Aix-en-Provence - 56 kilometres
Aix en Provence is awash with fountains and art. It is also very old, having been founded in 122 BC. The heart of Aix is Le Cours Mirabeau which is a long boulevard lined with cafés and bookshops shaded by huge plane trees. There are 18th century hot water baths in a park in the northwest of the town. Numerous restaurants, ranging from cheap to 3 star Michelin can be found here. There is a main market on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Paul Cézanne was born here in 1838 and you can visit his studio and then stop for coffee at Aux Deux Garçons.
Apt - 4 kilometres
Apt is a fabulous bustling market town situated in the heart of the Parc Naturel de Lubéron between the Vaucluse and Lubéron Mountains. It is known worldwide for its crystallised fruits and renowned for its local products - it even boasts the classification site remarquable du gout (place of wonderful tastes). Within the walls of the old town, there are vaulted passageways, ancient fountains, long meandering narrow streets, tiny squares and an eleventh century cathedral. There is also an Archaeological Museum (Tel: 04 90 74 00 34) and a Roman Theatre Museum both on the Rue de l'Amphithéatre.
At the large colourful Saturday morning market around the Place des Martyrs de la Résistance the squares and streets are packed with vendor's stalls and cars are barred from the town centre - this is the high spot of the week and the very best of Provence. Here, amongst other delicious produce, you can buy the freshest vegetables and fruit from the surrounding farms. There are many street cafés where you can sit and relax in the shade of the plane trees after a hard morning shopping and watch the world go by. Le Bistro de France has wonderful food and comes highly recommended (Tel: 04 90 74 22 01). Between June and October, there is also a Tuesday morning market.
In the main pedestrian thoroughfare there are many specialist food shops selling delicious goats cheeses, crystallised fruits, local wine, olive oil, wonderful lavender and thyme honey, olives, sausages, handmade pottery, Provençal fabric and handmade chocolates. Le Cave de Septier at the corner of Place du Septier and Place Carnot is an excellent wine shop. There are also quite a few large hypermarkets here, including Intermarché, Leclerc and Atac, as well as banks, bookshops (selling English books and maps of the region) and a great array of bread, herbs, fruit and vegetables.
Arles - 81 kilometres
The town of Arles dates back to the seventh century BC and is located on a low hill where the Rhône branches into two parts. The enormous Roman amphitheatre and arena (still used for bullfights) are an impressive sight. The streets are truly medieval, being narrow and winding between the ancient buildings, so the best way to explore Arles is on foot. Van Gogh lived here in 1888 and produced 200 paintings. Paul Gaugin also lived here in 1888. A lovely park is located along the Boulevard des Lices by the amphitheatre and has a truly gigantic cedar tree which is excellent for picnicking under. Two different self-guided walking tours to discover Arles are available. Coloured arrows on the pavements direct you through the town: yellow for Van Gogh and green for medieval Arles. Market days are Saturdays and Wednesdays along the Boulevard des Lices.
Avignon - 58 kilometres
The main attractions in Avignon, aside from the famous twelfth century bridge stretching halfway across the Rhône, are the Palais des Papes, the ramparts and the main square - Place de l'Horloge - where fierce competition between the many restaurants keeps the price of a 3-course midday meal to around 12 euros. Ancient, full of history, art and music, it is a great place for shopping or just wandering the narrow streets inside the fortified walls. The annual International Avignon Dance, Music and Theatre Festival in July attracts hundreds of performers and thousands of visitors from all over the world and the town is alive 24 hours a day. Founded in 1947, events occur all over the town often staged in historical buildings and even in the streets! For festival information phone 04 90 27 66 50. As with any tourist destination check the prices before you buy, even a bottle of water in the centre, as they vary enormously. There is a covered market every day except Monday at Les Halles, a flower market at Place des Carmes on Saturday mornings and a flea market at Place des Carmes on Sunday mornings.
Museums include Musée Calvert (classical and modern art, Greek sculpture and local prehistoric collection); Musée Lapidaire (historical stone carvings and sculptures); Musée Louis Vouland (eighteenth century French furnishings, porcelain and tapestries); Musée Requien (botanical and geological collections, excellent natural history library); Musée Théodore Aubanel (Avignon from the thirteenth to the twentieth century); and the Angladon Art Museum.
