Day 1: Aix, art & a mansion hotel
Tours begis at 3:00 PM at Le Pigonnet, Aix-en-Provence. A transfer is included from Marseille Provence Airport to Le Pigonnet in Aix-en-Provence. As it has millions of wayfarers before you – and not a few sailors from all corners of the globe – the old "port" of Marseille welcomes you to the south of France. And so commences a sensual journey through Provence… past lavender fields and ancient stone walls… a true feast for the senses. To the locals, Aix-en-Provence is simply “Aix.” Strolling its boulevards with a local guide, you’re taking in the same views that inspired Cézanne… Gauguin… van Gogh… Zola… no doubt ready to share your own – um – impressions of this charming old university town with the world. Aix’s grandest boulevard, the Cours Mirabeau, dates back to the 17th century. Lined with plane-trees, elaborate fountains and opulent mansions, it invites a leisurely bike ride, a brisk walk, or a cognac in one of its many popular cafés. So what will it be… a drawing? A painting? A novel? Take your time to decide; there's no hurry. But first, join us for cocktails, canapés, and a sumptuous dinner in your 18th-century mansion hotel as you begin the ultimate Provence tour.
Lodging: Le Pigonnet
Meal: Dinner
Day 2: Cézanne, Château La Coste & more in "Aix"
Follow the footsteps of post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne through his hometown, Aix-en-Provence, today. See the landscapes he painted, the fields where local residents became his subjects, the views of Mont Sainte-Victoire that so inspired him, and the studio where he worked. Garner a few handy phrases en francais from your Director as you explore. Head just north of "Aix" to Château La Coste, a classic Provençal château, vineyard and estate whose heart – a 17th-century Venetian-style villa – is surrounded by olive groves, hilltops covered by oaks and almond trees, and hundreds of acres of lovingly tended vines. Discover works by some of Europe's greatest living artists on a walk through the château's expanding sculpture gardens, or visit its working organic winery, and enjoy lunch al fresco (weather permitting). Then return to Aix for a free afternoon and evening with dinner on your own in this inspiring city... and perhaps become inspired yourself to create a masterwork of your own...
Lodging - Le Pigonnet
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3: Gordes & a Provençal picnic
Savor a visual feast of fairy-tale villages, meadows and moorlands as you explore Gordes today. Stroll the town’s arcaded medieval lanes and stop by a market to pick up the makings of a traditional picnic lunch – perhaps a baguette, fruits and meats, cheese, olives and, naturellement, wine… whatever tempts your palate! Rich with color, chalk and red ochre cliffs, cedar forests and river-hewn gorges surround. Enjoy your picnic lunch in a Provençal meadow, then continue to your hotel in Gordes, overlooking the lovely village and the valley beyond. Dine this evening at the hotel, which sports a restaurant by Michelin Star chef Pierre Gagnaire.
Lodging - Hotel La Bastide De Gordes
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 4: Time stands still in the Luberon
Some call the hilltop villages of the Luberon the “sentinels of time.” No wonder. Looking out over wild stretches of cedar and oak, they seem to have been here forever. Enjoy a morning walk to the medieval Abbaye de Senanque; founded in the 12th century, it is still tended by a small community of Cistercian monks. Next, visit Ménerbes, which author Peter Mayle made world-famous in A Year in Provence; enjoy a delicious lunch of typical French fare, then follow it with an easy hike through the quarries of Roussillon, where the deep ochre used in the town's architecture harmoniously blends into the warmth of the natural surroundings. Return to your hotel in Gordes, where the evening is yours to spend as you wish.
Lodging - Hotel La Bastide De Gordes
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Day 5: Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, St-Remy & Glanum
Deep beneath the hills of Provence, the most powerful spring in France bursts forth at nearly 20,000 gallons per second to feed the Sorgue River, emerging in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, once the home of the Italian poet, Petrarch. Your Provence tours visit St-Rémy-de-Provence, home to the asylum of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, where legendary Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh went to heal and hide out... and where he created over 150 works, including Starry Night. After time to explore and enjoy lunch on your own in St-Remy, you'll glimpse inside the artist’s troubled mind as van Gogh scholar Mathilde Duvilliers shares insights on his complicated life, and reads from his letters, while you walk in his footsteps at the asylum and its grounds. The ancients roamed here too; explore the ruins of the Roman city of Glanum, one of the largest and oldest archaeological sites in France. Arrive late afternoon at Auberge de Cassagne & Spa in Le Pontet-Avignon for a three-night stay. In addition to its lovely gardens, the hotel’s Michelin-starred restaurant, where you'll enjoy dinner tonight, is a real treat!
Lodging - Auberge de Cassagne & Spa
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Day 6: A day of wining and dining in Avignon
On market day in Avignon, partake in the process of bringing great Provençal food from the market to the plate. Join a chef on a buying trip to an Avignon market – smelling, tasting, and feeling your way through the fresh produce, breads, meats and cheeses. Learn the chef’s kitchen secrets firsthand as you help prepare a traditional meal in a hands-on cooking lesson. And after a professional sommelier guides you through a tasting of fine Rhône wines, it’s time to eat… drink… and be very merry. For much of the 14th century, the Roman Catholic popes ruled from Avignon. Take an insider’s look at the ten-towered Palais des Papes they built for themselves – more fortress than palace – or if you wish, explore lovely Avignon on your own. You'll have free time today to spend as you wish. A bicycle ride? A walk? A long afternoon drink in a café? Tonight is yours to explore and dine on your own in Avignon; our shuttle can take you back from town to the hotel.
Lodging - Auberge de Cassagne & Spa
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Day 7: Pont du Gard, Avignon & a grand farewell
A three-level, 2,000-year-old aqueduct spanning the River Gardon, the Pont du Gard stands as testimony to the Romans' amazing engineering skills and love of baths. Learn more about it as you walk the “pont” – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – and visit its new museum. After lunch on your own in Avignon and some more time to explore this history-rich town as you wish this afternoon, travel to nearby Châteauneuf-du-Pape – one of the country's premier wine-growing regions – to celebrate the flavors of Provence with cocktails, canapés and local wine, followed by a spectacular dinner of Provençal specialties... a perfect finis to your Culturious Provence tours!
Lodging - Auberge de Cassagne & Spa
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Day 8: Au revoir, Provence…
Your tour ends in Marseille. The warm, inviting colors… sun-kissed meadows… those amazing Provençal flavors… intangible sensory imagery that linger not only on the return to Marseille and on your flight home… but far beyond… A transfer is included from Auberge de Cassagne & Spa to Marseille Provence Airport; allow three hours for check-in... au revoir!
Meal: Breakfast
