We are 5 adults (60+) driving to Provence from Barcelona on Sept 22 (flying out of Barcelona on Oct 9). We are avid walkers and hikers and would like to rent house for a week in Provence to use as base for day trips. After Provence thinking of driving to Cinque Terre for a few days, then drive back to Barcelona. Advice please: where would be a good base and how far in advance do I need to reserve house in Provence for late Sept? How is drive to Cinque Terre from Provence area? Would we be better to spend our time in Provence area (approx 15 days) since we have to drive back to Barcelona? Would appreciate info on best villages to visit. If we did stay in Provence whole time should we rent a week in one area and then next week in different area? So many questions I know. But would appreciate suggestions. Thanks very much
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23290 posts
You lost me. If you are going to be in Provence, why are you round tripping to Barcelona? And then down to CTerre? That is a tremendous amount of driving. Have you looked at a map so you know where you are going. Makes absolutely no sense to go to Barcelona. Why not fly into Marseille or Nice, go to Provence and then to CT and come home from Florence or Rome. And renting cars to drive in different countries sometimes can present some special problems. I may have missed something so straighten me out.
Posted by
OP
8 posts
Sorry for confusion. We want to spend some days in Barcelona. Renting car in one country and driving to different countries in Europe is no problem. Expensive to rent in one place and drop off in another. So you are probably right lots of driving if we go to CT? Just stay in Provence area. Any suggestions for best base? Thank you
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
784 posts
I don't think you can reserve a house too early, so should start looking now. We rented a 3 bedroom/2 bathroom house in Maubec in the Luberon, which we found to be centrally located for what we wanted to do. We have had good results with the Homeaway and VRBO websites. If you Google "Gites France" you should get other options. Personally, I don't think it is worth the time to move unless you are going from one region to another. Since you are driving from Barcelona, you might consider spending a week in Languedoc-Roussillon - lots of things to see and do (we like the area around Pezenas, and IMO more interesting and less crowded than Provence), and it is a half day drive to relocate to Provence. I would also consider flying home from Montpellier or Nice rather than driving back to Barcelona. Get some good detailed maps and a couple of good guidebooks, then map out what you want to see, and from that you should be able to determine the best area to start looking for vacation rentals. Good luck.
Posted by
OP
8 posts
Carolyn. Thank you for good suggestions. We are flying in/out of Barcelona because we are visiting friends there at start and end of trip. I will definitely look at Pezenas area. We don't mind the driving just don't want to be changing places every night. I think CT is out of the plan.
Posted by
Florida
509 posts
Provence: The Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO) website (paired with Home Away in Europe) is very helpful. You select your region, city, etc., plug in dates, number of bedrooms/baths, etc. and start shopping. You will generally deal directly with the owner, cutting out agency mark-up. For instance: https://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/europe/france/provence/st-remy-de-provence. You'll see photographs, comments from prior renters, details on the amenities (and often whether the landlord speaks English). Now doesn't seem at all early for a September holiday. We booked a gite in L'Isle/Sorgue almost 9 months in advance. Deposit terms vary, but most are fully refundable up to a month in advance. (We also discovered that most gites in Provence require a full week rental term, Saturday-to-Saturday.)
Cinque Terre, BTW: we found Monterosso al Mare to be a great base and enjoyed this hotel (2011): http://www.lacolonninacinqueterre.it/sito/en/ (I think it was a RS tip, or at least well-reviewed on TripAdvisor.)