that make a dramatic setting for a multimedia show in which thousands of images are projected onto the walls. Exhibitions change yearly, but past showings have showcased the life and work of Picasso, Van Gogh, Dalí, and Cézanne, and more recent ones have featured Monet and Rousseau.

The "new" wing (begun in 1526 and completed in 1540) of this château—which was restored to near perfection in the 1920s—is the prettiest, with a broad art collection, rare old furniture, and ornate stone fireplaces, including two with exotic vases canopes (ancient Aztec figure vases). The château also offers lots of fun activities for kids, and it hosts a series of highly regarded open-air concerts in summer and several contemporary art exhibitions throughout the year.

Near the northern shore of the Etang de Vaccarès, this unique cultural center, funded by the Ricard family of pastis fame and set on one of the larger estates in the Camargue, is a place to meet gardiens (French cowboys) and learn about the taureau, or bull—virtually a totemic creature in these parts. You’ll also gain a better understanding of the regional spectacle known as the course camarguaise, in which raseteurs (runners) try to pluck off a red cockade and two white tassels mounted on the bull’s horns. There is no mise à mort (as in Spanish-style corridas, or bullfights), so the bulls live to enter the arena again and again—some even become such celebrities that they make the covers of French magazines.

Other activities include touring an on-site museum, where exhibits detail the remarkable history of Paul Ricard and the estate; hopping aboard a petit train for a 20-minute tour of the marshlands; or mounting a horse or pony for a beachside trot. At Chez Hélène et Néné restaurant, you can feast on Camargue seafood while gazing at the beach and the ocean. If you want to stay the night, the property has several charming accommodation options—from guest rooms to cottages to colorful wooden, Roma-style caravans. The estate is 36 km (22 miles) east of Aigues-Mortes via the D58, D570, and RD37/D37 and 27 km (17 miles) northeast of Stes-Maries-de-la-Mer via the D570 and RD37/D37.

As the father of "op-art," Victor Vasarely has taken his rightful place among the great artists of the later 20th century. A visit to this exhilarating museum, a short drive or bus ride (lines 2 and 20) from Aix center, will delight art lovers (even those who aren't fans of the genre) of all ages. The building itself is an architectural wonder, composed of 16 hexagonal galleries each housing six of the artist's monumental tapestries, mosaics, paintings, or sculptures. Upstairs, a detailed timeline of Vasarely's life and work reveals the versatility and genius of an artist both of and ahead of his time.

On a site occupied since the Gallo-Roman period, this picturesque 11th- to 12th-century priory—designated a Historic Monument by the French Ministry of Culture—presides over 10 acres of themed gardens. The restored priory, with well-preserved Gothic and Romanesque flourishes, houses an ethnological museum that provides insight into the region's various cultures. The garden preserves 2,500 species of native plants and flowers and is organized into five themed areas—like "simple gardens and village plants," which includes field and cultivated plants that were both consumed and used medicinally. There's also a medieval garden, a fragrant garden with benches under the roses and honeysuckle for maximum sensory effect, and a modern "exotic" garden that crosses five continents.

Through eight generations on the same premises, the Brun de Vian-Tiran family has created France's most beautiful and luxurious woolens from fibers sourced throughout the world, including baby camel, cashmere, merino wool, alpaca, and baby llama. Housed in one of the company's old warehouses, this state-of-the-art museum takes you through the manufacturing process, from fiber to fabric, with interactive exhibits that are fascinating for kids as well as adults. The on-site boutique carries the entire range of luxury bedding and blankets, scarves, slippers, and other items, all of which are usually found only at high-end department stores in Paris.

Created in part to fortify France's supply of cedar and cyprus wood, this magnificent forest, covering hundreds of acres, also provides a cool, quiet place for hiking and picnicking. Information on the forest is available at all of the local tourist offices, and the route to it is well marked from the village of Lacoste. The winding drive provides astounding views of the hilltop villages that dot the countryside.

