Discovering Provence will immerse you into the painter’s palette of Van Gogh and Cezanne exploring the Roman monuments and the charming hills towns, admiring the colorful panorama and the fascinating blue Mediterranean coastline with the flavorful countryside. Provence way of life will bring you as well to eat and taste, the delicious sunshine cuisine together with local wines such as the popular Rose de Provence.
Reference: PP-D3
| When : | From November to March |
| Pick up: | 9.00am from Aix en Provence |
| Duration : | 10h00 - Full day |
| Availability : | Wednesday & Saturday |
| Cost: | From A$280 per person |
Guaranteed Departure
This tour is available from March 21st to November 20th.
Historic Alpilles : Avignon, Pont du Gard and Châteauneuf du Pape - Provence Small Group Day Tour - Wednesday and Saturday
Live a great experience discovering Avignon and its "pont", the famous appellation Châteauneuf du Pape, the national park of the Alpilles and the imposant Pont du Gard.
9.00 AM, meet your guide at the tourist office in Aix-en-Provence. Our 8 passengers minivan has air conditioning and comfortable seats.
Around 10 am: Sightseeing of the Historic Centre of Avignon, capital of Christendom in the 14 th : Popes’ Palace, town and ramparts, and famous bridge.
The palace of the Popes, listed in the World Heritage by UNESCO -
This impressive and austere looking fortress, built in less than twenty years by two popes, is the symbol of the Church's importance in the Christian Western world in the 14th century. With 15,000 square meters of living space, the equivalent of 4 Gothic cathedrals, it is the biggest gothic palace in the world. You can visit 20 rooms and discover amazing Italian frecoes. The Popes ‘Palace, with 600 000 visitors per year, is part of the 10 most visited monuments in France.
Guided tour of the Pont du Gard, listed in the World Heritage by UNESCO - This monumental bridge, former Roman aqueduct, set in an environment of rare beauty, would provide an incredible amount of water to the population, baths and public fountains of Nimes.
06:00PM: Drop off at Aix en Provence Tourist Office. End of the tour.
This tour includes transportation in a comfortable full options minivan for the day, English speaking escort guide, guided tour of Avignon (sightseeing of the Palace of the Popes and Pont d'Avignong), wine tasting in Châteauneuf du Pape, lunch at a traditional restaurant (drinks included), sightseeing in Alpilles National Park, guided tour at Le Pont du Gard, guided tour at a soap factory. 8 passengers maximum per vehicle.
This tour doesn't include personal expenses, extra, other drinks, other meals, hotel pick up 15.00 € per person (hotels located in Aix en Provence surroundings).
Reference: PP-D1
| When : | From March to November |
| Pick up: | 9.00am Aix en Provence |
| Duration : | 10hours |
| Availability : | Thursday |
| Cost: | From A$280 per person |
Guaranteed Departure - This tour is available from March 21st to November 20th.
Enjoy a fabulous day with the sea and the breathless landscapes, the good local food with friendly ambiance, the wines of Cassis and Bandol vineyard.
At 9.00AM, meet your guide at the tourist office in Aix-en-Provence. Our 8 passengers minivan has air conditioning and comfortable seats. It takes barely 1h to arrive in Cassis. A nice occasion for you to hear more about Provence and taking time to admire the magnificent landscape around: sharp hills, exuberant vineyards, colorful villages, olive groves and the typical Provencal garrigue.
Calanques de Cassis - Welcome on board for a cruise to the famous Calanques. They represent a long stretch of coastline indented by a series of narrow inlets walled by limestone cliffs. You will be fascinated by the narrow bays of fine white sand meeting warm cobalt shallows, surrounded by towering pale bright cliffs bearing sparse precariously sited trees. Magical and enchanting coves are a paradise for scuba diving, climbing, hiking, discovery of the fauna and flora.
Guided tour of Cassis - The harbor of Cassis snuggles at the bottom of a steep bowl of land surrounded by lush vines and pine trees. The town is dominated by the Cap Canaille, 400 m high. Cassis is a very ancient fishing port, as well as a coral trade counter. In the 18th century, the village was rebuilt on the old ruins, resulting in a more regular layout than most other medieval villages. A walk through the old village streets will reveal old fountains, open-air artists market and some nice old buildings, some dating back to the 16th century, and some restored with the colorful pastels of Provence. Cassis is also famous today for its local wine, mainly whites, but also rosé and red.
Guided tour and wine tasting - Laid in the heart of the Provencal vineyard, Cassis offers several possibilities to taste the best of local terroir. The village is famous to be the first AOC (controlled area appellation) created in Provence in 1936. 200 hectars are producing red, rosé and white wines, based on mourvèdre, grenache, cinsault, marsanne and clairette grapes. The perfect occasion the have a break before lunch.
Lunch with Local products - Provence Tours around Cassis and Bandol
Lunch - After this full of surprise morning, you deserve a lunch. Facing the sea from the harbor of Cassis, you will enjoy the genuine Provencal cuisine and local sunny wines, through this typical charming restaurant we selected for you.
