OH PROVENCE ! You are such a dream. The land of Picasso , Van Gogh and renowned artists from the impressionalist era that often flocked this region for inspiration, and their love for art and design.
For those of you who know me know very well how I am obsessed a tiny bit about the French countryside. I learnt about the slow country life of rural france some five years ago, how they devoured their meals for hours all together and no one was ever in a hurry , how everyone fetched fresh bread & baguettes from the neighbourhood bakery in their village at 8 am, how evenings were spent in the company of artists gulping Wine and Tapenade, How the weekend farmers market & Brocante in the narrow by lanes sold everything from fresh produce of fruits & vegetables to home-made local jams , condiments, woven grass baskets , Marseille soap to French linens and antique porcelain and silverware.
If this wasn’t enough I came across the account of ‘Peter Mayer’ who moved to ‘Menerbes’ a village in Provence and lived there for 25 years sharing hilarious anecdotes of his life and experiences in the south of France through his books.
And books have had a profound lasting impact on me more than movies or social media posts. So visiting and experiencing this part of France was pretty high up on my list. In all its glory, the French way of life came closest to how I want to live my life. Alas at this moment in time, a trip was the only feasible option to experience this in person. We initially planned the trip for the Spring of 2022 but due to a little Visa fiasco we had to sadly cancel it last year.
But that meant I had another 12 months to research and plan it even better for this year. We had two weeks in total the maximum my husband can take off from work basically. And since we had never been to France before we decided to spilt this time between two areas – One week in South followed by Annecy in the east of France and a good 5 days in Paris as first timers.
Having said that a week is not really enough to see all of Provence, 10 days might be better and if you have the luxury of spending your entire two weeks then nothing like it. But most travellers are pressed for time and if that’s the case with you this one week itinerary should be good enough to acquaint you with his part of the world. You many not be able to see it all like us but it still gives you a little bit of everything from the gorgeous coast of the French Riviera, the glitzy glamour of Monaco & Cannes to the jaw dropping hilltop villages and some leisure time wandering in the famous French markets to score souvenirs to bring back and cherish for life long.
Best time to visit
France is one of the most visited countries of the world. So expect Tourists year round but certain times are less busy than others and certain places less popular than the famous ones. In our opinion the Mediterranean gets pretty hot in summers July/August and Provence has the famous Mistral winds blowing during winters that can get biting cold and very uncomfortable. So the shoulder season of Spring & Autumn are the best to enjoy the great outdoors and its delicious food scene. However if you are very keen on seeing the Valensole Lavender fields, July is the best time to catch them in full bloom and at their peak.
April – Early Spring brings cool temperatures, very few to no crowds and beautiful Apricot blossoms
May – If you love wild flowers like me, the occasional showers of May makes the landscape come alive with thousands of Wild Poppy( Think Van Gogh & his famous paintings) The rambling roses seemed like they were on steroids and simply took my breath away. WE LOVED OUR TIME in the month of May
June – June is still a low key month with spillover rose blooms and if you insist on seeing Lavender fields you can catch them on the lower plateau areas without the crowds in the later half of the month around mid June.
July – The famous Lavender fields of Valensole are in full bloom but its also the most popular season so brave the crowds. The prices of accommodation also shoot up & get sold out fast so plan early on at least 3 months ahead I would recommend.
Sep/October – September is another really quiet month as told to me by the locals, the crisp autumn air makes it very comfortable to walk around, the scenery has started to change colours specially in the upper regions and if you are into Wine this could be the best time as its harvest season too.
VISA & Costs
Indian passport Holders need a Schengen visa to visit France which honestly is a pain in the *a-s so plan and apply atleast 3-4 months ahead of time. Or wait till Schengen goes digital in a few years ( God help us)
Budget an average cost for Stay ,Sightseeing, Food and Local Transport 3000 euros per head for two weeks (France is amongst the most expensive countries we have visited so far). Specially all the popular cities like Paris prices seem to be completely off the roof. We also splurged a little on watching a match at the French Open as a one time bucket list.
- Flights from India – € 500-550 per head
- Schengen Visa – € 111 per head
- Stay – € 130 per night for a couple (€1932 for entire 2 weeks )
- Local Transport (Trains/ Metro passes) – € 320 per head
- Car Rental , Petrol & Tolls for Luberon region- € 450
- Local Attractions – € 150 per head (Mostly Paris)
- Food – € 50 per head per day
Itinerary
We split our stay in two parts. The first part covered the places and towns in and around The French Riviera and the second that was my absolute favourite from the entire two weeks in France, where we based ourselves in the quaint Luberon.
