Author: Cheryl Brooks

One of our all-time favourite towns in France, and certainly our top favourite in Provence, Aix-en-Provence never fails to enchant every time.  We first visited the town back in the 1970s, due its reputation as a great place to explore, but chiefly because of its history, as a town founded by the Romans in the 2^nd century BCE.  We soon discovered for ourselves one of the loveliest towns in the country, with its intact medieval footprint of narrow, pedestrianised streets, Renaissance houses, handsome 18^th century buildings, enticing shops selling great fashion and décor, and a diverse population of university students, every branch of the professions, especially lawyers, and a diverse local population.

The village of Lourmarin is one of the loveliest in the region, and it comes as no surprise that it has been designated one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France.  Every time we’re in this part of Provence, we make a point of visiting Lourmarin, and this last time we stayed for a couple of nights so that we could better absorb the atmosphere, and see what the village was like out of the normal tourist visiting hours.  Despite being such a popular destination, Lourmarin has managed to maintain a lively community spirit and obvious sense of camaraderie among the locals.

We have driven along the Esterel Corniche (coast road) from Nice heading to St Tropez many times over the years, and have often stopped at the pretty coastal town of Fréjus for lunch at one of the many attractive beachside cafes.  We’ve walked around it, enjoyed browsing through the numerous resort-wear shops, or simply rested on a beachside seat and enjoyed the sight of boats bobbing on the calm waters and admired the lovely villas perched above the port.  Recently, we decided we would stop off for a short stay and explore the town in depth for a change.  We’re so glad we did, and discovered some gems in the town on the hill above the port.  We were already aware of its Roman history, but the ruins remaining today are most impressive, testament to its importance in the region’s ancient past.

The Côte d’Azur has so many wonderful attractions, many of which aren’t associated with beaches, famous luxury hotels or shopping—although the area offers plenty of all those!  If you’d like a little time out from the activities of the cities, beaches and what we think of as the typical Riviera pursuits, think about heading up into the surrounding hills and little villages perched on the slopes that dot the landscape, so near and yet so far.  We try and make time to explore a couple of these whenever we’re in the area, and have loved discovering such gems as Tourrettes-sur-Loup and La Turbie.  There are also a couple of absolutely delightful train trips, such as the Train des Pignes, up into the beautiful mountain areas that can really enhance a Riviera holiday.

One of the most famous perched villages on the Riviera is St Paul de Vence.  It’s within easy reach of Nice for a lovely day out, and what’s more, it’s very near the location of one of the most outstanding art museums in France, the Fondation Maeght.  Not far from the Fondation Maeght is the village of Vence (not to be confused with St Paul de Vence!), in the hinterland of Nice, in the direction of Grasse.  This village is famous for being the location of the Chapelle du Rosaire (Chapel of the Rosary), decorated by Henri Matisse, and recognised as one of his most outstanding masterpieces.  Aside from the many enticing attractions in this part of the Riviera, the dramatic landscape alone is described by many as the highlight of their Riviera trip.