Avignon
The largest Gothic palace ever built, the Palais des Papes was erected by Pope Clement V, who abandoned Rome in 1309 in the wake of violent disorder after…
Must-see attractions in Provence
Avignon
Legend says Pastor Bénézet (a former shepherd) had three visions urging him to build a bridge across the Rhône. Completed in 1185, the 900m-long bridge…
Aix-en-Provence
Aix established one of France's first public museums here, on the site of a former Hospitallers' priory, in 1838. Nearly 200 years of acquisitions …
Arles
In Roman Gaul, every important town had an amphitheatre, where gladiators and wild animals met their (usually grisly) ends. Few examples have survived,…
The Luberon
If you're searching for that classic postcard shot of the medieval abbey surrounded by a sea of purple lavender, look no further. This sublime Cistercian…
The Luberon
Named after its fiery red and orange landscape (which locals likened to Colorado), this former ochre quarry is one of the best places to appreciate the…
Les Calanques
The calanques (coves) of the coast surrounding Marseille became France's 10th national park in 2012, preserving their astonishing beauty and harbouring an…
Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde
Marseille
Occupying Marseille’s highest point, La Garde (154m), this opulent 19th-century Romano-Byzantine basilica is Marseille's most-visited icon. Built on the…
The Luberon
In the scrubby hills about 6km south of Bonnieux, a twisty back road slopes up to this wonderful cedar forest, whose spreading boughs provide welcome…
Arles
Housed in a listed 15th-century manor, now twice repurposed (its other incarnation was as a bank), this Van Gogh–themed gallery is a must-see, as much for…
Marseille
'The Basket' is Marseille's oldest quarter – site of the original Greek settlement and nicknamed for its steep streets and buildings. Its close, village…
Avignon
The archbishops' palace during the 14th and 15th centuries now houses outstanding collections of primitive, pre-Rennaissance, 13th- to 16th-century…
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Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée
Marseille
The icon of modern Marseille, this stunning museum explores the history, culture and civilisation of the Mediterranean region through anthropological…
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Aix-en-Provence
The Caumont is a stellar art space housed inside the Mazarin quarter’s grandest 18th-century hôtel particulier (mansion). While there are three quality…
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Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Situated 4km south of Forcalquier near Mane, this peaceful priory dates from the 13th century. It’s well worth a visit to wander around its medieval herb…
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Parc Ornithologique du Pont de Gau
Camargue
Flamingos are a dime a dozen in the Camargue, but this park is one of the best places to see the many other migratory and seasonal species that thrive in…
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Camargue
This remote nature centre, 12km south of Salin de Giraud, organises fantastic forays through 702 hectares of protected marshland, scrubby glasswort,…
Marseille
Ships have docked for millennia at Marseille’s birthplace, the vibrant Vieux Port. The main commercial docks were transferred to the Joliette area in the…
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Marseille
In the heart of Marseille's Le Panier quarter is this grand and gorgeous almshouse, built by Pierre Puget (1620–94), an architect and sculptor born just a…
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Chapelle Notre Dame de Beauvoir
Gorges du Verdon
High above the village, Moustiers' 14th-century church clings to a cliff ledge like an eagle’s nest. A steep trail climbs beside a waterfall to the chapel…
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Arles
This superb 150-year-old museum, housed in an exquisitely renovated 15th-century Hospitaller priory by the Rhône, might be assumed old-fashioned, yet its…
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The Luberon
This distillery on the edge of Buoux uses locally grown lavender, cypress and rosemary in its products. It also rents out three gorgeous self-contained…
Aix-en-Provence
Eight kilometres southwest of Aix is the town of Les Milles, where this imposing factory produced bricks and tiles from 1882 until 31 August 1939, when it…
Cassis
The 'Road of Crests' offers heart-stopping panoramas as it traverses the 13 winding kilometres of stunning coastal and upland scenery between Cassis and…
Aix-en-Provence
Built in 1860 as the centrepiece to the place de la Rotonde, the roundabout at the western edge of Cours Mireabeau, this magnificent fountain is adorned…
Cassis
Looming, rock-pitted and scrubby Cap Canaille (394m) forms the natural southern border to Cassis' harbour. From the top, captivating views unfold across…
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Les Calanques
To the east of the Parc National des Calanques, the stone-sculptured coast brings you to three remote calanques: En-Vau, Port-Pin and Port-Miou. A steep…
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Les Calanques
Rocky, pine-covered Cap Morgiou plunges to meet the Med at the eponymous Calanque de Morgiou – a pretty little port bobbing with fishing boats and sheer…
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Aix-en-Provence
No streetscape better epitomises Provence’s most graceful city than this 440m-long, fountain-studded street, sprinkled with Renaissance hôtels…
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Aix-en-Provence
One of Aix' great charms is its historical centre: ramble through it, drinking in divine streetscapes as you choose which historical, cultural or culinary…
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The Luberon
To get to grips with Provence’s most prestigious crop, this excellent eco-museum makes an ideal first stop. An audioguide and video (in English) explain…
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Parc Naturel Régional de Camargue
Camargue
Enclosed by the Petit Rhône and Grand Rhône rivers, most of the Camargue wetlands fall within the 850-sq-km Parc Naturel Régional de Camargue, established…
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Marseille
This intriguing 15,000-sq-metre museum traces the story of 'France's Oldest City' from prehistory (the paintings of the Cosquer Cave) to the present day,…
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Musée Départemental Arles Antique
Arles
This striking cobalt-blue museum perches on the edge of what used to be the Roman chariot-racing track (hippodrome), southwest of central Arles. The…
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Camargue
This 2.5m-high dyke was built in the 19th century to cut the delta off from the sea, making the southern Camargue arable. A 20km-long walking and cycling…
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Arles
Arles' already-bulging cultural landscape avidly awaits this new cutting-edge gallery and arts centre, rising inexorably at a defunct railway depot in the…
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Arles
It's easy to admire the grace and engineering of this theatre – built at the behest of the unofficial first Roman Emperor, Augustus, in the 1st century BC…
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Arles
The origins of these fascinating underground chambers, now sitting below the current city centre, go at least back to the first Roman colony in Arles in…
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Camargue
One of the oldest nature reserves in France (first delineated in 1927 and given official protected status in 1975), it covers 132 sq km of wetlands,…
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Avignon
Tiny Musée Angladon harbours an impressive collection of realist, impressionist and expressionist treasures, including works by Cézanne, Sisley, Manet,…