Day 1 -3 FRench riviera
Day 1 – Arrive in Nice and see the city
We arrived in Nice quite late in the evening, as the 3rd largest city in France, Nice is well connected to Paris & other European cities. The fastest train from Paris takes about 6 hrs to reach and is comfortable but you can also fly in to save time. The train goes through the French countryside and some famous French towns on route like Avignon Marseille and Cannes. The journey though comfortable can be a long one specially if you are flying from India like us on a connecting flight. It had been 24 hrs for us to get here and we were totally squashed by the time we made it.
Nice is a busy and a popular town on the Riviera more like their party capital, but it’s well connected for Travellers without a car so makes for a good base to explore the region of French Maritime. If you prefer a more quiet place like me consider looking at Antibes or Villa- Sur – Mer that were far more peaceful over Nice and I would highly recommend as an alternate to the busy Nice.
But whichever town you choose to base yourself , if you plan to cover this area through public transport ( a combination of Trains & Buses) it’s best to stay close to the Train line. Our hotel was merely 200 meters from the train station in Nice, though the rooms were extremely crammed and I wouldn’t really recommend it after a long flight and for that price it wasn’t value for money, we weren’t as impressed with our stay at Hotel Khla Nice.
Top Things to see in Nice – Explore the Historical Old Town (Vieux Nice), Leisurely Strolls around Promenade Des Anglais, Explore Cathedral Saint Nicolas de Nice and The Nice Cathedral, Visit the famous local markets- Marche Aux Fleurs (Flower Market) and the Nice Antique Market that happens on Mondays.
Day 2 – St Paul De Vence , Cannes, Antibes
Start your day early today to beat the crowds (almost none in May) but more importantly the heat. I had assumed that after how popular Poets Home situated in St Paul De Vence had become on Instagram hoards of selfie taking tourists would be flocking this village voted as one of the prettiest villages in France. So we planned to leave early by 7 am and get there by 8 am in order to avoid crowds. To my utter surprise even at 10 am in the month of May there were hardly more than a handful of people. It does take about 45 minutes to get here with a train and a bus change and probably that could explain why some tourists skip this.
This place though, takes a little bit of time to get to, it is a must visit in my opinion. It was straight out of a fairytale with Jasmine and ivy climbing its pretty facades , and cobbled alleys leading you to stunning stores and art galleries. If you go in the month of May the dazzling aroma of the star jasmine fills the air and trust me when I say this I just didn’t want to leave. Like us if you start early, fetch yourself a nice Coffee and a Baguette at one of its Cafes post some strolling around (The best Baguette we had was here, this Boulangerie is right opposite Mason 1830 store) you could comfortably finish seeing the village in about 2-3 hrs and head to your next stop for the day the glitzy glamorous town of Cannes.
We actually skipped Cannes & chose Antibes but I have included in the itinerary as these fall on the same route. If you are a movie buff the International Cannes film festival is held in the month of May too and you could try your luck with celebrity spotting or even buy tickets to certain screenings.
Last stop for the long day was Antibes, that happened to please me much more over Nice. I wish we had stayed here instead. It’s far less busy , and we overall loved the old lanes, the views overlooking the ocean, the Picasso Museum and the size of this town. I do prefer small towns over big cities and party capitals but that’s just me.
Day 3 – Eze , Menton , Monaco
Our second full day at the Riviera we decided to cover the eastern side of towns and villages. This leg is much easier as most of the things are an easy Bus or a short train ride away.
Start your day early from the hilltop Village of Eze overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, this is probably the most popular village at the French Riviera so start early to avoid crowds and the strong sun.
Eze is a stunning hilltop village in the French Riviera with possibly the best views of the crystal clear blue waters of the Mediterranean ocean. It has cute pattiserries, art shops scattered around its cobblestone alleyways , and right on top is a succulent and cactus garden for all the plant lovers. This had a paid entrance of 7 euros.
Pro Tip : We suggest taking the bus to reach Eze Village as that drops you straight at the entrance of this gorgeous medieval village. If you take the train though more convenient it shall drop you at the Eze station from where one needs to hike upwards for about 4 km to actually reach the village entrance. (The hike though gorgeous with jaw dropping Mediterranean views all along can be a good offbeat way to discover this gem if you have that time in hand) Obviously either ways wear proper sturdy shoes.
But along with this keep aside another hour to visit the perfume factory by Fragonard at the base of the village. The tour is free and insightful and these perfumes and cosmetics made in this part of the world make the best French souvenirs.(Pick up a few over the branded Chanels on duty free stores) I really wanted to visit Grasse on the other side of French maritime which is actually considered the perfume factory of the world but we didn’t have time for it on this visit, so the tour in Eze somewhat compensated for it.
