Summer days in Rural Provence

Nature
The wow factor for nature - does it show nature at its best? Doesn't need to be the wildebeest migration or diving with hundreds of hammerheads. Rather make you pause as you realise just how awesome the natural world can be
7
Culture
How much does this experience showcase some of the better and finer things that us humans can offer? Sure, it can be ancient ruins and renaissance churches, but it can also be festivals or soaking up some of the great modern cities of the world
8
Fun factor/activity
Very simple - was it fun? This is usually linked in with doing some kind of activity - i mean, walking along some cliffs is nice, but paragliding from them, now that is fun. Its a vastly underrated factor in a truly great experience
7
Avoid the crowds
Big tour groups and being surrounded by loud fellow tourists can sap the life out of even the greatest of travel experiences. This score is to reflect just how much you can avoid this. But. . . The score also takes into account if the crowds actually add to the experience, such as with a party town or a bustling local market
6
World famous
How world famous is the experience?
9
unique
How hard is it to have a similar experience in other places round the world?
7
Overall TE Score
The overall travel experiences score:  fun factor + avoid the crowds + (best of nature or culture) + (best of world famous or unique). Then convert into a score out of 100
75 *What the scores mean and where do they come from
RANKING
How this travel experience ranks compared to all the other experiences on this site, based on the travel experience (te) score
101st/454
Top 30%
continent
Europe
country
France
Length of time
3-4 days
Typical daily price
This gives you a rough idea of the daily price based on 2 people travelling where they can split costs like accommodation. It excludes travel there and back, and factors in inflation the numbers in brackets show the price range for the full time of the experience (so not necessarily daily). It is a range to reflect different budget vs higher end
$190 (typically $70 - $310)
Time of year visited
August
Primary Tags
Click on any of the tags to see all travel experiences with the same tag
Christian site Old town Vineyards
All Tags
Ancient ruins Bustling restaurants Castles / Fortresses City Walls Driving Hilltop towns Local villages Market Restaurant recommendations Romans UNESCO world heritage site Wine
Wow Factor
The wow factor reflects just how much you’re likely to say “wow”. As there’s a lot of experiences in the world, and a lot of wows, i’ve gone with a simple ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ to ⭐️ score, and a separate category for the truly "gash"
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Summary

God it sounds like such a cliched, douchy title you’d hear from some old-money toff at uni … but spending summer days in rural Provence really is as close to the peak of classy idyllic living you can get and it’s certainly one of the highlights of France.

 

There aren’t necessarily so many giant individual wow factors . . . it’s more about finding yourself entering the perfect tree-lined streets of any village, sampling wines at some picture-perfect vineyard, wandering the cobbled streets of some perfect old town, looking out across country-side views of what would you would create if trying to paint the perfect rural landscape, and eating the plat-du-jours in that perfect restaurant that would be the envy of just about any city outside of France.

 

It all really is, well, classy, idyllically . . . perfect . . . and there is a reason Provence has such an aura, it pains me to say as an Englishman.  So I’ve written some tips below for how you can get that perfect vibe.

 

Rural Provence - views of the Avignon Citadel from Villeneuve-les-Avignon

 

Table of Contents

What to Prioritise for a 3/4 day trip

 

If you only have 3 / 4 days, and bear in mind that everything is within 1.5hr of each other so very manageable, I would suggest prioritise in this order:

 

1. Wandering Lourmarin

Lourmarin is the most picturesque and generally lovely of the country-side villages.  Just wander the pretty lanes and grab some lunch at Cafe Gaby or l’Ormeau.

 

Rural Provence - Grabbing lunch at Cafe Gaby in the Lourmarin

Grabbing lunch at Cafe Gaby in the Lourmarin

 

2. Dinner in Villeneuve-les-Avignon

We found it beautiful, especially if first walking along the stretch of the Rhone nearby and then wandering into the old town via the Tour Philippe-le-Bel.  All the restaurants seemed to be good, but I would specifically recommend those in the Place Jean Jaures and Le Bellie.

 

Rural Provence - Walking along the Rhone towards Villenueve-les-Avignon's Tour Philippe-le-Bel

Walking along the Rhone towards Villenueve-les-Avignon’s Tour Philippe-le-Bel

 

3. Les Baux de Provence

Castle / town with a beautiful setting, intriguing history and idyllic old town. You must go early, late or stay overnight as it’s unpleasantly packed with day tourists otherwise.  The views from the plateau at the top are worth the trip alone.