Avignon is on the main Paris-Lyon-Nice-Italy TGV railway line. Saignon is about 60 kilometres due east and it takes less than an hour to drive there. All the major car hire companies have offices behind the TGV railway station.
Banon - 36 kilometres
Banon is perched on a small hill on the edge of a high valley. The old part of the village is very picturesque with narrow cobblestone streets between the ancient houses. At the top of the hill stands the seventeenth century Romanesque church of St. Marc and the remains of the defensive walls that once encircled it. Surrounding the village are lavender fields to the south and forested hills to the north. Banon really comes alive on Tuesdays - market day.
Banon is famous for its superb goats cheese. A round cheese wrapped in brown chestnut leaves which have been dipped in Eau de Vie, the white cheese is creamy and full flavoured, but not strong. This is the first and only cheese in France to gain Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (a guarantee of quality label). In true French style there is a Fête du Fromage celebrated every May! At La Brasérade their Salad de Chevre Chaude (Banon cheese pannée - covered in fine bread crumbs and lightly fried in olive oil - with cooked apples, walnuts, fresh lettuce and a Provencal flavoured herb sauce) is truly excellent.
Bonnieux - 14 kilometres
No matter which route you take to Bonnieux, you will see the high pointed steeple of the church tower well before you arrive. At a height of 425 metres, the tower dominates the countryside and the surroundings of this magnificent village. Perched on the northern slope of the Lubéron mountain range, Bonnieux is one of the finest hilltop villages in the area. The village is filled with narrow passages winding through the ancient town houses, and small squares with shops and cafés. Some superb architectural residences from the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth century serve as a reminder that Bonnieux was a wealthy village when this region belonged to the Popes. Climb the 86 stone steps through the narrow streets and arched tunnels to the twelfth century Eglise Haut. Here, shaded by tall pine trees and magnificent centuries old cedar trees, there is an stunning view of the Monts du Vaucluse, the vast plains of grapevines, lavender and cherry orchards, and in the distance the hilltop villages of Lacoste, Gordes and Roussillon. A great place for a picnic is the lovely little park hidden past the end of this church with views of the gorges cutting through the Lubéron. Fans of baguettes, can visit the Musée de la Boulangerie (Tel: 04 90 75 88 34) to find out about bread making and milling through the ages - French style bien sur! Market day is Friday. The Restaurant de la Gare de Bonnieux (Tel: 04 90 75 82 00) on the D194 north out of town serves good food and has an outdoor terrace looking across the fields towards Bonnieux and Lacoste. Reservations are recommended.
The road from Lourmarin to Bonnieux has a turnoff to the spectacular Forêt des Cedres (cedar forest) which stretches for kilometres along a high ridge between Bonnieux, Lacoste and Ménerbes. What better place for a picnic?
Buoux- 7 kilometres
The small village of Buoux is situated among the rolling hills in the heart of the Parc Naturel de Lubéron. Due to its geographic situation, the village has played a naturally defensive role since prehistoric times. The magnificent ruins of the twelfth century Fort de Buoux are on top of a high ridge and overlook the deep ravines of the Aiguebrun River. The fort served as a refuge for the population during the invasions in the Middle Ages and the religious wars. The front of the fort is surrounded by deep trenches and thick walls with arrow slits. The view from here is simply magnificent, but there's nothing near the edges and bringing small children is not recommended. However, for climbing enthusiasts the steep cliffs are an excellent and popular location.
Nearby are many baumes (natural caves beneath overhanging cliffs) which have been inhabited from prehistoric times as well as stone burial tombs carved into the solid rock. About a hundred of the stone sarcophagi remain dating from the 9th century and each is carved to the size of the intended occupant, giving them a particularly poignant feeling.
While walking around the village you will see that most of the houses are restored and well maintained even though they date from the middle to the end of the seventeenth century. There are parking places past the Colonie de Vacances just off the D113 and it's only about a fifteen minute hike from here to the fort. Lunch at Auberge de la Loube is highly recommended. You are served a tray of about eighteen different appetizers, a cheese course, then dessert. All this, with a bottle of local Lubéron wine, in a unique setting.
Nearby at the tiny rock village of Chantebelle on high ridge above the Aiguebrun River, you can buy fresh goats cheese from the small dwellings built into the cliff wall. Tasting and buying is by reservation only (Tel: 04 90 74 55 36).