Driving in Provence

Yes, there are signs at each exit as you go around a roundabout. Additionally, nothing says you can't go around a few times until you are sure you have the correct exit.

Thank you so much. This is very helpful information. Good reminder that one can drive around without exiting until you are sure of the correct exit.

I've done what Bets suggested more than once! That's the beauty of a roundabout.

I'll take it a step further. When going into a confusing roundabout, plan on making two circuits of it - once to figure out the way, and the second time to exit. This removes the stress; since you expect to make two circuits, you don't feel like a failure for not having figured everything out the first time.

Make sure to stay to the inner part of the roundabout (if it's a larger/busier one) if you are going to loop a few times. My husband had the bad habit of driving in the 'outside' of the circle even if we wanted the 3rd exit - well, that got him a horn honking in Salon when the person behind him wanted the first exit and (rightly) assumed since we were on the outside of the circle, we'd be taking that as well. I'm sure we almost had a fender bender.

Good advice from Nicole P although the law states that you should stay on the outside circle when you don't know which exit to take - but nobody does it as it's more dangerous.

Note that most of the roundabouts have a sign 50 or 100 meters before, that indicates what are the exits and where they lead. A good co-pilot can read the sign and anticipate so you know your exit before you're actually in the roundabout.

Bonjour!

Will you be using a GPS, regular paper map, or just MapQuest?

My husband and I use a laminated map from Barnes and Noble for France. It is a Borch map. It shows a lot of the smaller towns through which you may travel on your trip. I check the map to determine the route(s) to take while my husband does the roundabouts. Yes, you can drive around more than once. By using the regular map, we do not have to rely on computers or cell phones to show a trip route.

We prefer actual maps rather than a GPS which may not always deal as well with the much smaller roads. It is a lovely trip from Roussillon to the Dordogne area. We have stayed in Joucas several times. It is just across the valley from Roussillon.

What route do you intend to take from Avignon to the Dordogne?

Enjoy your trip! We will be in the same area at the end of September!

Bev

My husband had the bad habit of driving in the 'outside' of the circle even if we wanted the 3rd exit

Yes, I've learned from experience that if a French driver stays on the outside lane it usually means they're taking the first exit. While I've been traumatized a couple of times by roundabouts in Paris, on the whole I find them very well-signed and not difficult to deal with. Unlike roundabouts/rotaries in the US, which are usually pretty horrific with little or no signage.