Bandol Vineyards Sightseeing - The wine region of Bandol overlooks the sea. This sightseeing is the best occasion to see mourvèdre, cinsault and grenache, but also carignan and syrah grapes as far as your eyes can see. The Bandol AOC covers 8 villages representing around 1500 hectares on silicon & limestone soils. Thanks to warm weather and wind, intensity of red colours and density of tannins are the keywords to characterize red Bandol wines as well as spicy flavor and little red fruits note can define rosé Bandol wines. Clairette, ugni blanc and bourboulenc grapes offer delightful white wines.
Oil and Wine producer - Olives and grapes are since the age of time major emblems of Mediterranean culture. Olive oil was actually nicknamed “the green gold”. Phenicians, Greeks and Romans introduced and developed olive oil and wine production, making Provence worldwide known for it. Still today, this trade activity is very flourishing. We selected for you a splendid Provencal Domaine, totally favorable to discover two of the main taste ambassadors of southern France. Enjoy this last step before turning back home.
At 06.00PM, your guide will drop you off at Aix-en-Provence tourist office.
Reference: PP-D2
| When : | From March to November |
| Pick up: | 9.00am |
| Duration : | 10h00 - full day |
| Availability : | Tuesday and Friday |
| Cost: | From A$280 per person |
Guaranteed Departure - This tour is available from March 21st to November 20th.
Discover the National Park of Luberon : top of the hill villages, Senanque Abbey, vineyard... and taste local products during the lunch and during a funny visit of a Calissons d'Aix factory.
At 9.00 AM, meet your guide at the tourist office in Aix-en-Provence. Our 8 passengers minivan has air conditioning and comfortable seats. The journey to Roussillon is the nicest occasion to have a view on the famous perched village of inland Provence, such as Lacoste or Bonnieux. Pastels and ochre colors will attract your eyes as well as the beautiful hills of Luberon area. The contrast between warm and cold colours is overwhelming.
Ochre trail in Roussillon - Ochre has become the cornerstone of Roussillon's popularity. The village is today a highlight of Luberon, beguiling visitors thanks to its vivid colors. Sculpted by storms, this former ochre deposit today present enchanting scenery, which combines men and nature work. Cliffs, earth pillars, ochre-colored sand hillocks, after being dug out by shovels and picks, are henceforth shaped by the winds and rain.
Roussillon - Provence Tours in Luberon - It’s time now to leave Roussillon to go to Gordes, through a dramatic, narrow and winding road.
Gordes - Known as one of the most beautiful villages in France, Gordes is absolutely captivating. The town is located east of Avignon and just west of Roussillon, and like the latter it was built on top of a hill. The village’s 2,000 inhabitants live in stone houses with terracotta roofs. Gordes also has an impressive castle. The beauty of Gordes on top of the cliff and its panoramic views of the surrounding landscape were not lost on the many famous artists who frequented the village, such as Marc Chagall.
Gordes - Provence Tours in Luberon - Sénanque Abbey - Notre-Dame de Sénanque Abbey is still a Cistercian monastery, since the mid-12th century, and not a museum or a tourist site. It’s allowed to walk around the valley and the abbey. Stretching out from the abbey buildings is a valley of lavender fields, which are in full flower and fragrance during the summer. The lavender is then harvested by the monks themselves to produce essential oil and other products. The Abbey went through trouble times in history and was ransacked a few times, alternating between flourishing time and destruction. Today and only since 1989, the abbey is again an active monastery. The church is unusually aligned to the north, instead of the east, because of the limited width of the valley in which is sits.
Senanque Abbey and Lavender fields - Provence Tours in Luberon
The next, lost in lavender fields is certainly one of the most famous postcards of Provence.
Lunch in a typical restaurant with local wines. Lunch with Local products - Provence Tours around in Luberon
Confiserie du Roi René - Created in 1920 in Aix-en-Provence by a master nougatier, the traditional candy store of the king René makes Calissons d’Aix, Nougats from Provence and many other types of local sweets. The use of delicious and local products is the key of their recipes; almond, honey, thyme, lavender, candied fruit...
Managed by the third generation of the family, the candy store is now leader in provençal high quality sweets and export in 24 countries!
Each generation brought his own innovations to the sweets, keeping the old way of making the Calisson ( a candy made from a paste of ground almonds, candied melon and orange peel on a thin layer of wafer, all covered with bright royal icing) and creating new sweets. In 2012 the King René’s candy store got the label “company of alive heritage”, thanks to its excellence in its culinary tradition.
06:00PM: Drop off at Aix en Provence Tourist Office. End of the tour.
This tour includes - transportation in a comfortable full options minivan for the day, English speaking escort guide, walk on the Ochre Trail in Roussillon, sightseeing in the top of the hill village of Gordes, photo stop at Senanque Abbey, guided tour and wine tasting at a local domain, lunch at a traditional restaurant (drinks included), guided tour and tasting of artisanal Calissons d'Aix. 8 passengers maximum per vehicle.
This tour doesn't include - personal expenses, extra, other drinks, other meals, hotel pick up 15.00 € per person (hotels located in Aix en Provence surroundings).