Travel from Nice to Bordeaux

I will say, that is a lot of ground to cover in a single week, even if you exclude time in Nice and time in Bordeaux. The area between Nice (excluded) and Marseille alone deserves a week, ideally.

I wouldn't even know where to start regarding highlights, I have on my mind from E to W:

• Esterel coast (drive thru)
• Verdon Gorge
• Luberon villages. Can be replaced by the villages south of the Verdon (Cotignac etc.) for a more convenient route
• Calanques
• Arles
• Pont du Gard & Uzès
• Aigues Mortes ... and plenty more further west but I don't know Occitanie as well so I'll stop there. It's already too much for a week anyway.

In 2024 I did a road trip from Paris moving south through the Loire Valley (stayed two nights in Amboise), then on to Provence spending 7 days in St Remy and Aix and then we drove to Nice for the last 4 days of our trip. It was fabulous. I highly suggest going thru Provence area as there’s a lot to see and do.

I'm looking at a map and I say Cannes, Aix-en-Provence, Avignon and Lyon.

I can recommend Cahors. If you are into wine, they are known for Malbec. They also have an attractive medieval town center and a picturesque bridge.

Close to Cahors is Saint-Cirq-Lapopie. It can be busy, perhaps less so in October. It is gorgeous and there is hiking in the area.

Actually, we did a trip along the east side of France a couple of years ago. We stayed in Lyon and made a side trip to Avignon, but not as far South as the French Riviera. So we were planning to travel along the coast, then continue west through Toulouse toward Bordeaux.

Google maps doesn’t show a road that runs along the coast. The shortest distance is eight hours and that doesn't include stops.
A good town to stop in is Arles.