Provence -itinerary and hotel help?

[Ellesee]

Hi all
We were planning to go to Italy and Switzerland in the fall, but my husband is going to a conference in Barcelona in April so I will go with him and we will use that as the jumping off point for our holiday this year. Barcelona--Luberon--Geneva (I am a geek and I want to tour CERN).

I would love some input.

Booked so far:
Flight from Toronto to Barcelona overnight April 9/10
Barcelona April 10-13. Conference wraps up around 1 pm
Booked at Bonnieux apartment from April 15-23 8 nights.
Flight from Geneva to Toronto April 26.

I have been dreaming of staying at Kathy and Charlie's apt in Bonniux, and Luberon for years and I can hardly believe we're will actually be doing it in a few weeks. We will figure out each day in Luberon once we are there, and we will go on to Geneva on the 23rd. I need some help with 13th and 14th.

We can take the train (tgv) from Barcelona to Avignon (or on to Aix or Marseille). It arrives 8:45pm in Avignon. Car rental is open until 10 pm per website so we could pick up our car and then go to b&b or hotel. We will be tired and I don't want to go far. Where should we stay that night (and following night)? Should we stay in Avignon? With or without a car?

This is our first time in Provence. Avignon does not seem to be on anyone's favourite list, and I don't want to rehash best town in Provence discussions. I would love to get off the train (direct from Barcelona-no switching lines), and walk to a quaint small hotel where I could walk around a pretty village on Fri, have a great dinner and then pick up the car Sat on go on to Bonnieux. I am ok to pick up the car Thur night but I don't want to pay €40 to park each night. Help.

Just to throw something else out there-I saw Paulines post about Lascaux opening and now I have the caves in my head. Lascaux is too far but maybe cavern point d'arc? Maybe on 14th? Or we could do a long day trip during our week in Bonnieux.

Lynn

 

[Roz]

Definitely try to get to the Caverne du Pont d'Arc (also known as the Chauvet cave). We were there last fall, and were totally blown away. As with Lascaux, you will not be seeing the original cave, since no visitors are allowed (except scholars with special permission) in order to preserve the interior. But the replica that the French built (at a cost of about 50 million euros) is amazing. You really feel as if you are in the actual cave. It has the oldest known cave art in the world -- over 35,000 years -- and is incredibly beautiful. If you haven't seen the documentary film Cave of Forgotten Dreams, try to do so before going. You can get it via Netflix.

There is one English tour per day (around 11 am if I recall correctly) and you should book ahead, which you can do online.

Grotte Chauvet 2 Ardèche - 1er grand chef-d’œuvre de l’humanité

www.grottechauvet2ardeche.com

[edited to add new URL]

Did you ask Kathy for suggestions about where to stay your first couple of nights? She would probably be the best source of info.

 

[Pauline]

Just to throw something else out there-I saw Paulines post about Lascaux opening and now I have the caves in my head. Lascaux is too far but maybe cavern point d'arc? Maybe on 14th? Or we could do a long day trip during our week in Bonnieux.

I've not heard of this cave but I see it is north of Nimes and Uzes, an an area we have visited several times!

Could you get off the train in Nimes and spend the night there? We spent a week there a few weeks ago and enjoyed the town. It has a fabulous Roman Amphitheater. You could pickup the rental car there (if that is possible) and drive to the cave. Spend your second night in Uzes - I really like that town. It is small, so not a problem driving into it.

If there is no rental car office in Nimes, you could take the train to Avignon, spend the night, get the car the next day and drive to the cave, then overnight somewhere - Uzes, Vaison-la-Romaine (Roman ruins), St Remy - many places to choose from.

But, make sure it is a reasonable drive to the cave - you don't want to spend all day in the car. If you skip the cave idea, you could take the train to Aix-en-Provence and spend 2 nights there. This is a lovely town. Or if you want to see Roman Amphitheaters, one night in Nimes, one night in Arles. Or both nights in Arles - it is a great town with lots to see.

Or one night in Avignon/Aix/Nimes - pickup the car and spend the second night in Saint Remy and see the remains of the Roman town Glanum.

I guess I am doing a "best towns in Provence" post - but, really, they are all great! Avignon is nice too.

Sounds like a great trip!!

