Day 1: Arrive Avignon
Arrive at Avignon TGV or Airport. Transfer to your hotel in the historic center. Afternoon walk: the Place de l’Horloge, the lively heart of Avignon, and the Rocher des Doms gardens overlooking the Rhone. Welcome dinner at a traditional Avignon restaurant. Overnight Avignon.
Day 2: Avignon — Papal Majesty
Full Avignon exploration. Morning: Palais des Papes — the colossal 14th-century palace where seven popes reigned during the Avignon Papacy. Audio-guided tour through the ceremonial halls, papal chambers, and treasury. Walk the legendary Pont d’Avignon (Pont Saint-Benezet) stretching into the Rhone. Afternoon: free time — explore Les Halles covered market (the ‘belly of Avignon’) for regional specialties, visit the Petit Palais Museum’s collection of Italian Renaissance paintings, or climb the Tour Philippe-le-Bel for Rhone Valley views. Overnight Avignon.
Day 3: Orange & Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Morning excursion to Orange: the UNESCO-listed Theatre Antique, one of the finest Roman theaters anywhere, with its intact 103-meter stage wall. Walk through the Arc de Triomphe d’Orange, a 1st-century Roman triumphal arch. Afternoon: Chateauneuf-du-Pape wine country. Visit a family domaine, walk among the famous galets roules, and taste the Grenache-based reds in a centuries-old cellar. Learn why this tiny village produces some of France’s most sought-after wines. Overnight Avignon.
Day 4: Pont du Gard & Arles
Morning: Pont du Gard — the tallest and best-preserved Roman aqueduct bridge in the world (160 feet high, spanning the Gardon River). Built in the 1st century AD without mortar, its stones weighing up to 6 tons, it carried 40 million gallons of water daily to Nimes. Walk across the lower level and visit the excellent museum. Afternoon: Arles. Walking tour of the Roman Arena (still hosting events after 2,000 years), the Roman Theatre, and the Cryptoporticus. Follow Van Gogh’s footsteps — the places where he painted ‘Starry Night Over the Rhone,’ ‘Cafe Terrace at Night,’ and the Garden of the Hospital. Overnight Arles.
Day 5: Camargue — Flamingos, White Horses & the Sea
Full day in the wild Camargue delta. Morning: Pont de Gau Ornithological Park — walk the trails among thousands of greater flamingos, herons, egrets, and storks. The Camargue’s salt flats and marshes create one of Europe’s most important bird sanctuaries. Afternoon: optional horseback ride on a white Camargue horse through the marshes (an ancient breed, semi-wild), or visit a manade to see the gardians (Camargue cowboys) working with black bulls. End at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, the Camargue’s seaside capital and a major Roma pilgrimage site. Overnight Arles.
Day 6: Luberon — Gordes, Roussillon & Lavender
Into the Luberon Valley. Morning: Gordes — a cascade of stone houses tumbling down a hillside, one of France’s ‘Plus Beaux Villages.’ Visit Senanque Abbey and its iconic lavender fields (in bloom mid-June to mid-July). Afternoon: Roussillon — the village built on massive ochre deposits, its buildings painted in every shade of red, orange, and gold. Walk the Sentier des Ocres trail through otherworldly colored canyons. Overnight Aix-en-Provence.
Day 7: Aix-en-Provence — City of Fountains & Cezanne
Full day in elegant Aix-en-Provence. Morning walking tour: the Cours Mirabeau, Quartier Mazarin’s 17th-century mansions, the Cathedral Saint-Sauveur, and the city’s iconic fountains. Visit Cezanne’s atelier — preserved exactly as he left it in 1906, with his easel, palette, and still-life objects. Afternoon: free time — shop for calissons (the local almond-paste candy), explore the Granet Museum (excellent Cezanne collection), or simply sit at a fountain-side cafe. Overnight Aix-en-Provence.
Day 8: Marseille — Mediterranean Spirit
Morning transfer to Marseille (30 minutes). Explore the Vieux Port, Le Panier (oldest quarter), and ascend to Notre-Dame de la Garde basilica for commanding city and sea views. Optional: boat trip to the Chateau d’If (the island fortress from ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’) or the Calanques. Farewell dinner at a seafood restaurant on the Vieux Port: bouillabaisse, the iconic saffron-scented fish stew. Overnight Marseille.
Day 9: Departure
Transfer to Marseille Airport. Depart with Provence’s golden light, lavender scent, and Mediterranean flavors.
