Where would you go in Provence?

[Emmie]

My DH and I are trying to decide what to do when we reach Marseille. We will be there on a Sunday, and from what I have been told it's better to leave the city and head to one of the little towns nearby. However, which one? Did you love one when you went? Do you WISH you had gone to one when you were there? I'd love to hear your opinions!

 

Thanks,

Emmie

[Aussie Gal]

We have been both to Avignon and Aix En Provence. We arrived in Aix on a Sunday and there really wasn't a lot happening except near the Cathedral area where a lot of the touristy shops are open. Most other shops are closed and only the restaurants along the main street are open as well.

 

Avignon has the wonderful old area to walk around and you can spend quite a lot of time up there. I would probably opt for Avignon. Avignon has a lot of history to do with the Popes and it is most interesting. If you had time after seeing the old area, I would get a car to take you to one of the lovely vineyard towns nearby and go to a winery.

 

Jennie

[FLJudi]

We have been to all of the places mentioned, and each one has a different flavor and areas of interest. You need to decide if you want a busy day walking and sightseeing, or a quiet day taking in the flavor of a small town. We particularly love Cassis - a small seaside town with nice seafood restaurants surrounding the small boat harbor. We have a leisurely lunch, walk around town and shop a little and then we take a 1 1/2 hour boat tour of the Calanques, the area between Marseille and Cassis, with small inlets, cliffs coming down to the sea. You get to see up close, which you can't do from a large cruise ship. Check the map out on the url below - very close to Marseille. FLJudi

 

 

http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichelin/gbr/dyn/controller/ItiWGPerformPage?reinit=1&strStartAddress=&strStartCity=marseille&strStartCP=&strStartCityCountry=1424&strDestAddress=&strDestCity=cassis&strDestCP=&strDestCityCountry=1424&x=26&y=6

[vivian02]

On our cruise last June I was not sure what to do once we reached Marsallie. My dad who had served a tour of duty in WWII was stationed in and around Marsallie and was not very impressed with the area. Being a Geography major I did my homework and figured my wife would not be ready to get up early and see a City in France that lacked good toilet facilities. I went ahead and booked a half day tour in Les Beaux by the Cruise company. It turned out to be just fantastic. The area was not what I imagined and I would go back anytime. In the future if we make it back to the Providence area I would like to spend more time touring the area. It is well worth seeing. Unfortunately getting there by car and train can be probably time consuming because of logistic issues. I did read an article that says you can rent a taxi behined the tourist burea in Marsallie. It seemed reasonable but I have not talked to anyone who used the service. Happy sailing, Tim and Cathy

 

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[zebra]

Has anyone used taxi Durand to tour this area?? We have booked her and were wondering if Aix and Les Baux were the best areas so see - and shop?

[sundial]

We used Louisette Durand of taxidurand to take us to Aix, Les Baux, and Arles on our Med cruise last July. She is reliable, knows her way around, and has a nice airconditioned van. Her English is a little limited, but we got by. She is more of a driver than a tour guide though and she doesn't provide a lot of information on the places you visit. There was a nice market in Aix for shopping but I am not sure if it is open every day.

[simonv]

How much did she charge? Was it a all day tour?

[zebra]

She is charging us 450 Euros for 6 people - for a full day tour to where ever we want to go. 75 Euros each is less than a full day ships tour per person and you can tailor make it to suit yourselves.

[Twickenham]

I was torn on this one, since I really love Aix. But if you have only a day, Arles packs a bigger tourist punch thanks to its spectacular Roman amphitheater. The area surrounding the amphitheater also has lots of shops and restaurants as well. Having said that, what I would do is check out the 2 markets held in Marseille on Sunday morning - I'm a market junkie!