Moving on to Menton which lies right at the end of the riviera, two more towns and you actually enter Italy. The Italian influence was quite evident in the town of Menton. But because it’s a little far off, it was also less crowded and pretty peaceful. Just how we like it. Walking across the Promenade from here was much more pleasant and we enjoyed its sunny weather with Italian ‘gelatos’. The coloured lanes and houses brought back memories from our trip to Cinque Terra and Amalfi many years ago. Familiarity is sometimes lovely isn’t it.
Also Menton had some stunning decor stores, a weekend market if like me retail therapy is on the cards. I still regret not buying those antique cherry quarter plates man. Who’s going ?
Our last stop for the day was the glitzy glamour of MONACO which is actually one of the tiniest countries. The husband was really excited to see the location of one of his favourite sports The Formula One Racing track. The town sees who’s who of the world, its ornate buildings and the famous casino Monte Carlo is truly a piece of art. If you are lucky you may spot a celebrity or two and all auto lovers should dedicate an hour to just see the line up of impressive cars. I could see how Kapil was having a great time while I was obsessing over the blooms in Menton and Eze more, this boy finally found his kinda stuff. Cars , Casino’s , Tuxedos straight out of his Hollywood flicks & action dramas. He did live his James Bond moment that day. The Casino has a Paid entrance of 18 euros and Please ensure to carry your Passports if you intend to play or enter. Even if you don’t intent to play a game of poker , the interiors are totally worth checking out.
Day 4 – Nice and Train to Aix-en-Provence
We got up early to check out some of Nice and its attractions, as we had a late afternoon Train to catch for our next leg of the journey to Luberon. The first thing we did was to experience the famous weekend farmers market at Nice, get some coffee and breakfast , take a lazy stroll on the Promenade and just people watch. Experiencing local markets in France is less about shopping and more about experience, and if you haven’t seen one I highly recommend doing so (We saw six and still weren’t done) . Each one of them is famous for something different from Food , to Flowers to Antiques and makes for a great insight into the French way of living. I loved the fresh flowers , we grabbed fresh strawberries and cherry’s (The best I have ever had anywhere) some local pastries by cute French ladies every now and then and then walked past to sit on the Nice beach and just enjoy the Spring weather.
Then took a look around some of the city’s popular attractions – the historical town mainly, the famous cathedrals and were ready to goodbye and catch our train to Aix-en-Provence in the afternoon. We had booked a self drive car from Aix- en- Provence for the rest of our trip as there is hardly any public transport around here.
Day 4 -8 Luberon
Day 4–6 – Luberon and Villages
After picking our car from Aix we had only reached quite late in the evening at our Air-Bnb. We based ourselves at the Foothills of the famous Ochre coloured Roussillon as it was more centrally located and allowed us to cover more in a short span of 3 days. We stayed at a local Homestay @lespassiflores and I cannot recommend it enough. Jean was the most polite, accommodating and pleasant host who helped me find my Limoges, and gave top notch recommendations for the region.
Luberon was everything and more than what I had imagined. Picture perfect French countryside , sprawling fields of wild poppies, vineyard , olive grooves in distance, stone covered facades with rambling roses, the heady notes of start Jasmine and the bonus of spring that made it utterly romantic and straight out of a fairytale book. There were pinch me moments and fleeting moments of being utterly grateful to see this little dream of mine come alive. I would have to hold back here and probably dedicate another post entirely to Luberon and my favourite must see and do’s there but for now listing the villages covered in no particular order below.
- Bonnieux
- Lacoste
- Lourmarin
- Goult
- Roussillon
- Gordes
- Apt
- Menerbes
- Oppede
- Lisle-sur- la – sorgue
Day 7 – 8 St Remy, Arles and Aix-en-Provence
On our last day we drove back to Aix-en- Provence to return our car and on our way stopped to explore the famous town of St Remy’s to visit the Van Gogh museum. We still had some time on hand thanks to the longer days of spring so then went on a Van Gogh trail from here to Arles and eventually checked into our Hotel at Aix-en-Provence later in the evening.
The city was buzzing and seemed like a party and food capital , so we decided to visit a proper French Restaurant for some Wine and a three course meal to call it a day. The next morning was reserved to discover the famous Aix market , by this time I had already seen better markets and stalls in Lisle-sur-la-sorgue so this didn’t wow us as much specially with the crowds pouring in at 10 a.m , it got extremely crowded so we left with a bag of strawberries and some souvenirs to explore a little bit of the town and eventually caught a late afternoon train to the French alps and a Mountain town known as the Venice of east ‘Annecy’.
That’s a wrap of our week in south of France , it was a lot of exploration and we thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it, but Luberon for us was the icing on the cake. Places that we wanted to visit but could not on this trip were Marseille , Avignon , Nimes , Saignon , Grasse just to name a few. The region definitely needs a second trip a few years later.
Au revoir ! Provence we will be back
Kamakshi
