Avignon Travelers Recommend

Start at the Palais des Papes, the spot which was once the center of the Western world when the Popes made Avignon their home-away-from-Rome in the 14th century. The forbidding stone walls still exude an air of chilling authority. The palace’s Grand Chapel is an imposing bare space, but if you want decoration, the beautiful chapels of Saint Martial and Saint Jean are where it’s at. Stop in at the Notre Dame des Doms Cathedral with its squat, square spire on your way to the original bridge to nowhere, the Pont d’Avignon (actually Pont St-Bénézet). Dancing optional. The morning is devoted to epoch-hopping art appreciation. Walk along Avignon’s charming winding streets and take your pick from antiquities reflecting Avignon’s Roman roots at the Musée Lapidaire, the Petit Palais, which displays art from the Popes’ Avignonian sojourn, and the Musée Angladon which boasts a Van Gogh among its small but impressive collection concentrating on Post-Impressionists.

This region contains numerous towns where antiquities rub shoulders with buildings from the Middle Ages and beyond. The amazing arena in Orange is one of Europe’s best-preserved Roman theaters, while more traces of the Empire await in Arles, once home to troubled genius Vincent van Gogh. You can explore the towns and terrain which so inspired the artist, or follow your nose to Provence’s famous lavender fields. And if you can’t decide between these options, combine them all by joining a select group of travelers on a full day tour of inland Provence. The Roman aqueduct of Pont du Gard, the picturesque towns of Roussillon and Gordes and Tarascon’s Medieval castle are just some of the highlights. Or for a different perspective, cruise the Rhone River before exploring the fascinating walled port town of Aigues-Mortes. And that’s just the merest taste of the Provencal coast, a magnificent stretch of sea-front where superlatives come to get a work out.