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We traveled to Provence for the lavender bloom and discovered one lavender field after another. As we were traveling with an Etrusco motorhome, we were able to plan our route completely freely and spontaneously and often just stopped somewhere and found really beautiful and sometimes somewhat hidden lavender fields.
Lavender season
Lavender blooms in Provence from mid-June to the beginning of August.
Of course, this varies a little from year to year. We were there from July 21 to August 1 and most of the lavender fields were still standing. However, some fields had already faded and some areas had already been mown. To see lavender in full bloom all around, early to mid-July is probably the perfect time to visit.
We were very flexible with our motorhome (model: T 6900 QB) and were able to stop spontaneously in many places. Our little home for the 12 days really was equipped with everything you could wish for. As we had a shower and toilet as well as a kitchen in the motorhome, we didn’t always have to find a campsite to spend the night, but could also stay on pitches. So we were really flexible and found some wonderful places. In this post, I have summarized the places we visited on our road trip and where you can find beautiful pitches or campsites.
Our route through Provence:
The most beautiful stops:
- Stop: Gordes
- Stop: Abbaye de Senaque
- Stop: Valensole
- Stop: Verdon
- Stop: Cassis
- Stop: Marseille
- Stop: Avignon
1) Gordes
In order to reach the small, romantic town, we drove through some serpentines and hilly areas. However, if you drive carefully through the mountains, you will come across the odd lavender field on the way there.
Camping site Gordes:
In the middle of the town there is a fairly large parking space where you can easily stay overnight with a motorhome.
Cost:
8 € per night with a motorhome
Address:
Aire Municipale
Rue de la Gendarmerie, 84220 Gordes
Info:
The parking space is centrally located near the city center. However, you have to drive through the town center to reach it. It is a bit narrow and you should be careful, but it is doable.
2) Abbaye de Senaque:
This little lavender highlight is located just a few kilometers from Gordes and is a great place to stop off on your onward journey, for example.
The entire area around the abbaye is planted with lavender and offers this wonderful sight. However, you are not allowed to go directly into the lavender fields here.
Tip: The Abbaye de Senaque is a very popular destination and therefore also attracts many tourists. It’s really worth getting up early here. We were there on a Monday morning around half past seven and there really wasn’t anyone else there, so we were able to stroll through the grounds alone and in peace.
3) Valensole:
Everywhere you look, there are blooming & fragrant lavender fields. Valensole is the lavender hotspot par excellence. Even before you have actually reached the town, you are greeted by huge purple fields.
This huge area is called the Plateau de Valensole. Outside the village, you will find huge areas of blooming lavender wherever you look.
There are several places to park here next to the lavender fields – even with a motorhome. This place is very popular with many tourists and it is therefore advisable not to stop immediately at the first field, as there are a lot of people there. We drove a few fields further on and were almost alone there.
There aren’t really many places to stay overnight in Valensole with a camper van and a campsite address that we had previously looked up came to nothing. We drove about 20 minutes further to Riez and spent the night there.
Camping site Riez:
There is a nice pitch there with a water supply and facilities for emptying waste water and the like.
Costs:
8 € per night with a motorhome
Address:
Aire de Camping-Car Riez
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Sébastien, 04800 Riez
Info:
Riez also has a very nice little town center and on Wednesdays there is also a nice market.
4) Sainte-Croix & Gorges of Verdon
Just over an hour away from Valensole is the Lac de Sainte-Croix. A lake with truly incredible blue-turquoise water. It’s worth making a stop here at the lake on your tour through Provence.
I was particularly impressed by the Verdon Gorge, which is located directly on Lac de Sainte-Croix. You can hire a canoe there for around €20-30 and row out into the gorge for 2 hours. It really is a very special experience.
Pitch at Lac de Sainte-Croix:
There is a free parking space near the lake.
Cost:
Free of charge
Address:
4 D957, 83630 Les Salles-sur-Verdon, France
Info:
A very quiet pitch from which you can walk to the lake in about 10 minutes. However, there is no water or electricity here.
5) Cassis
This colorful, noisy and also very beautiful city is located directly by the sea, as a bay of the Calanque coast.
You can also discover some of the other bays from Cassis. However, there are quite a lot of tourists here, as in the whole of Cassis. If you don’t want to go out on the tourist boats, you can take a small tourist train right at the front of the beach promenade, which stops at a viewing point. From there you have a great view of one of the bays.
Camping Les Cigales campsite:
Cost:
approx. 9 € per person
6 € for the pitch
3 € for electricity
Address:
Avenue de la Marne, 13260 Cassis, France
Info:
The campsite is located on the outskirts of the town. It takes about 20 minutes to get to the town and the sea and a little longer to get back, as the campsite is uphill.
There is a small store right next to the campsite where you can buy the essentials.
Les Cigales – says it all: Crickets, Crickets, Crickets. You can hear the crickets chirping all day and everywhere in Cassis, and it’s the same at the campsite 🙂
6) Marseille
From Cassis, you can take the public bus to Marseille, making it very easy, cheap and uncomplicated to get into the city. The bus stops right outside the campsite and you can buy a ticket directly on the bus.
A day trip to Marseille is really worthwhile here, as you can be there in around half an hour by bus.
7) Avignon
Our last stop in France was in Avignon and I was immediately fascinated and captivated by this city. Culture, history, a lively and modern city and a pitch right on the river. Need I say more?
If you want to know more about Avignon, you can check out this post.
Pitch Avignon:
We also found a free pitch in Avignon, which was also right on the river.
Costs:
free of charge
Address:
4 D957, 83630 Les Salles-sur-Verdon, France
Info:
It’s only a 5-10 minute walk to the city center, which is very central for a large city like Avignon. The pitch is in a very quiet location on a headland. However, there is no water or electricity available here.
A trip through Provence during the lavender blossom is definitely worthwhile. As we were traveling by motorhome, we saw so many small villages and special places and were able to stop spontaneously and continue our journey.
Thanks to Etrusco for the cooperation and for providing us with their beautiful camper van.
