Vaucluse
Orange's monumental, Unesco-protected Roman theatre is unquestionably one of France's most impressive Roman sights. It's one of only three intact Roman…
Vaucluse
Orange's monumental, Unesco-protected Roman theatre is unquestionably one of France's most impressive Roman sights. It's one of only three intact Roman…
Nice
Getting lost among the dark, narrow, winding alleyways of Nice’s old town is a highlight. The layout has barely changed since the 1700s, and it’s now…
Avignon
The largest Gothic palace ever built, the Palais des Papes was erected by Pope Clement V, who abandoned Rome in 1309 in the wake of violent disorder after…
Nice
The most famous stretch of seafront in Nice – if not France – is this vast paved promenade, which gets its name from the English expat patrons who paid…
Avignon
Legend says Pastor Bénézet (a former shepherd) had three visions urging him to build a bridge across the Rhône. Completed in 1185, the 900m-long bridge…
Aix-en-Provence
Aix established one of France's first public museums here, on the site of a former Hospitallers' priory, in 1838. Nearly 200 years of acquisitions …
Bouches-du-Rhône
It might lack the scale and ambition of some of Provence's better-known Roman monuments, but for a glimpse into everyday life in Gaul, this ancient town…
Côte d'Azur
The only building French architect Le Corbusier (1887–1965) ever built for himself is this rather simple – but very clever – beach hut on Cap Martin…
Arles
In Roman Gaul, every important town had an amphitheatre, where gladiators and wild animals met their (usually grisly) ends. Few examples have survived,…
The Luberon
If you're searching for that classic postcard shot of the medieval abbey surrounded by a sea of purple lavender, look no further. This sublime Cistercian…
Parc National du Mercantour
This stunning network of scarlet gorges looks for all the world like it's been collected from Arizona and plonked down in Haute-Provence. Carved out over…
Côte d'Azur
An ailing Henri Matisse moved to Vence in 1943 to be cared for by his former nurse and model, Monique Bourgeois, who'd since become a Dominican nun. She…
Pays d’Aix
East of Aix rises Cézanne’s favourite haunt, the magnificent silvery ridge of Montagne Ste-Victoire, its dry slopes carpeted in garrigue (scented scrub),…
Nice
For the best views over Nice’s red-tiled rooftops, climb the winding staircases up to this wooded outcrop on the eastern edge of the old town. It’s been…
The Luberon
Named after its fiery red and orange landscape (which locals likened to Colorado), this former ochre quarry is one of the best places to appreciate the…
Nice
Originally built as a holiday home for Prince Victor d’Essling (the grandson of one of Napoléon's favourite generals, Maréchal Massena), this lavish belle…
Bouches-du-Rhône
This monastery turned asylum is famous for one of its former residents – the ever-volatile Vincent van Gogh, who admitted himself in 1889. Safe within the…
Les Calanques
The calanques (coves) of the coast surrounding Marseille became France's 10th national park in 2012, preserving their astonishing beauty and harbouring an…
Cannes
The multi-starred hotels and couture shops lining the iconic bd de la Croisette (aka La Croisette) may be the preserve of the rich and famous, but anyone…
Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde
Marseille
Occupying Marseille’s highest point, La Garde (154m), this opulent 19th-century Romano-Byzantine basilica is Marseille's most-visited icon. Built on the…
St-Tropez
In a gracefully converted 16th-century chapel, this small but famous museum showcases an impressive collection of modern art infused with that legendary…
Cloître de la Cathédrale de Fréjus
Côte d'Azur
Fréjus’ star sight is its 11th- and 12th-century cathedral, one of the region's first Gothic buildings. Its cloister features rare 14th- and 15th-century…
The Luberon
In the scrubby hills about 6km south of Bonnieux, a twisty back road slopes up to this wonderful cedar forest, whose spreading boughs provide welcome…
Nice
This museum, 2km north of the city centre in the leafy Cimiez quarter, houses a fascinating assortment of works by Matisse, including oil paintings,…
Arles
Housed in a listed 15th-century manor, now twice repurposed (its other incarnation was as a bank), this Van Gogh–themed gallery is a must-see, as much for…
Musée Jean Cocteau Collection Séverin Wunderman
Menton
Art collector Séverin Wunderman donated some 1500 Cocteau works to Menton in 2005 on the condition that the town build a dedicated Cocteau museum. And…
Marseille
'The Basket' is Marseille's oldest quarter – site of the original Greek settlement and nicknamed for its steep streets and buildings. Its close, village…
Vaucluse
The resplendent vaulted halls of this 10th-century abbey, within Fort St-André, can only be visited by guided tour. The stunning terrace gardens, however …
Côte d'Azur
A dreamy spot for swimming, sunbathing and water sports of all kinds, this secluded crescent of sand 1km east of St-Jean has an iconic bar-restaurant,…
Var
A 1975 mosaic by Marc Chagall illuminates this 13th-century Romanesque chapel, 4.5km east of Les Arcs-sur-Argens. The church contains a crystal shrine…
Côte d'Azur
The 5km-long, celebrity-studded Plage de Pampelonne sports a line-up of exclusive beach restaurants and clubs in summer. Find public entries (and parking…
Avignon
The archbishops' palace during the 14th and 15th centuries now houses outstanding collections of primitive, pre-Rennaissance, 13th- to 16th-century…
Musée d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain
Nice
European and American avant-garde works from the 1950s to the present are the focus of this sprawling multilevel museum. Highlights include many works by…
Var
France’s first marine national park, dating to 1963, Port-Cros boasts exceptional marine fauna and flora, which makes it a snorkelling paradise. It…
Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée
Marseille
The icon of modern Marseille, this stunning museum explores the history, culture and civilisation of the Mediterranean region through anthropological…
Nice
Split between its beautiful flower market and rightly famous food market. On Mondays, flowers and food make way for a flea market.
Var
The majestic 12th-century Monastère de la Verne sits on a forested ridge in the Massif des Maures, rising like an island of honeyed stone in a sea of…
Vaucluse
The ruined remains of Vasio Vocontiorum, the Roman city that flourished here between the 6th and 2nd centuries BC, fill two central Vaison sites. Two…
Bouches-du-Rhône
The mighty walls of the 15th-century Château de Tarascon rise straight out of the River Rhône, in the relaxed village of the same name. A beauty of a…
Parc National du Mercantour
Wedged between the Vésubie and Roya valleys, this narrow, remote canyon is famous for its amazing Bronze Age petroglyphs – ancient pictures carved into…