 

[Ellesee]

Roz I have seen bits of that documentary on tv before and had thought it was Lascaux. I will definitely watch the whole thing again. Pauline I too did not realize Chauvet existed until I was trying to google the distance from Avignon to Lascaux and this cave showed up too on the map.

There is an earlier tgv from Barcelona to Nimes, arriving at 5pm. That should leave us enough time to rent a car and drive to Uzes before dark, I think? I would rather stay 2 nights in the same place. Uzes looks to be just the place -pretty walkable village, close enough to the cave to get there Fri morning, and a market on Sat. Do we need to park outside the perimeter? Any hotel recommendations?

 

[Pauline]

We have stayed in Uzes three times, each time in a vacation rental for a week. I don't know the hotels. It is a lovely town. There is one road around the historic center and there are several large parking lots off that road. When you get your hotel figured out, I will look at my map to find the nearest parking lot if your hotel doesn't have parking.

The Saturday market is big and very well known. It is a zoo in summer, but should be great in the off season.

 

[Ellesee]

I booked La Bonaventure which seems to be an annex of La Petite Hostellerie. 5 Rue de la Grande Bourgade. Looks to be a few minutes walk from Q-park?

Is there anything particularly unique or special to buy at the Uzes market?

I was going through the materials on my "travel" bookshelf and found "Provence Byways" a guidebook to the Luberon region of Provence. A little book/pamphlet of driving tours by Bob and Sue Winn published in 2008. That is how long I have been thinking about going to Luberon. I can't even remember how or why I bought it, but it was very likely on a recommendation from Slow Trav. I hope it is not too out of date. It has a provencal food glossary at the back. "Daube; a slow-cooked lamb or beef stew with red wine, onions and tomatoes". "Fougasse: a crusty flatbread, usually flavored with olives, herbs, and onions."

 

[Roz]

I think you'll love Uzes; it's a great village. I don't know the hotel, but it looks very good. With Provence markets, the thing to do is just wander around and enjoy the discoveries, since there are so many beautiful and delicious things. If you do have time to get to the Pont du Gard, not far away, it is truly one of the wonders of the world.

Provence Byways is a long-time favorite reference on Slow Trav. I guess there is a newer edition, but I'm sure there is still much that hasn't changed.

 

[Kathy]

I think you've got a great plan!

There is a newer edition of Provence Byways. http://provencebyways.com/Guides.htm The Winns visit the Luberon on a regular basis to update the book, and they've added some new sections and some other driving tours. They do include some restaurant and winery recommendations, and these can get out of date quickly. The last update was in 2015.

You can now buy the book and download a PDF. We have a copy of the newest version (and I think several older versions too) in our apartment, but if you want a copy you can mark up, I'd go ahead and buy the download. It's just $10.

Kathy

 

[Chris]

There are also older editions of Provence Byways! I buy each new edition because it seems like the least I can do to thank the Winns, since I've had so many memorable and happy days following their driving tour suggestions. The first version I bought was for our 1999 trip. Restaurant and winery recommendations do get out of date, but there is a lot of info in the book that is ageless.

 

[Pauline]

I booked La Bonaventure which seems to be an annex of La Petite Hostellerie. 5 Rue de la Grande Bourgade. Looks to be a few minutes walk from Q-park?

Is there anything particularly unique or special to buy at the Uzes market?

That's a great location! We spent a week in a house one block over from there. The Q-Park will be your best choice. We parked there on one trip.

Make sure you see Wallace Statue (photo below). It is at the end of your street, on the ring road that goes around the center of town.

I agree with @Roz , the Pont du Gard is fabulous. Here are my day trip notes.

I wrote a trip report for our last trip, but it probably contains more info than you need. Notes from my 2014 trip.

I buy salt at the market. They harvest it in the Carmargue, south of Arles.

Wallace Statue, Rue de la Grande Bourgade and Boulevard des Allies.

Languedoc - Uzes, Wallace statue

• Pauline
• Feb 14, 2017

Located along the main street, Rue de la Grande Bourgade and Boulevard des Allies.

Place Aux Herbes, in the center.

Languedoc - Uzes

• Pauline
• May 22, 2014
• 1

Place aux Herbes in the center of Uzes.

 

[Ellesee]

Thanks all for your advice. Such an awesome and generous group here.