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A week in Provence/the Luberon

Posted by (Kansas) on

My husband and I are thinking to spend a week in Provence later this year and would like to spend some time in the Luberon. RS's France book suggests only a night or two there (?!) but we've learned we like a slower pace than Rick typically recommends; our favorite part of our last trip to Europe was spending three nights in a mountain town with "no attractions," just hiking and taking in the town. We enjoyed being active outside in the morning and having a slow coffee in the afternoon. In my mind the Luberon seems like an ideal place for this — country walks and peaceful cafés — but I've never been the area.
-Has anyone spent 4-7 days in the Luberon? Are there good hikes to be found? Is it easy to stay in one town and make day trips to the others?

We're also thinking of spending a day or two in Marseille/the Calanques/Cap Canaille. I've visited Marseille but not Cassis — is it worth staying overnight in Cassis? We'll have a car, and I'm wondering if it might be easier to stay in Cassis to access the Calanques than trying to drive/park in Marseille.
-Has anyone walked to Cap Canaille from Cassis?

-Lastly, I've never visited Aix-en-Provence — is it worth a stop (e.g. for lunch) on the drive to/from Marseille/Cassis?

Posted by
755 posts

The Luberon is definitely worth more time. Yes, there are hikes and it is easy to do day trips from one town. I stayed in Bonnieux twice and there is a beautiful wilderness type of park that you can hike to, as well as electric bikes to rent.
Cassis is also definitely worth an overnight. We did a lot of walking around the harbor but didn’t go to Cap Canaille.

Posted by
7044 posts

Since it looks like you'll have a car then yes it's easy to stay in one of the Luberon towns and day trip around the area. I stayed in Roussillon for 5 nights and did day trips to several of the towns and villages around the Luberon area. Most of these towns and villages are pretty touristy during the height of the day but are quiet in the mornings and evenings - which is what I enjoyed most. During the day I was out on the road exploring and then I relaxed and enjoyed the ambience of Roussillon in the evening without the day trippers. I also did most of my exploring of Roussillon itself in the mornings before the crowds. I'm not a hiker but I'm sure you would have no problems finding hikes in the general area of any of the Luberon towns, there is the Ochre Trail in Roussillon through the National Park there along the Ochre cliffs.

Posted by
10239 posts

Cassis is a good base if you want to hike the Calanques and hike up Cap Canaille. I've done both. There are many, many additional hikes in the area, which you should be able to find in a hiking guidebook or find additional hikes online.
Yes, Aix is a lovely and lively city. Also, just outside Aix, you can hike up the Mont St. Victoire, the mountain in many Cezanne paintings. Note that both the Calanque trails and the route up St. Victoire are so used that the rocks are slippery. You need poles in this area.
Just beyond Cassis is the St. Baume mountain, another source of good hiking.
Note, that it becomes very hot from June on and you'll want to hike at 7 in the morning at the latest.

Posted by
54 posts

I stayed 10 days in the Luberon back in 2019. There is a inexhaustable amount of things to do in Provence and the Luberon is a great place to situate yourself to experience much of what there is to offer. I stayed in Lourmarin and it was by far my favorite village.

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