"Back Door" experiences in Paris, Normandy & Provance

I'm going to be watching this thread with interest. My most memorable "back door" experiences have not been planned, but occurred because I was staying in a village, riding public transportation, wandering around exploring, or had hired a local guide. I could "set the stage" but the experiences happened without pre planning.

I am very curious to learn more about this topic.

Hi Lindsay,

Sounds like fun. I'm sure you'll be besieged with suggestions soon, but to help folks target their comments, could you share what time of year you plan to take this trip, and how you plan to get around (that is, will you be renting a car or will you rely solely on transit or similar [taxis, uber, blablacar])?

Any other relevant information would help as well, such as if either of you have any limitations on walking or stair climbing, food allergies, and so on.

Provence covers a fairly large and diverse area. Do you have any idea where in Provence you plan to be?

Lastly, a common activity in Normandy is to visit WWII-related sites. Does that interest you or are you more interested in something else?

Good luck and have fun with your planning!

-K

Thanks for your responses! We are going in May and still very open to transportation options (cars, trains, mini van tours, etc.) and locations within Provance. My husband is a big WWII history buff and wants to spend at least one full day digesting those sights in Normandy. Thanks again!

A tiny nit: it's Provence not Provance. It may not be back door enough, but consider Overlord Tours for a tour of Normandy battlefields.

I highly recommend one of the Normandy tours. I was happy with Overlord, but there are others. You will see a great deal more than you'd have time for during a do-it-yourself day, and the guide will provide a lot of background information. You might want an extra day to see one or two WW II museums on your own. Some of them are quite large and need multiple-hour visits. Check with your tour operator to find out which museums you'll have an opportunity to visit during the tour, and for how long.

The best "back doors" are the ones you find yourself by exploring. As you stroll around, look down side streets and if something catches your eye, walk down to check it out. Wander away from the touristed areas. Unfortunately, the popularity of Rick's books has resulted in many of his "back doors" now being swarmed by other tourists, so we really need to find our own, then keep mum about them, so someone else can discover them.

I remember on one occasion when I turned down a street with no other people, finding cats sitting about sunning themselves - maybe 10 or 12 of them. Visiting some sites, like the hill towns in Provence in the evening after the tourist hoards have left, can be magical.

Have a great trip.

Look through trip reports on this forum to find inspiration. A lot if people have done cool and unique things.

Beyond that, it is difficult to answer. Truly connecting with Europeans in a non-transactional way in a short trip is hard to do. So when I do this I try to just mix in activities where I know my family and I will be the only American tourists. Some examples.

Eat a complete meal at a autoroute rest stop (also delicious at the full service stops).

Eat lunch at a trucker diner. This is a thing.

Go to a public swimming pool.

Buy petanque balls and play.

Find a local festival and show up.

Stay on a farm.

Then there's touristy things that feel local, like the bull games in Arles and the Carriers Lumineers in Les baux. Really awesome, loaded with Europeans.

Then there's less touristed towns that are not bleak, such as Joucas in Provence.

Thanks for all the fun ideas and thoughtful commentary! I admit that it's difficult to plan for back door style connection with locals...like asking someone to be my French friend for a couple days. :-)

Could anyone recommend cooking, language or other types of classes in Normandy?

Thanks again!

Hi,

That depends on one's definition of "back door" in France. Outside of Paris, the places I have been to once or repeated visits are not necessarily, may or may not be swamped by tourists, either some or totally off the tourist path, and or the American tourist radar. These are "back door" places...Amiens, Strasbourg, Frevent, Albert, Lille, Chateau-Thierry, Meaux, Beuavais, Compiegne, Obernai, Colmar, Lens, Cambrai, Toulon, Caen, Bayeux, Toulouse, Montmirail, Arras, Boulogne sur Mer, Metz, Ardeche, and others.

No, I have not as yet made it to Cherbourg or Grenoble....that's coming with so much to choose.

Years ago we lucked into the Transhumance celebration in St. Remy.

http://www.avignon-et-provence.com/en/traditions/transhumance-festival-saint-remy-de-provence

What made it memorable is that our landlord for the week sold us tickets to the village celebration, which was a hearty meal grilled and served on long tables spread out in an olive grove. Combine that with the street-fair celebration in the town center, and it was altogether wonderful.