The flowering of a 25-year project, this lovely botanical garden is planted on rediscovered 18th-century terraces at the highest point of La Citadelle vineyards, with magnificent views of Ménerbes and the Vaucluse and Ventoux mountains. Stroll its scenic paths to see hundreds of medicinal and aromatic plant species used in traditional medicines for millennia. Afterward, enjoy a tasting at the domaine and entrance to the Musée du Tire-Bouchon, the world's first museum dedicated to the corkscrew.

Like a miniature Roman Forum, the ancient Quartier de Puymin, part of the largest archaeological site in France, spreads over a field and hillside in the heart of Vaison, visible in passing from the town's streets. Access to a garden, an archaeological museum, and the skeletal ruins of Roman villas below Vaison's ancient theater is via an entry booth across from the tourist office. Although it requires considerable imagination to visualize the structures as they once were, there are some poignant details, such as thresholds that still show the hinge holds for and scrape marks left by swinging doors. 

Closest to the entrance, the foundations of the Maison des Messii (Messii House) indicate that it had a sumptuous design complete with a vast gentleman's library; reception rooms; an atrium with a rain-fed pool; a large kitchen (note the enormous stone vats); and baths with hot, cold, and warm water. To see the accoutrements of everyday Roman life, wander beneath the cypress trees and amid the flowering shrubs of a formal garden to the Musée Archéologique Théo-Desplans. Here, items are displayed by theme: pottery, weapons, gods and goddesses, jewelry, and, of course, sculpture—including a complete figure of the emperor Claudius (1st century) and a strikingly noble nude Hadrian (2nd century).

Cross the park behind the museum to climb into the bleachers of the 1st-century Théâtre Romain, smaller than the one in Orange but also used today for concerts and plays. Across the parking lot is the Quartier de la Villasse, where remnants of a lively market town indicate main-street shops, public gardens, and grand private homes complete with floor mosaics. The most evocative image of all is in the thermes (baths): a neat row of marble-seat toilets lined up over a raked trough that instantly rinsed waste away.

The best way to understand the sites is with a self-guided audio tour (€2, available at the museum). Guided tours led by certified docents are also a possibility, though availability, duration, prices, and themes vary. Check ahead with the museum or the tourist board.

On the site of a crucial fort at the summit of Mont Faron, this museum recounts the planning and execution of World War II's Operation Dragoon, a mission meant to resecure the French ports of Marseille and Toulon and cut off German reinforcements. The story unfolds via firsthand accounts in French and English from men and women who fought for the French Resistance, descriptions of life under the occupation, a detailed timeline, and an 11-minute film showing original footage of the August 15, 1944, invasion—and its vast destruction—which was a decisive turning point in the war.

With the Port Antique in front, this modern, open-space museum illuminates Massalia's history with a treasure trove of archaeological finds and miniature models of the city as it appeared in various stages of history. Best by far is the presentation of Marseille's Classical halcyon days. There's a recovered wreck of a Roman cargo boat, its 3rd-century wood amazingly preserved, and the hull of a Greek boat dating from the 4th century BC. The model of the Greek city should be authentic—it's based on an eyewitness description by Aristotle.

The newest museum in Nîmes is impossible to miss: first for its location, just opposite the Arènes, and second for its exterior featuring a gleaming, translucent facade meant to evoke a Roman toga. Exhibits inside this luminous edifice showcase the city's Roman past with more than 5,000 artifacts, as well as touch screens, interactive displays, and other state-of-the art features that will delight both adults and kids. Highlights include intact mosaics discovered during recent excavations, a model of a domus (Roman house), and a green roof with panoramic views of the amphitheater and all the city's major sites. The sidewalk café is great for a quick lunch or afternoon drink, and the upstairs La Table du 2—which also has impressive views—is a Michelin-starred brasserie that serves lunch and dinner.

Don't miss this quirky museum, which has some 1,200 corkscrews—the oldest dating from the 17th century—collected from all over the world. There are also some interesting historical displays on various wine-related subjects.

