Provence for six nights post Best of Eastern France tour this fall

Provence isn't easy without a car. If you don't want to stay in Aix, I would suggest Arles or Avignon. Either of them would have better transportation options than the other towns. My personal preference of those would be Arles. I chose to have a car both times I've been to Provence. I feel that time is money, and I can see far more when I don't have travel by a train or bus schedule. With a car there are many nice places to stay.

I just noticed you live in Sacramento. We have a Travel Group that meets the 3rd Saturday of each month. You can find all the information about the meetings on this website under Travel Forum/Tips & Trip Reports/Travel Group Meetings. We are all well traveled and can help with any of your questions.

I recommend that you do visit Marseille and also Cassis, both covered in Rick's Provence/Riviera guidebook, not the France book. The tour used to end in Marseille, but Aix has better-value hotel options, is equally well connected to the airport, and perhaps not all tour members loved Marseille equally.

Check what day of the week the tour ends, in case staying longer would allow you to shop Aix's biggest market day on Saturday.

If you want to see Marseille, I'd try to keep your same hotel room in Aix and daytrip by local train to Marseille, 45 minutes each way. You can see the Calenques by boat ride from Marseille's central harbor. Or if you'd like to spend longer in the area, then you can connect at Marseille to a train to Cassis and stay at least two nights to allow a full day for hiking and swimming.

Rick's Provence/Riviera guide book would be a good investment for you. There are lots of interesting places in that area.

I only visited Aix-en-Provence on a day-trip but liked it a lot. I learned at the last possible moment about Camp des Milles, a WW II internment and transit camp on the outskirts of town. The facility has been turned into a memorial/museum with very good explanatory material in English. It focuses on the history of the camp and attempts to answer the question, "How could this have happenen?"

There are some very interesting destinations in Provence that are difficult or impossible to reach by public transportation, especially outside the months of July and August. You may find it valuable to take a one-day bus tour that takes in some of the small, isolated places since you don't want to rent a car. Just check the tour itineraries to be sure you know where the gaps are.

I think you should rent a car. You could do the northern and eastern portion of Provence, touching on the Luberon to the east, and north to Vaison-la-romaine. In the Luberon you can visit the Abbey de Senaque, Gordes, Roussillon, and more. We stayed in La Isle sure la sorgue and visited all of these (as well as places you will see on your tours). Near Isle sur las sorgue is fontaine de vaucluse, another worthwhile visit. Nearer the Riviera we stayed in Cassis (just east of Marseille), and hiked to the Calanques to swim - a tough hike, so read about it to see if its for you - we started the hike from Cassis.
Provence is very large and very spread out. You could maybe see the towns I mentioned with public transport, but it would take so much longer and be more of a hassle. Im not sure public transport even goes to many of them (like the abbey, which is wonderful). We avoided the bigger cities like Avignon and Aix. We visited Arles as part of a visit to Le Baux, and it was beautiful; much bigger than Isle Sur la Sorge. Depends what you want to experience.

Cheers,
Jessica

Thank you all for your suggestions. It gives us more to go on and to think about. Thank you, Andrea, for letting me know about the Travel Group that meets in Sacramento. I couldn’t make it to the meeting today, but I will try for the next one. Thank you, Laura, for the suggestions regarding Aix and Marseille. We will consult Rick’s Provence/Riviera guide book for further ideas.

Steve

I would also advise spending time in Marseille. I think it is one of the most underrated sites in France. Though gritty, the city is a melting pot of Mediterranean cultures which makes it special. Take a boat ride around Chateau d’If to view the calanques, wander around Vieux Porte, climb up to the Basilica of Notre Dame, visit the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations. Grab a bike and pedal the Kennedy Corniche. Splurge on bouillabaisse.

Thank you, Philip, for suggesting Marseille and providing some ideas. Marseille does, indeed, appear to be very underrated, especially in light of all the civic improvements that were made around 2013, when it was designated a European Capital of Culture. We will visit Marseille and enjoy its blend of Mediterranean cultures.