I mention it because it sounds as though you may be in the region for next year's celebration.

The festival in St. Temp sounds amazing! That is exactly what I would enjoy. Thank you for posting!

The festival in St. Remy sounds amazing! That is exactly what I would enjoy. Thank you for posting!

Some "back doors" can't be planned -- I remember fondly running into a small-town parade to celebrate the opening of a new bank and joining in the party.

Best to have a car in Normandie and Provence. For a slightly different take on WWII, go see the cliffs at Etretat and Fecamp. I started in Fecamp, when you get into town, there's a church north of town on the hill, you can see it and the road that leads up to it. Park there and take the trail to the cliff. You will find German defenses that were abandoned rather than destroyed. They're mostly filled in with dirt now but still look the way they did then.

I'm pretty sure the Transhumance festival is in May. I'm in the area the second half of September and haven't found any fetes yet for my stay. If you're a little earlier than me, the Feria du Riz (Rice) will be in Arles on September 9th and 10th. That includes corridas (Spanish style bull fights) and I think they run the bulls through the streets. Even if you didn't do that, the festival atmosphere would be worth visiting.

In Normandy, don't miss the 900 year old Bayeux Tapestry that tells the story of the Norman conquest of England.

Brad,

Yes, Transhumance is May (ish), That is why I suggested it to Lindsay.

There may be a lesser celebration when the cows and sheep return from their summer pastures, and that may be in September. Still a great time to visit the area.

We were just in Bretagne, south of Normandy, for 4 nights. We stayed in a very small town, Planeour-Langvins, in Hotel Les Voyageurs. We visited 10 small towns in the area. We had friends there, so we had the inside track on fun stuff. It was definitely "back door". In our hotel, we celebrated our anniversary with a wonderful 31 E menu, including a massive dessert, and 2 large entrees. 31 E!

I suggest visiting open air markets or markets in general anywhere you can. My favourite markets in Paris are President Wilson and Grenelle. This fall I am going to wander farther afield to more multicultural markets; David Lebovitz's blog has recommended Aligre and the Barbes. He is a foodie American living in Paris for a number of years. He writes beautifully, have a look at his webpage. He has written books too.

The Paris webpage in English lists all the markets by day and arrondissement.

The Jardin Des Plantes is lovely. Very few tourists but busy with locals. Near the Gare Austerlitz and not far from Notre Dame Cathedral. A great view of the Cathedral is from the rear across the Seine at night. I Have great photos with my phone and point and shoot. By day the garden behind the Cathedral is lovely. Not exactly off the beaten track but not everyone gets back there.

I walk along the Seine endlessly, getting down close to the water if I can. Early in the day and late in the evening it is magical. Yes, there will be tourists but locals use the parks and Seine as their backyards as many live in small apartments.

Last fall on the Rick Steves Paris and the Heart of France, we stayed one night in Bourges. A Cathedral near as lovely as Paris'. Not a popular tourist spot. I wanted to spend more time there wandering the streets.

Enjoy your trip.

Having just returned from a 3 day driving tour of Normandy, I have two pieces of advice:

1) On Google Maps or Waze or whatever navigation you are using, turn on the option to "avoid toll roads" and/or highways. This caused us only marginally longer travel times and routed us away from the non-descript highways and instead on winding and gorgeous country roads, through the most adorable little towns and farms. Stop wherever it piques your interest, and I guarantee you will be treated as a king as they don't get many tourists.

2) If you're going to be in Normandy, consider the B&B at Le Mas Normand. Adorable, well located, and quiet/peaceful.

In Provence, about the most back-doorsy thing you could do is to assemble a picnic at a good market day. Walk the stalls, sample some goods, see what/how the locals are buying, and go nuts. They have a lot of hot, prepared dishes along with everything else. These markets are a big event for locals and you will fit right in. You truly get a sense of the French and their passion for food. Enjoy the show! I bought a wine corkscrew from a vendor, and he would not let me pay for it without giving me the full breakdown (in French) of how this corkscrew was superior to all others. :)

RS guidebook has a listing of the major Provence markets w/days. I visited the one in Arles and stayed in Vaison-la-Romaine when they had theirs. It was a special treat to wake up and find the yourself in the middle of the action.