Lavender - best time to see in the South of France

Hi Lee,

We were in the south of France the first week of July 2015. We home based in Roussillon. We drove north from Roussillon to Sault. There was a lavender field after the little hamlet/castle of Javon on a hilltop with a beautiful view of Mont Ventoux. There are also lavender fields in Sault. I believe it was route 943 that we took from Roussillon. There are also some beautiful fields of sunflowers very near Roussillon. There are also beautiful lavender fields west of Moustiers Ste. Marie in the Valensole region. Also check out the Abbaye de Senanque for its beautiful field of lavender but get there really early as it gets very crowded with tour buses, etc. It's near Gordes which is in the same area as Roussillon.

We visited a lavender farm in Salut last July, and it was absolutely beautiful and smelled heavenly! I think the lavender season is June-August.

I think Cora meant "Sault" not "Salut". The farmers were already starting to harvest some of the lavender fields near Roussillon when we were there the first week of July. The harvest will vary depending on the region.

Mid-June to mid-August is the normal bloom time. A lot depends on the weather that particular year. I was also based in Roussillon in early-mid July and there were fields all over the area, some at peak bloom and some already being harvested. Here is a link to a website with the best lavender routes: http://www.grande-traversee-alpes.com/en/routes-de-la-lavande