Two weeks in Provence and the French Riviera May 2024 with kids

Day 12

• Drive 30 min to Nimes
• Pentecost festival of Whit Monday (big bands in the street, flamenco dancers, gypsy caravan, bull fights at the arena)
• Maison Carree
• Lunch at La Table du 2 (3.8/5)
• Roman world museum
• Diana temple and garden (saw horse-riding)
• Dinner at L’Arlatan (5/5)
• sleep Arles

Day 13

• Drive 1.5 hrs to Cassis
• Lunch at sandwich from Snack des Calanques (2.5/5), salad and sandwich from Nomade Patisserie (5/5)
• 3 calanques boat tour, saw fish, was wonderful
• Drive 2.5 hrs to La Colle-sur-Loup
• Pizza from Pizza Delphine & Alex (4/5) and ice cream from grocery store
• Explore St Paul de Vence after dinner
• sleep La Colle-sur-Loup www.maisoncarles.com

Day 14

• fly home

Overall, my husband and I especially loved the Chauvet cave, Peillon, Crestet, the Calanques boat ride and the Roman ruins

My kids especially enjoyed the zip lines in Vaison-la-Romaine, the two beaches (Plage Paloma (rocky) and Plage d'Arles (sandy)), and the Calanques boat ride.

We loved getting off the beaten track, and enjoyed having the Roman ruins to ourselves at the Trophy of Augustus in La Turbie and the Theater in Orange. We had the perched villages of Peillon and Crestet mostly to ourselves as well. Eze-le-Village was way too crowded for our liking, especially since we got similar views in La Turbie, where we could quietly enjoy.

I was surprised that the quality of the food was averaging 3-4 out of 5 in our opinion. The service, views and atmosphere were wonderful throughout, but the food quality was surprisingly average (perhaps I had too high expectations. But then again, many plates were not seasoned properly, used a low-quality meat or oil for frying, and in general were missing out on the basics of good food). Our three favorite restaurants were Volubis in Arles, Les Plaisirs in Peillon and the food from the markets in Arles and Vaison-la-Romaine. Overall, this was one of our favorite trips of all time and Rick Steves' guidebook helped tremendously. For future editions, I would recommend including Peillon as a day trip from Nice.

Thank you for the trip report, and glad it went so well. With ratings for your meals, food was a clearly an important part of the experience. I’m sorry (and surprised) that Numéro 75 in Avignon only got a “4,” and that items besides the fish were lacking. Owner Chef Robert Brunel used to teach cooking classes in Boulder, Colorado when he wasn’t in France, and I’d taken several over the years, both in Boulder and in Avignon. I understand, though, that he hadn’t been back to the USA in some time (maybe for health reasons), and I haven’t recently been to Avignon, either. I hope he’s OK, and that the restaurant will be providing the exceptionally good dining I was used to there, and at his other restaurants, although you unfortunately didn’t get that. Glad you did have some “5” dinners, though.

What wonderful memories you've given your kids! And what a nice balance between gourmet dinners and pizza. I went to many of those places last fall, especially liked Arles, Nimes, Pont du Gard, and Vaison la Romaine. Staying at the Calendal, I enjoyed the Comptoir several times. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Yes, I was a little disappointed after hours and hours of research that the restaurants I chose did not live up to my (perhaps-too-high) expectations. I realize I may have been spoiled when I lived six months with a host family in Grenoble and had the most amazing home-cooked dinners. I had never eaten restaurant food in France before, and was hoping to give my family the foodie trip of a lifetime haha. But the kid's meals at most of the fancy restaurants were quite disappointing. My kids are very adventurous eaters and we regularly eat a lot of ethnic food. But the kid's menu at Numero 75, for example, served an unseasoned white fish filet (mid-range quality fish) and fried potatoes (fried in mid-range oil). My daughter got an unseasoned burger patty and same fries. My husband had beef tartare (just ok), side salad (pretty good) and same fries. Out of the four things we ordered, mine was the best - fish over polenta, served with watercress and fresh peas. The service and atmosphere were incredible, but the food simply was not - I hope it's just because of what we ordered. But anyone traveling to France with kids should know that the kid's menu at a lot of fancy places is not that appetizing.