A 10 day road trip in the Vaucluse

“This summer, we’re visiting France!”. With the health crisis, like many French people in 2020, we chose to drop our bags only a few hundred kilometres from Paris and rediscover Provence. As we only had one week off, we wanted to visit a small region so as not to do too much driving each day. So we set our hearts on the Vaucluse and more particularly the Luberon regional nature park. A protected nature reserve and a UNESCO global geopark, the Luberon stretches across the departments of the Vaucluse and the Alpes de Haute-Provence, from Cavaillon to Forcalquier.

To find out more about the region, also have a look at the website dedicated to the Luberon. You’ll find all the information you need to organise your stay there, on top of our blog.

*The prices mentioned in this article are those of 2020 and are therefore given as a guide.

Getting to the Vaucluse from Paris

At the start of July, we booked our train tickets taking advantage of the oui SNCF deals, which offered plenty of cheap tickets. The Paris Gare de Lyon to Avignon TGV return cost us only 77€ per person. We chose Avignon station to start our trip because it’s rather practical for getting around the Vaucluse and above all, that’s where many car hire companies are, unlike Orange station for example. We hired our car with AVIS and paid 350€ for a Renault 208, all insurance included, for 9 days. For information, AVIS is right outside the station, alongside all the other car hire companies.

On the way back, we had planned to spend our last day in the centre of Avignon. So we returned the car the day before our departure at Avignon TGV station, 6 kilometres from the centre, and took the TER (1.20€ for a one way ticket, one stop) to get to Avignon centre station. Full circle!

Our budget for 10 days in Provence

• Train: 156.40€ for two (78.20€ per person)
• Hire car: 349.20€ for the 9 days for two (insurance included)
• Petrol: 53.70€
• Accommodation: 802€ for 9 nights for two (3 different places)
• Restaurants/snacks: about 315€
• Visits: 32€ (including paid car parks)

A total of about 1850€ for 10 days for two (that is 925€ per person).

Our accommodation in Provence

To visit the Dentelles de Montmirail and Mont Ventoux region, we decided to stay two nights in a bed and breakfast, between Le Barroux and Malaucène. We first found the room “Aux Ambrosis” on Airbnb, but preferred to book directly to avoid the platform’s fees. The value for money is unbeatable, especially in the middle of August and in Provence: we paid 64€ a night with breakfast* (*2020 price, update 70€ a night in high season in 2023). The owners, farmers by trade, are really charming. The big plus: the large heated pool with a stunning view over the whole region. We can only recommend this bed and breakfast!

We then stayed six nights in a detached house in the heart of the Luberon, in Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt. As with the bed and breakfast, we first spotted the house on Airbnb but, by searching a bit harder on Google, we found the owners’ site Luberon Home Sitting (much cheaper than Airbnb). The house with a pool cost us 608€ for the six nights*, that is 101€ a night (*2020 price, update 130€ a night in high season in 2023). The view is splendid here too, over the Luberon hills!

For our last night in Provence, we had chosen to sleep in the heart of Avignon to discover the city. Unfortunately, the place we booked on Airbnb didn’t live up to our expectations, so we won’t share it here.

Our favourite spots in Provence

Food and drink

• ❤️ Au Petit Patio in Orange: excellent place for lunch or dinner, with a very pleasant terrace. 30€* for the starter, main, cheese and dessert menu (*2020 price, update 38€ for the menu in 2023).
• Thé chez toi in Vaison-la-Romaine: small tea room offering light, fresh dishes at lunchtime. 29.50€ for the two of us for an iced tea, two dishes of the day (quiches) and two desserts.
• André Boyer in Sault: a must for eating an ice cream or buying nougat (7€ for 4 scoops).
• Maison Brémond 1830 in Roussillon: fine grocery of regional products that also offers very good artisan ice creams. 4€ for 2 scoops.
• Pâtisserie Eugénie in Isle-sur-la-Sorgue: excellent patisserie offering trompe-l’oeil desserts and very good iced teas with fresh fruit.
• Le Sanglier Paresseux in Caseneuve: gourmet restaurant with a lovely view from the terrace. 47€ for the starter, main and dessert menu.
• ❤️ Maison Ripert in Avignon: excellent gourmet restaurant with original combinations, a favourite! 39€ starter, main, dessert.
• Vivotto Café in Avignon: good place for lunch or an iced tea. Set menu at 10.95€ or 12.95€.

Bringing back souvenirs

• Charcuterie du Ventoux “Yves et Virginie”: delicatessen and fine grocery with good regional products.
• Bastide du Laval in Cadenet: olive oil mill offering a discovery tour of how the oil is made, a tasting and a shop. Rather upmarket oils, some of them certified organic.
• Il était une fois in Apt: wine merchant with a wide choice of local beers and wines as well as regional products.
• Confiserie Marcel Richaud in Apt: to bring back candied fruit or nougat, two specialities of the Apt region.

What we thought of the Vaucluse

Even if these ten short days of holiday went by at a fast pace, we were still able to discover a large part of the Vaucluse department and in particular the Luberon park. Given the countless number of villages to visit, hikes and natural sites to see, you need to devote at least a few days to it, if not one or two weeks! The Luberon is a very pretty micro region that’s worth the detour and offers very beautiful landscapes.
A tip, if you can go out of season, go for it! Because, during the summer months, this region is literally invaded by tourists, French and foreign. So remember to book your accommodation and restaurants in advance because everything gets taken pretty quickly…

Need ideas for your weekends and holidays in France? Read our articles about our beautiful country!