French Riviera/Barcelona Itinerary

I would suggest instead picking up your car earlier while you are in Avignon (or another smaller town in the area). Up arrival in Nice, you can return your car. You can see a whole lot more in western provence with the car and the driving is easy. The car isn't as necessary in the Cote d;Azur.

From Nice, you can consider a trip to St. Paul de Vence (you can do this by bus or you can hit the town before you return the car -- if so, continue on to Tourettes-sur-Loup and Gourdon), Villefranche-sur-Mer, Cap Ferrat and the Villa Ephrussi (the walk around is quite nice), the walk up Mont Boron and on to Fort Alban, the train des Merveilles (you can also go on hikes from many of the villages the train stops at along the way) or the ferry from Cannes to St Honorat (monastery, winery -- although get your wineries in while in Western Provence) or Ste Marguerite from Nice or Cannes (rugged island with beaches).

I am a second vote for picking your car up in Avignon. And consider then to stay in one of the smaller cities or towns outside Avignon like St Remy or even something smaller. It is very easy to drive into Avignon and park in the huge underground garage near the Palais des Papes on the day you want to visit the sites there. Another tip near Palais des Papes for lunch is the restaurant L'Epicerie at 10 Pl. Saint-Pierre. It is just a few blocks behind the palace on a darling square in front of the pretty Saint Pierre church. Great fresh casual food. We had lunch there twice.

And as an aside if you want to do CNDP for wine I highly recommend the guide Olivier Hickman who is in Rick Steves books. We were in the area a month last summer and went with him two different times with two different groups and he was outstanding. He is super fun and friendly and has an incredible gift to tailor what you see, do and taste based on the interest and experience level of the group. Our two tours were completely different based on the different people included. I recommend even if you have your own rental car that you let him drive you. We have done wine tours in North and South America, Europe and this was certainly the best. https://www.wine-uncovered.com/about-olivier-hickman/

Unless you plan on joining tour groups you will need a car for your day trips in Provence. I think with an itinerary this packed, Cassis is skipable and that you should head straight to Nice. (Two nights in Cassis really only gives you one full day and I found both the town and calanques to be over-rated.) On the drive from Avignon to Nice you can stop in Roussillon and even Gordes, for that matter. Ditch the car as soon as you arrive in Nice as the train/bus service is excellent, easy, and cheap here.

Agree pick up the car in Avignon.... skip Cassis - or it could be a day trip but no need to overnight there. I'd argue that the "beaches" in France really aren't worth a mention. To tour the Cote d'Azur, you don't need a car there is great rain and bus service. If you are really into wine check out Bandol. For that you will need a car unless you hire a driver. And if you're into food take one of the Taste of Nice Food tours. I could not recommend more highly.

Thank you all for your help! I do have a follow up question based on some of the replies. If it's not recommended to more than just stop in Cassis, where would everyone recommend to stay for 1-2 nights on our way over to Nice? We were hoping to stay in a town along the coast. I have also thought about Saint-Tropez, but was wondering if there were any other options people have enjoyed in the past.

I disagree about Cassis. We spent six months there and enjoyed it except crowded weekends from April to October. You have a lot of hiking out of Cassis, in addition to the Calanques: Cap Canaille, the Couronne de Charlemagne, La Sainte Baume with the grotte de Marie Madeleine, la gineste.... The only drawback is if some of the back country is closed due to a fire threat. September is a nice time, except on the weekend.

Nice is along the coast and has a ton of things to do. You can also easily do a number of other day trips from Nice: Monaco, the Villa Kerylos in Beaulieu-sur-Mer and Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat (you can see both in one day), and Menton. You can even take the train to Italy for lunch! If you want some nice hikes, there is one around Cap Antibes and another around Cap Ferrat. Two weeks will fly by--especially when you count the days for air/train/car travel between hotels.

Not everyone would say to stop 1-2 nights on the way to Nice .... I would not. There is a reason that if you look online, it's most often listed as a 1/2 trip from Marseille. But that is why we love these forums ... you will get a range of opinions, and none are wrong :)

The Calanques do remain popular, and they align with your interests. As mentioned, the Bandol is known to be perhaps the top in rose.

The St. Tropez peninsula is an alternative, although traffic can be bad. The area between Hyeres and Ramatuelle is filled with beautiful beaches/coves, nice towns/villages, Porquerolles island and on the peninsula itself, excellent rose wineries and the famous Pampelonne beach.

Another alternative is to head from the Luberon through to the Gorge du Verdon (Moustiers St. Marie). From there you can take the mountain/hill route down towards Nice.

Gooster's suggestion of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie and the Gorges du Verdon is excellent. Another breathtaking route with good hiking.

Returning to the first part of your route: to get to Avignon from the Barcelona TGV requires switching to a local train. However, you could get off in either Montpellier (3 hours from BCN) or Nîmes (3.5 hours), rent your car there and drive the rest of the way visiting the Roman Pont du Gard on the way.

Truthfully, there's an endless array of sights worth visiting the whole length of your trip.

From Barcelona, fly Ryanair to Palma, Mallorca, takes 45 min, stunning sites, and taxi it to
https://balnearioilletas.com/
great beach, with muli outside bars and good food