Hello~ I am thinking of heading off to parts of Provence for only 5 days in October. Will take a train from Paris. My questions are: Where should I start? I would like to rent a car and see some lovely parts of Provence and then end up in Nice or somewhere on the Med. I would drop off the car in Nice and head back to Paris by train. I would like to get a feel for Provence and drive around, but I also have my heart set of seeing the Med sea. Is this possible in 5 days? Am I doing too much? Where would be a good starting point be? Thanks so much for your help :)
ps I saw some beautiful pictures of St. Remy that really appealed to me.
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Hi Shack,
Great idea, and 5 days is plenty to see and do lots in Provence. The TGV for the south of France leaves Paris from Gare de Lyon. Avignon is 3-4 hrs by TGV from here.
It%26#39;s near St Remy. From here you could drive East toward Nice over the course of your 5 days and see places like Les baux, Luberon, Cassis, St. Tropez etc... The list is endless.
I suggest you get guide book of Provence and find out what%26#39;s of interest to you. There%26#39;s so much to see and do, but it depends on what interests you....and then there%26#39;s the food and drink!!
Search the relevant forums for whats to do in each area too, there%26#39;s so much information on here. Happy planning. B
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A lifetime wouldn%26#39;t be too long in Provence, especially in the light of the weather in Britain this summer. Where do I start?
Aix en Provence as a base (1 night) - visit Gorge du Verdon, Cassis, Port in Marseilles;
Ramatuelle or Cogolin (2 nights) - visit St Tropez and peninsula;
Nice (3 nights)- visit Villefranche, Eze, Monaco, St Paul...
I think you%26#39;re trying to do too much in 5 days.
What about using Nice as a base and concentrate on the area from Menton to the east and as far as Cannes to the West? You could always take the boat from nice to St Tropez and avoid the queues by road. It%26#39;s taken me six visits (each of 10-14) days to see the area properly. There%26#39;s so much to see... and if you have a car, some wonderful villages to explore inland.
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Thanks everyone. I will get a good map of the area today and look at all places mentioned. I know 5 days is not long, maybe I can make it 6 - I could cut a day off my Paris visit. Then at least I can experience see some of it! If anyone knows of some really reasonable places to stay for 2 people on a budget, please feel free to mention them! Are the restaurants pretty reasonable is small villages?
Shack
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Eating out in France is generally good value for money, whereever you are.
I%26#39;ve been to Provence 7 times in 8 years and have only scratched the surface but five or six days would give you a good taste of it. I would suggest you stay in Cassis or Hyeres, both by the sea, for two or three nights, and also inland for the other three nights. Nice is lovely but it%26#39;s 2.5 hours by train from Marseille, and you don%26#39;t need to go that far across to see the Med (for which I share your enthusiasm. I will never forget the first time I saw it. 5am and I%26#39;d travelled all night and I never realised before that sea could be that colour or that it actually GLITTERS). On the whole, given the car, you would probably be better off in Hyeres, as you can drive along the Giens peninsula to Tour Fondue, park, and get a boat to Porquerolles one day. The other day you can explore Hyeres, the old town, the castle, the Villa Noailles, the beaches on the peninsula. I stay at the Hotel les Orangers and have reviewed it on here. It%26#39;s cheap. In Cassis I stayed at Le Laurence and also reviewed it on here. It%26#39;s also cheap. In Cassis you can do boat trips to see the calanques, lie on the plage du Bestouan, eat in the many very good restaurants (my favourite is the Bonaparte in rue Bonaparte) and walk up to the top of the calanques for lunch in the cafe by the tennis club.
My favourite place inland is St Remy (eat at l%26#39;Assiette de Marie, it%26#39;s divine)and if you%26#39;ll have a car you will be able to get around easily. I would spend a day doing the Luberon (Roussillon, Gordes, Bonnieux, Menerbes and having lunch or dinner in Apt at l%26#39;Intramuros), and a day doing St Remy, Les Baux, Arles, Glanum and the monastery of St Paul de Mausole and a day doing l%26#39;Isle sur la Sorgue, Fontaine de Vaucluse and Avignon.
Of course you can do something completely different, stay in Nice for 2 or three nights and visit Villefranche, Cap Ferrat and Eze as well as seeing Nice and the flower market and the castle and taking the train des pignes up to Entrevaux. Then you could go to Aix (I stay in hotel le Mozart, also reviewed on here) and see the cathedral, the fountains, the cours Mirabeau and Cezanne%26#39;s studio, and drive over to St Remy for a day.
My favourite markets are St Remy (food) WEdnesday morning and l%26#39;Isle sur la Sorgue (antiques and just about everything) Sunday. Aix has a good one Saturday morning but if you are nearby on a Saturday Apt market (which I%26#39;ve never seen) is said to be the best for food.
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WOW ChicChantel you have given me so much to think about and some great advice. When I get home from work tonight, I will look up these places you stayed in and toured. It all sounds so good. Thanks very much for all the help. I%26#39;m actually having great time learning about this region and all of France.
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Hi Shack -
Since you you are arriving from Paris and have only 5 days for what I am sure will be your first stay %26quot;en Provence%26quot;, I would suggest that you consider settling in one location and using it as a base for your five day exploration. Nothing in %26quot;true%26quot; Provence is really that far a drive.
Personally, I think that the area around St. Remy / les ALpilles (including wonderful villages like Maussane-les-ALpilles and Paradou) is perfectly situated for this type of adventure.
There are wonderful ruins and places that you can visit from the Roman era as well as the Middle Ages including sites in St. Remy itself as well as sites in Les Baux, Arles, Avignon, Nimes, Vaison-la-Romaine,and Aigues Mortes in the Camargue. Also, since you will be in heaven in October you may be able to be in Les-Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer for one of the annual Gypsy ceremonies - trust me, it is awesome!
Whatever you do, do not try to %26quot;see%26quot; both Provence AND the Cote d%26#39;Azur within 5 days.
AlpillesGal
PS - Let me know if you would like a copy of my %26quot;Travellers Aid for Provence%26quot;.
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AlpillesGal- I think you are right. I won%26#39;t try to see the coast even though I really did want to. But I think it is the small villages that appeal to me more.I will find a base and tour around from there at a resonable pace. The Cote d%26#39;Azur will be for another visit!
Thank you everyone for all you great input. I do appreciate it all.
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If you go to Saintes Maries de la Mer as AG suggests, you%26#39;ll get to see the Med anyway, and you can have a quick paddle if nothing else.
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