 

Rural Provence - views from the top of the castle over Les Baux de Provence

Views from the top of the castle over Les Beaux de Provence

 

4. Sampling wine at Chateau Neuf du Pape

Bear in mind this is the name of the region, rather than a specific vineyard (which often confuses many) and it’s daft expensive – you’re paying for the name, so better to buy other nearby regions.  However, the vineyards surrounding the town are super beautiful – I’d recommend Chateau la Nerthe for the grounds – and you can do free sampling in the town itself.

 

Rural provence - Chateau Neuf du Pape's Chateau la Nerthe for the beautiful grounds and wine sampling

 

 

5. The Pont du Gard

The tallest aqueduct in the Roman Empire and a truly impressive feat of engineering.

 

Rural Provence - the Pont du Garde

The Pont du Garde from the lookout point

 

6. Avignon

The main citadel, famous bridge and Avignon Old Town itself are gorgeous and definitely worth the trip.  For the bridge, I wouldn’t actually recommend visiting it directly – you don’t get much out of that trip – instead just walk over the nearby Pont Edouard Daladier and walk along the pretty banks opposite the Pont d’Avignon for the best views.

 

Rural Provence - nearby Pont Edouard Daladier and walk along the pretty banks opposite the Pont d’Avignon

The famous Pont d’Avignon from the other side of the Rhone

 

7. The Roman amphitheatre in Orange

One of the best preserved in the world – along with the Triumph Arch for Tiberius nearby – and very much worth it.  Rest of Orange a bit Meh – especially compared to the other towns nearby.

 

Rural Provence - The Roman Amphitheatre in Orange

The Roman Amphitheatre in Orange

8. Gordes

Gordes is often rated as the “most beautiful village in the world”.  I think that’s going a bit far, but beautiful nonetheless and the view from the entrance drive to the village is amazing.

 

Rural Provence - View over the village of Gordes

View over the village of Gordes

 

9. Aix-en-Provence

The markets in Aix-en-Provence are held on a Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday and well worth a visit for the buzz.  The general Old Town there is also nice.

 

Rural provence - The markets in Aix-en-Provence are held on a Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday

The central market for Aix-en-Provence on a Saturday in summer

 

Travel Tips for Provence

 

You must rent a car

So much of the experience is about driving through the countryside and popping unplanned into villages and vineyards.  You don’t need a fancy one, just a basic one which will in fact fit in with the vast majority of the beaten-up rural cars of the region

 

Focus on the small villages

Of course visit the cities, but the real magic is found in a county chateau or those early evenings in the small villages when the day tourists have left.

They also tend to be a lot cheaper than the cities. I’d really recommend Villeneuve-les-Avignon – it has the best of both worlds as it’s far smaller than Avignon with a gorgeous old town with plenty of restaurants and easy walks along the river, but you can also walk into Avignon itself – and Les Baux de Provence – more expensive but it really is magical in the early evenings.

 

Everything is expensive

Hard to do this one on the cheap, and I would suggest other parts of France if on a budget.

 

Avoid July and August

As with all things in the Mediterranean, avoid July and August if possible.  June and September for more pleasant and cheaper.

 

Experiences Nearby

The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences

Other Beautiful Rural Experiences

Sibilini Mountains and hilltop villages of Marche
⭐⭐

The Northumberland Coast (in summer!)
⭐⭐⭐

4WDing across the Hajar Mountains via Hatt
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Sorrento Peninsula – avoiding the crowds
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Champagne region wine tasting
⭐⭐⭐⭐

3 days / 2 nights hiking the Quilatoa Loop
⭐⭐⭐

Driving down the West Coast of Scotland – Glencoe, Oban, Skye and the Harry Potter Bridge
⭐⭐⭐

Driving through the White Towns of Parque Natural Sierra de Grazalema
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Driving through the Sacred Valley
⭐⭐⭐

Driving through the Black Forest and visiting Baden-Baden
⭐⭐

Score Detail

The scores above are the real point of this site.

Over 20+ years and 100+ countries, I’ve tried to rank the world’s best travel experiences — from genuinely mind-blowing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to the properly gash.

Every one of the 500+ places on this site has both a Wow Factor rating and a more analytical Travel Experience (TE) score based on the things that actually make travel memorable.

If you're curious about the thinking behind it, head to the About page.

Otherwise, explore the map above or on the Home page and see which places truly deliver maximum wow.

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