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Provence or Switzerland

Posted by (Palo Alto) on

My husband and I are trying to plan a ~10 days vacation that dovetails a business trip to Lyon in early July. We will be in Lyon for a week, and that's probably enough to see the town.

The options we are considering are either Provence / French Riviera or Switzerland. For Switzerland, we'd probably go through Geneva --> Murren, which we have been in the past and loved. We have never been to Provence / Riviera, and we are looking for one or two villages that are relaxing and are not crowded with tourists.

Any thoughts / pros / cons on the two destinations would be greatly appreciated!

Posted by
689 posts

They're so different! Maybe you should figure out whether it's even possible to find a relaxing, non crowded village on the Riviera/in Provence in July. Such a thing might not exist.

Posted by
9110 posts

What I'd do is separate the Riviera from the rest of Provence, and then skip it. You're going to have tourists everywhere that time of year, but the beaches will be absolutely jam-packed.

For a less-crowded area, think about Orange - Carpentras - Gordes. You can find gites for a week an gitesdefrance.com, and really duck the crowds. There's plenty in the Rhone area to keep you busy for more than a week.

No sense starting to duplicate yourself (Switzerland) until about your fifty-third trip.

Posted by
162 posts

You could do a few days in Chamonix -- get your mountain fix then head to Provence.

Posted by
1315 posts

Since you are going in July, I'd choose Provence as the lavender will be in bloom. If you have ten days, you could do a week in Provence and then have three days along the coast. You might consider renting a house for a week, I've had good experience with France Homestyle. Be sure to visit the weekly market day in a couple of villages/towns. Then you could do three days in Cassis or Villefranche sur Mer to get the coastal experience, or one night in Cassis and two in Villefranche.

Posted by
51 posts

Cassis & Villefranche sur Mer -- we never know these little gems! Grier: We LOVE lavender, so Provence is nearly irresistible. By the way, I read somewhere there is this little village near Provence where cows graze on lavender (!) and therefore the local steaks are naturally marinated. Anyone else has heard this (just curios, as we are both vegetarians)?

Thanks for everyone for the great ideas!

Posted by
1315 posts

Lauren, haven't heard that one but Provence is known more for goats than cows and I've heard a similar fable about goats eating lavender which flavors the goats' cheese.

Posted by
3 posts

We stayed at a lovely place, Les Carmes, very close to Isle Sur la Sourge. It's central and the innkeepers are the best, friendliest we've ever run across. You can have a fantastic dinner there as well. Ann and Mike are full of great ideas and travel directions. Be sure not to miss Cathedral of the Images near Les Baux. Check out Les Carmes website.

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