In keeping with the Vieux Port's substantially spiffed-up image, the Marseille regional transportation service now offers efficient public ferry service, with hourly departures from the eastern side to Pointe Rouge (8 am–7 pm), L'Estaque (8:30 am–7:30 pm), and Les Goudes (8:50 am–7:50 pm). The nominal ticket charge (€5, available only on board) is well worth it for the fun and convenience of crossing the port by boat.

The ancient Roman aqueduct is shockingly noble in its symmetry, and its strong arches are a testimony to engineering concepts that were relatively new in the 1st century AD, when the structure was built under Emperor Claudius. Today, the surrounding nature is unsullied, with the Gardon River flowing through a rocky gorge unperturbed by the work of master engineering that straddles it. In fact, one of the preferred ways of viewing the bridge is via canoe or kayak, which are for rent upstream.

You can approach the aqueduct from either side of the Gardon River. If you choose the south side (Rive Droite), the walk to the pont (bridge) is shorter and the views arguably better. Although the spectacular walkway along the top of the aqueduct is now off-limits, the sight of the bridge is still breathtaking. The nearby Espaces Culturels details the rich history of the bridge—and Roman France at the time—and includes an interactive area for kids.

Set on a bluff above town, this lush hilltop garden has grand Mediterranean pines, a man-made lake (complete with camera-ready swans), plus glorious views of the palace, the rooftops of Old Avignon, the Pont St-Bénézet, and formidable Villeneuve across the Rhône. On the horizon loom Mont Ventoux, the Luberon, and Les Alpilles. The garden has lots of history as well: often called the "cradle of Avignon," its rocky grottoes were among the first human habitations in the area.

Don't miss the formal Italianate gardens of Fort St-André, littered with remains of the abbey that preceded the fortifications. The gardens are now privately owned.

From this spot you can overlook the area's fields and mas (farms), and the modern vacation homes are differentiated from the older properties only by their aqua-blue pools. Belvédère is just downhill from the château; look for the signs.

Touring the Calanques, whose fjordlike finger-coves probe the rocky coastline, is a must. Either take a sightseeing cruise in a boat that dips into each Calanque in turn (tickets, sold at the eastern end of the port, are €21–€33, depending on how many Calanques you see) or hike across the cliff tops, clambering down the steep sides to these barely accessible retreats. One boat trip lets you swim in the turquoise waters under Cap Canaille, but that must be booked at the kiosk in the morning (four to five departures per day from June to September).

Although of the Calanques closest to Cassis, Port Miou is the least attractive—it was a pierre de Cassis (Cassis stone) quarry until 1982 when the Calanques became protected sites—it now has an active leisure and fishing port. Calanque Port Pin is prettier, with wind-twisted pines growing at angles from white-rock cliffs. But with its tiny beach and jagged cliffs looming overhead, covered with gnarled pine and scrub and its rock spur known to climbers as the "finger of God," Calanque En Vau, reachable via a challenging two-hour hike both there and back (or your own private boat), is a small piece of paradise.

Despite Tarascon's modern-day drawbacks, with the walls of its formidable château plunging straight into the roaring Rhône, this ancient city on the river presents a daunting challenge to Beaucaire, its traditional enemy across the water. Begun in the 15th century by the noble Anjou family on the site of a Roman castellum, the castle grew through the generations into a splendid structure, crowned with both round and square towers and elegantly furnished. René the Good (1409–80) held court here, entertaining luminaries of the age.

The castle owes its superb preservation to its use, through the ensuing centuries, as a prison. It first served as such in the 17th century, and it released its last prisoner in 1926. Complete with a moat, a drawbridge, and a lovely faceted spiral staircase, it retains its beautiful decorative Renaissance stonework and original cross-mullioned windows.

Summering in the Château de Montauban brought French journalist and author Alphonse Daudet a peace he missed in literary Paris. Daudet frequently climbed the windswept, pine-studded hilltop to the rustic old windmill that ground the local grain from 1814 to 1915—the inspiration for his famous folkloric short stories Lettres de Mon Moulin. The windmill is now closed to the public, but the graceful château houses a museum devoted to Daudet's writings, and you can freely stroll the grounds to enjoy the peace and sweeping views of the Rhône valley and the Alpilles that so inspired him.

