Arles and la Camargue

mlw5000,
Just for reference, In June 2023 we had 3 car rentals. Marseille, 5 days $479.00; Bordeaux, 8 days, $667.00, Bordeaux again, 12 days, $797.00. Cars were picked up and returned at the train stations, mid-sized (four persons, could fit five). Our son arranged the rentals and had a slight discount through his employer, but that wasn't huge. Check at AutoEurope.com, a reliable source.
If you get to the Camargue, be ready for flies and mosquitos. Bring some insect repellent.
I haven't been to the Camargue since the 90's, but I did see horses. The flamingos weren't there at that time.

Bonne chance!

In 2011 we stayed in Arles the beginning of May for 4 nights. First, we rode bicycles along the Petit Rhone within the Camargue Natural Regional Park and saw flamingos on the other side of the dike and in flight overhead. People in cars were too low to see over the dike. We also saw the horses and bulls raised in that area. And nesting great blue herons.

On May Day, there was a celebration in Arles for the blessing of the cowboys and horses. It included a parade in traditional clothing, politicians, and clergy. Also crowning of that year's Princess.

Later, we rented a car for 2 days to visit St. Remy, Le Baux, other van Gogh sites, and the Pont du Gard. We had extra time and went back to Camargue at Saint Maries de-la-mare. We walked on the beach in the Park and saw many flamingos and other aquatic/shore birds. People were riding horses on a tour, also.

It was easy to rent a car in Arles on the spur of the moment. I think our hotel recommended a place. I don't remember the actual cost, but it seemed reasonable for France.

Cheap car rentals are done through supermarkets. The only hassle is getting there, but hire is between 5€ and 10€ a day, plus milage. A days hire driving 100 miles will cost about 40 euros, depending on what insurance you take.

Supermarkets that I have hired from are eLeclerc, Intermarché and Auchan. Carrefour also does car hire.

Not all supermarkets have cars, and the car has to be returned ready for the next hirer.

Look for location voitures supermarché

White horses and bulls you might see from a distance, but they will just be white horses standing around a long way away - unless you pay for a farm visit. Flamingos are everywhere, but call at an LPO or park centre to find out where on that specific day.

I looked up one site and it was $250/day

What time of year do you want to rent a car?
A simulation on 2 car rental websites listed in Arles shows prices starting from €88/day in April with Europcar and €120/day with Hertz.

https://www.europcar.com/en/stations/france/arles

https://www.hertz.fr/p/location-de-voiture/france/arles

Another cheap rental company in Arles (with a max mileage of 200km):

https://www.rentacar.fr/agences/814-arles-gare

There is a bus that takes you nearby, but it only runs in the summer.

I don't know which bus you are talking about, there are buses all year round in Arles and surrounding areas.
The A50 bus line connects Arles to Saintes Maries de la Mer, the capital of the Camargue approximately 10 times a day

https://www.tout-envia.com/en

Timetable:

https://www.tout-envia.com/ftp/document/a50-au-7-nouvelle-2022.pdf

Mlw, I'm baffled by this $250 per day car rental rate you are seeing. If I look on Hertz.com in mid-April, I see compact cars from Aix-en-Provence with automatic transmissions for about $260 for 2-3 days total -- like picking up on a Wednesday and returning on a Friday from Aix. This does not include extra insurance and things like an extra driver, but you might have such benefits on a credit card. And Hertz is often not the cheapest, so you might do better with AutoEurope or another provider.

If you are looking for pickup from smaller cities/towns, you might indeed see higher rates -- and also, if you are not renting for a week or over a Saturday, rates for a couple of days might be high. But you are talking in another thread about renting e-bikes, which, while fun, are not as adaptable as a car for sure.

CK

mlw, regarding visiting the Camargue: Several years ago, my friend and I did a salt marsh bike tour with Saunier de Camargue: https://www.visitesalinsdecamargue.com/. It was gorgeous and the guide was great -- we did get to see flamingoes, but not horses. If you don't want to ride bikes, they appear to have tours by a little train as well as 4x4 vehicles they take you out on.

I went to the Camargue in the Fall of 2019 on a Road Scholar tour. We did see flamingoes even though I had read they migrated to Africa in the Fall. The local guide said that is not actually true and there was a resident flock. We saw them in the ditches and fields as well as at the Ornithological Park.

https://parcornithologique.com/en/welcome.html

We also saw the white horses plus the bulls bred for the local (non-killing) bull fights. We were to have a demo by a Camargue cowboy/gardian mounted on one of the white horses with the long staff they use but unfortunately it was a torrential downpour during that time frame so we were just able to view him and the horse standing in the rain for a few minutes. It was beastly weather and honestly although all of us were interested we just did not want him and the horse out in that nastiness!

I had a great time and got a life bird for myself BUT I was not having to try and organize transportation.

