7 Favorite Villages and Vineyards in Provence

My wife and I spend part of every year in St-Rémy-de-Provence, a charming town nestled up against the northern slope of the Alpilles mountain range. It’s our favorite town in the area but there are others we love as well. There’s tiny Les Baux-de-Provence, for example, sitting just below a great fortress. Or rustic Eygalières, where I sometimes see horses at hitching posts, waiting patiently for their riders.

There are plenty of vineyards as well, because Provence is famous for its wines. Would you like white, pink, or red? We’ve got them all and they are terrific.

Let me tell you about some of my favorite villages and vineyards near where I live. You might like to visit some on your next trip to Provence.

You can read all about them at Perfectly Provence!

Where I Live

I was asked recently by Perfectly Provence to describe St-Rémy-de-Provence, the town where my wife Val and I live part of the year. What is there to see and do? Where is our favorite place for coffee or an apéro? How about our top picks for a romantic meal or for a casual bite to eat?

For anyone considering a visit to St-Rémy, you might find this helpful.

Read all about it in Perfectly Provence!

How to Spend a Day in St-Rémy-de-Provence

It may be the middle of winter, but what better time to plan a trip to sunny Provence? And if you go, you won’t want to miss St-Rémy-de-Provence, where my wife and I live for part of the year.

Provence has so many great places to visit that you may only have a day for St-Rémy. I’m here to help you plan that day, with ideas on art (Van Gogh!), markets, restaurants, nature, and more.

You can read all about it in Perfectly Provence!

Going to the Movies in St-Rémy

Let’s say you are staying in St-Rémy-de-Provence and expecting beautiful weather, only to discover that it’s raining buckets. Or maybe it’s one of those days that is just so hot you can’t move. What to do? Here’s an idea—go to the movies!

St-Rémy has a delightful little theater that shows first-run movies, including some in English. And there are several nearby towns with movie theaters as well. Read all about them, and how to find the English-language movies, at Perfectly Provence!

A Guide to the Chateaux of the Alpilles

If you’ve spent time around the Alpilles, the small mountain range near St-Rémy-de-Provence, you’ve probably spotted a medieval chateau or two. Some are hard to miss, like the one above the fortified city of Les Baux. Others are little more than piles of rubble.

The Alpilles were once dense with chateaux of all shapes and sizes. But why so many? And what happened to them? Here’s some history, plus a guide to the chateaux that you can still visit today.

Read all about it at Perfectly Provence!

Going to the Market in St-Rémy

One of the best things about Provence is being able to go to the outdoor markets, and there’s a market every day in one village or another near where we stay in St-Rémy. You get to taste samples, buy delicious produce, rub elbows with the locals–it’s great! And we are lucky because the best market of all is our own, held every Wednesday morning. One of our favorite things to do is to get up early and wander over to see what’s available.

What’s it like to go to our market? Follow me and find out!

Read all about it in Perfectly Provence.

9 Fun Things to do in St Rémy

St Rémy de Provence is where my wife and I live part of the year and it’s one of the most charming towns in Provence. Nestled at the foot of the Alpilles Mountains and surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, it’s a great place to spend a few days. I’ve put together a list of some of my favorite things to do while you’re in town.

You can read all about it at Perfectly Provence.

Secrets of St-Rémy: Shady Canal Walks

The area around St-Rémy-de-Provence is wonderful for hiking. The Alpilles Mountains are crisscrossed with well-marked trails that offer fabulous views.

But let’s face it, who wants to schlep through the mountains on a hot summer day? Isn’t there a better way to stretch your legs and still see beautiful countryside?

Yes—a canal walk.

St-Rémy is surrounded by agriculture—vineyards, olive groves, and fields growing fruits and vegetables of all kinds. A vast network of canals, built around the main Canal des Alpines, supports it all. This canal and its offshoots are like a bunch of little rivers with pleasant, shady walking paths alongside them.

My favorite starting point is the waterfall near the road into St-Rémy from Cavaillon. Tourists like to stop here to take a photo, as it’s very picturesque. (note: parking is tricky) If you follow the canal upstream about 100 meters you will come to a split. You can follow the path to the left and go for miles, with wonderful views of vineyards and the Alpilles beyond. You’ll often find townspeople there, walking with their dogs.

If you instead go to the right, you’ll amble towards town, passing bassins full of croaking frogs and the occasional peep into someone’s back yard.

If you follow the canal downstream from the waterfall, you’ll soon cross over the main road—what looks like an overpass from below is actually an elevated canal!

Continue for a mile or so you will be rewarded with beautiful views down onto St.-Rémy itself.

The network of canals extends far beyond St-Rémy, towards Eygalières in the east, St.-Ètienne-du-Grès in the west and towns like Maillane in the north. Check Google Maps to trace their path and find a spot to begin your walk. It’s an unbeatable way to get some cool exercise on a hot day.