A massive stone edifice with a striking silhouette, the Château des Baux once capped the imposing 13th-century fortress of the powerful Lords of Baux, who claimed descent from Balthazar, one of the three magi. The wide and varied grounds contain ruins of the Sarrazine and Paravelle towers, the tiny Chapelle St-Blaise, a dovecote, and a hospital (now a garden). At the fortifications’ highest point, you’ll understand the strategic importance of this sprawling 12-acre site whose panorama of Provence stretches from Aix to Arles and, on a clear day, to the Mont Ventoux and beyond.

Even if you haven't read Pagnol's works or seen his films, you can enjoy the Circuit Pagnol, a series of hikes (some up to 20 km [12 miles] long) in the raw-hewn, arid garrigues behind Marseille and Aubagne. Here Pagnol spent his idyllic summers, described in his Souvenirs d'un Enfance (Memories of a Childhood), crunching through the rosemary, thyme, and scrub oak at the foot of his beloved Garlaban.

When he became a famous playwright and filmmaker, he shot some of his best work in these hills, casting his wife, Jacqueline, as the first Manon of the Springs. After Pagnol's death, Claude Berri came back to the Garlaban to find a location for his remake of Manon des Sources, but found it so altered by brush fires and power cables that he chose to shoot farther east instead, around Cuges-les-Pine and Riboux. (The lovely village and Manon's well were filmed in Mirabeau, in the Luberon.)

Although the trails no longer travel amid pine-shaded olive orchards, they still let you explore primeval Provençal countryside with spectacular views of Marseille and the sea. To access the marked trails by yourself, drive to La Treille northeast of Aubagne, and follow the signs. For maps or an accompanied tour with literary commentary, contact the tourist office.

Spooked by rebellions, a young Louis XIV tapped military engineer Nicolas de Clerville to build twin forts strategically flanking the narrow passage of Marseille’s Vieux Port. It didn’t take long for people to notice that the cannons were not aimed at the sea but rather inward toward the city’s feisty inhabitants. Later used as a prison and then as a military base, the 12-acre site was declared a historic monument in 1969, but sat mostly empty until 2003, when the city hired heritage architects and the collective ACTA VISTA—which employs people in precarity to learn important skills on the job—to restore the structure. The fort is now open year-round, and you can stop by its café for a coffee or gourmet snack, the perfect accompaniments to eye-popping views of the port, esplanade, and city beyond. An exciting program of open-air theatre and live concerts is held here from May to October. 

In 1985, diver Henri Cosquer discovered a mostly submerged cave with chambers containing more than 500 evocative images of bison, horses, deer, ibex, aurochs, seals, jellyfish, and human hands. On this simulated visit at Marseille's Villa Mediterranée, groups of six, equipped with headsets, are taken by cable car though a near-perfect replica of the cave to learn the story of these mysterious drawings, the original artists, and their relationship to the animals they depicted some 33,000 years ago.

This center of bohemian flânerie (hanging out) is a lovely place to relax by the fountain, in the shade of plane trees, or under a café umbrella. Its low-key and painterly tableau is framed by graceful 18th-century buildings, and the warren of streets surrounding it is full of young fashion designers, vintage shops, and hip boutiques.

Shaded by a double row of tall plane trees, the Cours Mirabeau is one of the most beautiful avenues anywhere, designed so its width and length would be in perfect proportion with the height of the dignified 18th-century hôtels particuliers lining it. You can view this lovely assemblage from one of the dozen or so cafés that spill onto the pavement.

Since 1895, this important local distiller has been producing not only lavender, but also essential oils of lavendin and other aromatic plants. Tours of its facility, offered May through August, cover cultivating lavender and the distillation process. You can stock up on lavender, organic essential oils, floral waters, soaps, sachets, and plant-based cosmetics in the on-site shop.