About the link posted by kentchristine, the salt works are fascinating and land itself is very interesting, but it's what we call La Petite Camargue (the small Camargue) because it's the section west of the Rhone, closer to Nîmes and Montpellier. There's the swamp, bull ranches to visit, and the huge salt works, as well as the historic town of Aigues Mortes. There are also boat rides starting and ending in Aigues Mortes, but I didn't find them too exciting in the Petite Camargue.

The part of the Camargue you are asking about is east of the Rhone, closer to Arles.

Bets, thank you, and yes, this was just a peek at a teensy area of the Camargue!

You're welcome.
We have wonderful bull ranches in the Petite Camargue, with skilled demonstrations of herding on horseback, in traditional dress, etc. They serve meals with wonderful bull stew in red wine sauce, Gardienne, at some of the ranches. And if you are vegetarian, the famous Camargue rice they serve is wonderful. After a few glasses of red wine, you'll be clapping your hands as the guitarist plays the Gypsy Kings type music.

Just outside Arles, Chico from the Gypsy Kings, has a restaurant, music venue. I don't know if he does any of the bull ranch demonstrations. I've never been there, but the menu looks like a restaurant rather than a ranch menu. Probably a lot of fun but the dinner show menu looks pretty dry and ordinary. No matter, it's a very special culture in the Camargue.
http://patiodecamargue.com/ Olé.

Bets…yum on that Camargue rice! It was delicious and yes, I brought some home! BTW, according to the guy at Customs in SLC, rice is perfectly fine to bring in.

We went for a visit in 2019 we had already rented a car and I’ve never found them to be as expensive as mentioned above although I’ve also never purchased one from a grocery store, so never so cheap either! Note to self. That said we rode horses on a ranch and it was lovely we got to see the bulls, we got to see flamingos, we rode out into the salt marsh it was very nice experience. We did arrange it with the ornithological park that was mentioned above and we had a guide, it was a once in a lifetime experience. Below is a link to the blog post I did then. I tried to find e mails, but have cleaned out me accounts, darned Covid.

http://delectableexcursions.blogspot.com/2019/10/flamingoes-white-horses-and-duck-burgers.html

We took a jeep tour that we found on Trip Advisor. It was highly recommended, and it was a blast! The guide was a local and so very knowledgeable! We saw horses, bulls, and flamingos up close and personal, and he stopped for us to buy some of the Camargue rice to take home. It was very bumpy as the roads are rough, and those jeeps don’t have the best shocks. We had a car and could have driven, but we wouldn’t have known where to go and wouldn’t have learned as much as we did. I would definitely do it again!

Funny story: There were seven of us, two couples and three young women from Switzerland. They rode in the back and apparently didn’t have their seat belts on. The jeep hit a huge bump, the back door flew open, and one girl would have fallen out if her friend had not grabbed her in time! It could have been a tragedy, but fortunately it was just a bit of excitement. We insisted that they buckle up for the rest of the trip!

Will be in Provence on Tuesday for the month of March. I wrote the Tourist Bureau in Sainte Maries and they were kind enough to send me the #50 bus schedule. It apparently runs all year long so not just a summer transport option. I will take it next week, hopefully!

Camargue is definitely worth it! The whole area is like its own country. You definitely need a car to get around and its worth it. Only down side is expect impatient drivers who will tail you. There are great beaches, culture eg Aigues Mortes walled city, wild flamingos, bull matches (no kill, no harm) horse riding tours. etc. It's one of my favorite corners of France. Book Europcar as its European and can find cheaper...and yes you find semi wild horses and amazing wildlife preserves with all kinds of exotic birds...

Thank you everyone for your insights. I have been very busy with work lately to post anything.

mlw5000,
We visited the Carmargue in June 2022 with 2 teenagers to have a different type of day trip. We needed a little variety along with the markets and tiny towns throughout Provence. Really neat area to explore. We had a rental car and first stopped at some visitor center, (I'm sure it was referenced in RS Tour Book) to get a map and better idea of the roads. We saw few bulls, amazing salt flats and some flamingos but I don't think June is the time to see tons of flamingos. Salt flats went on and on. We did not experience any mosquitoes that others have noted. I even remember stopping at a convenience store for repellent but not needing it at all. It was windy enough and breezy along the salt flats and must have taken the mosquitoes away in the wind.

We went to Arles on the way back from the Carmargue and hit the afternoon lunch break time when restaurants were not serving food. Another bar recommended a place that stays open during this time and it was our most memorable spot! We discovered Café Factory République . It had such a cool vibe. We had a great meal and the owner was outstanding and even let our teens select some music to play from his playlist and was dancing with all of us. We missed a lot of the other sights in Arles and hope that we can return to check out what we missed this summer.

Flamingo period is now. They are mating and start to leave late spring. As stated, only a few in June.

Thanks for the info on the Camargue. We will be in Arles May 1-4. Do you think the flamingos will be gone at that time?
Is it worth going even if there are no flamingos?