We will be traveling to France this fall with our two preschool-aged children and will have time to stop and see either the Calanques near Cassis or the Grand Canyon du Verdon on the drive from Provence to the French Riviera. For those who have visited both of the Canyon and Calanques, which would you recommend over the other?
Thanks and happy travels!
I have not been to the Gorge du Verdon, but have been to other gorges in France as well as to the Calanques. For children that age, I would say they would probably enjoy the boat trip to the Calanques more. It is a fun trip, so even if they aren't interested in the scenery, they should have a good time.
We had the same decision to make during our trip last October and went with the Calanques. We took a boat tour out of Cassis in the morning. I think it was about 2 hours in length. It was a great experience, and I'd highly recommend it. No crowds, glorious weather, gorgeous scenery. We happened to visit on Market Day and spent some time browsing around before the boat departed. After the boat tour we sat down to a lovely lunch of fried sardines and the wonderful dry white wine of the region. Later in the day we drove all the way over to Sanary Sur Mer, which is another wonderful destination. I wish I could also speak about the Grand Canyon du Verdon but we had to save that for the next trip!
It's been a long time since I drove through the Grand Canyon du Verdon but, given the age of the kids, it might be that one benefit there is simply sticking closer to your rental car, picnic supplies, etc. versus setting out for a longer hike or boat ride. Does that sound like something that will matter to you? There are a few unnamed or fire roads within the park around the Calenques, but any that actually reach the water probably have restricted access.
We have done both. There is a boat ride to see the Calanques which is fun. There are also two beaches in Cassis that I know of wit easy access from the town. Perhaps there are more. You can also drive the Routes de Crete which offers spectacular, vertiginous views over the Mediterranean. There are no safety fences on the Routes de Crete so hold the little ones’ hands when you get out of the car to enjoy the view. We drove the Gorge of Verdon and frankly we were less than impressed. At the western end on that road, there are canoes that you can rent and canoe into the gorge. There’s also a distant view of the lavender fields from the road if you are there during lavender season.
I would only go to the Verdon Grand Canyon to float down the river in an inner tube from Castellane
Not to drive a pedalo on the river? That was pretty impressive.
