Provence and French Alps itinerary feedback - May 2020

I've been to most of the places you mention, and I think your itinerary is excellent. There's no place you mention that I would say "eliminate that" or "reduce your time there." I wasn't enamored of Avignon, but I don't think stopping there for 2 nights is a mistake.
I'm attaching a link to my travel blog. Many of my trips to the areas you mention predate my blog, but if you type "Annecy" or "Lyon" into the search box, you'll get a bunch of entries. http://mainelywinenews.blogspot.com/
By the way, I like your intro: "We are seasoned travelers and like a somewhat slower pace and crowd avoidance." It looks like the only difference between you and us is that you live in the Oregon Portland.

I like your itinerary very much. We based ourselves in Avignon for 9-10 days and loved it. The town itself can keep you busy for two days; if you're a foodie or have an Airbnb and want to cook, don't miss the covered market, Les Halles. We also used it for launching day trips to Arles, Pont du Gard, Ile-sur-la-Sorgue, Marseille, and other destinations. Didn't get to Lyon or Chamonix, but would love to hear your trip report on those cities.

FWIW, Aosta really isn't an Alpine town as much as it is a place situated in a valley close to Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco). I enjoyed spending a night in the town (old Roman capital, Roman gate and amphitheater) and the food is pretty good, but it doesn't compare to Chamonix, which I have visited on a number of occasions. The Aguille du Midi, the Mer du Glace, and the true Alpine feel of Chamonix makes it my choice, hands down.

If you wind up in Aosta with some time to kill and want to look at Roman ruins, have at it, but I'd consider going on to Chamonix for a better Alpine experience, and it's on your way to Annecy. You can do the Cable Car thing from either Chamonix or Aosta, but Chamonix is much easier. Chamonix has many hiking trails within a very small radius, and they all come with magnificent views.

We visit our daughter who lives in Provence quite frequently, but have not visited the French Alps yet. I love Aix! My daughter lived there for a few years, and we really enjoyed visiting Aix. It's a wonderful city for slow wanderings, visiting the old town, and all the lovely squares, fountains, beautiful architecture, etc. I think 2 nights is good for Aix.

And 4 nights for St. Remy is good, too. We will be spending 5 nights in St. Remy in April with friends. It's a good base for day trips. You can visit the Luberon villages easily from St. Remy. I highly recommend visiting Eygalieres if you are looking for a less crowded and less touristy village. It's very close to St. Remy. There are excellent restaurants in Eygalieres, shops, and an ancient castle. There is a wonderful Friday morning market. You will hear very little English spoken in Eygalieres. Locals frequent the market and the restaurants.

Another quiet village near St. Remy is Ansouis. There is a chateau with guided tours only. Beautiful views. We were there in July, and it was very quiet. No typical tourist gift shops. Only heard French spoken except for a British man who lives nearby and helped us read the menu. It's one of France's Plus Beaux Villages, but was surprisingly uncrowded and untouristy when we were there. If you visit Ansouis, be sure to have ice cream at L'Art Glacier, located between Ansouis and La Tour d'Aigues on a hilltop off D9.

What great and thoughtful replies! Thank you so much! We will consider chamonix - my brother was just there and loved the hiking.

May can be a bit early for some of the upper Alps. Chamonix and Courmayer are mostly unaffected at that time (other than lack of visibility) but the upper elevations over the Grand Passes could have late wet snow. I would often travel between my place in Switzerland through the Grand St. Bernard Pass to Aosta (and beyond). I especially enjoyed the hikes at Les Houches, Vallorcine and near Lac Emosson (from the Chamonix side).

The fastest route from Nice to Aosta is through Italy. Were you planning that route or the Napoleonic one through Gap and Grenoble? (Or the other one through the border and Briancon, which I have not taken). I too prefer Chamonix to Aosta, but the route to Aosta from Nice deeper into Italy has some great stops along the way too, depending on your interest.

Your routing in Western Provence could be simplified down to two bases, as the distances are not so great. Unless you intend to use Avignon as a base to explore further to the north, like the Pont du Gard. As you like hiking, there is a major trail that rings the Luberon Valley, and paths between some of the villages that you may really enjoy. I find it more interesting for that purpose than the area immediately around St. Remy (which does have les Alpilles).

I have been to many of these places too, lots to like about this itinerary. I might consider Arles over Avignon, stay three nights to include a day trip to Avignon. Chamonix is magical, I took the raiload up to the Mer de Glace and it was awesome. You want to get an early start for the lifts, I was there only as a day trip from Annecy and arrived too late. I think you mean Villefranche near Nice, yes, good call as it's a charming town. Annecy is delightful as well.

Hi,
I like the itinerary! A few comments:
- A beautiful area to stay in the Alps between Nice & Chamonix (not Aosta, really) would be the Queyras region, with beautiful unspoilt villages like St Véran, 18th forts like Mont-Dauphin, and mountain vistas.
Check for alpine pass closures, some of the highest passes don't open until June.
- It's Villefranche not Ville Français ;-)
- Aix to Avignon is more convenient by bus: city center to city center, less than 90 minutes, several times a day.
- There's really no need to sleep both in Avignon and St Rémy, they're so close to each other. I would add a night to St Rémy and a night to Villefranche. 4 nights in St Rémy leaves you enough time to visit Avignon, Arles, les Baux, and a 4th area of your choice (Pont du Gard, Gordes...). Better if you can spare a 5th night, of course.

Andrea......thanks for the post. We are traveling a somewhat similar route during May 2020. We are flying into Geneva and staying with family in Samoens in Haute-Savoie. We plan an excursion with our cousins into Alsace while there. Then my wife and I will venture out into Provence for a few days. I wish we had more time than 2 weeks. So we too are trying to balance seeing some highlights versus biting off more than we can really experience. We have truly learned quantity over the years that quantity doesn't equal quality. Safe travels.

Again, thank you everyone. we are a bit concerned about snow levels in later May but will just have to wing it. I appreciate learning about a few villages to see on our way north through the east of France -- that area isn't covered very much by the books.

I realize that Avignon and St. Remy really close, but it sounds like staying in the old town of Avignon and really enjoying a day and evening was going to be better than just doing a day trip. We will think more about this.

thanks for tip about the bus from Aix to Avignon.

hey hey andrea
i will second or third the stay in annecy. we were there for 6 nights this september 2019 and loved it. gorgeous views, walkable old town village with shops, cafes, restaurants, friday sunday marklet day, gorgeous lake. stay in the old village and enjoy it. we had a fondue lunch, yummy, took a tour around some villages of the lake, mountains views, couple castles, cows in the pastures wearing cowbells, i bought one, hang gliders soaring above us and the lake, lunch at a dairy farm below us with a cheese strictly from there. read gaelle's taxiannecygeneva.ney blog.
you will have a great adventure.
aloha