Van Gogh’s Provence

Overview

This trip is not yet confirmed, neither in dates or program, and we cannot yet give you a price indication. You can now pre-reserve a spot, which is for free and comes without any obligation to actually join. We will then update you when we have more information.

A brand new trip to Van Gogh’s beloved region in France. There are no Van Gogh’s pieces of art in Provence, although he produced 350 paintings during the months he spent in Arles and Saint-Remy-de-Provence in his crazy quest for the “yellow sun”. There remain places and landscapes where they were painted. We will get to discover them! If you are not a Van Gogh lover, that’s perfectly okay too. We will visit amazing places in Avignon like the Pope’s Palace, for example, so you are more than welcome to join. This trip is also the perfect occasion to be amazed by lavender fields at their best: beginning of July. We designed this trip for all art-lovers and all France-lovers, we bet you will love it.

Pictures

Small streets of Avignon that we will get to discover during our private guided tour of the city.

Pope's Palace in Avignon is definitely a must-see. It is the largest of the Gothic constructions of the Middle Age.

The palace, which is the interweaving of two buildings, the old palace of Benedict XII and the new palace of Clement VI, is not only the largest Gothic building but also the one where the international Gothic style expressed itself in all its fullness.

Avignon city viewed from the waters surrounding it. The city is really representative of roman colonization as you will see during our trip.

Bridge of Avignon, also known as Pont Saint-Bénézet, is famous thanks to the children's song.

The Opera Grand Avignon, initially named Théâtre Municipal, then Opéra-Théâtre d'Avignon et des Pays de Vaucluse, is a theatre, located on the Place de l'Horloge and built during the nineteenth century.

Streets of Arles during a sunny afternoon as you will get to experience during our trip as it will be held in July. The weather is always really good and warm in the south of France at this period.

The Arena of Arles is a Roman amphitheatre built around AD 80 / AD 90. The amphitheatre of Arles is the most important monument of the ancient Roman colony that we are allowed to admire, some two millennia after its construction.

Saint-Benezet bridge, it leaves from the north of Avignon in the direction of the Gard but no longer allows you to get there. On one of the pillars is built the Saint-Bénézet chapel, and above it, the Saint-Nicolas Chapel.

Les Saintes-Maries-De-La-Mer is a really nice village near the Mediterranean Sea we will visit during our trip. It also greatly inspired Van Gogh to paint.

Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, view from a rooftop. During our private guided tour of the city, we will also have views like this nice one.

Saint-Remy de Provence's little houses. This type of houses is really popular in the South of France but they are really pretty in Provence so we will get to see a lot of them in Saint-Rémy de Provence.

Langlois Bridge in Provence that inspired Van Gogh to paint his famous piece of art featuring this bridge.

Pont du Gard

Camargues' Landscape that we will be lucky enough to see during our guided tour in the Parc Naturel Régional de Camargues. It is really different than the rest of the region.

Sénanque Abbey is located near Avignon and we definitely will go there to admire lavender fields and its architecture.

Sénanque Abbey with some of the most famous lavender fields in Provence which we will visit.

Program

As with any Expat Club trip our schedule is carefully designed so we can optimally see all destinations. Still, unforeseen circumstances, such as train delays, traffic jams,  and d-tours may influence our program. This rarely happens, but rest assured your host, our guide, the bus driver, will do their best to give you the best possible experience.

Thursday 8 July
Afternoon departure to Avignon

Friday 9 July
08h00 – Breakfast
09h00 – Departure to Arles
10h00 – Arrival in Arles + beginning of the Van Gogh guided tour
11h30 – Lunch
12h30 – Departures to Saintes Maries de la Mer
13h10 – Arrival
13h15 – Guided tour of Saintes Maries de la Mer
14h45 – Coffee break
15h30 – Visit of the Parc Naturel Régional de Camargue
17h30 – Departure to Avignon
18h45 – Arrival at the hotel
19h30 – Diner 

Saturday 10 July
08h00 – Breakfast
09h00 – Departure to Saint-Remy de Provence
09h35 – Arrival in Saint-Remy de Provence
09h45 – Van Gogh guided tour in the Asylum he was (Saint-Paul de Mausole)
11h15 – Free time in Saint-Remy de Provence
11h45 – Lunch
12h45 – Departure to the Abbaye de Sénanque
13h35 – Arrival
13h45 – Guided tour of the abbey
14h45 – Free time in the lavender fields
15h15 – Departure to Avignon
16h30 – Arrival
16h45 – Guided tour in Avignon (including the Avignon Bridge)
18h15 – End of the tour
19h30 – Diner

Sunday 11 July
08h00 – Breakfast
09h00 – Departure to the Pope’s Palace
09h30 – Guided tour of the Pope’s palace
11h30 – Lunch
12h30 – Departure to the Pont du Gard
13h00 – Tour of the bridge
14h00 – Departure to Avignon
14h30 – Arrival in Avignon
15h30 – Train back to Brussels

Destinations

Avignon

Avignon was in the Middle Age one of the most important cities in the western world. It is also a city where it is good to live, and where it is pleasant to walk in the streets, full of history and traditions… The old town conceals many small treasures! You will be amongst the lucky ones to have a private guided tour of this city, including the Pope’s Palace, the Petit Palais Museum, and Avignon’s Bridge. The Palace of the Popes of Avignon is the largest of the Gothic buildings of the Middle Age. Both fortress and palace, the papal residence was the seat of Western Christianity during the 14th century. Six conclaves were held in the palace of Avignon. Of course, our guide will show us all the must-see places of Avignon and tell us all the stories behind these places. It is the very first time that we travel there but we are pretty sure you will enjoy it. We prepared a nice program that will allow you to discover the best in the city.

Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace, Episcopal Ensemble and Avignon Bridge

In the 14th century, this city in the South of France was the seat of the papacy. The Palais des Papes, an austere-looking fortress lavishly decorated by Simone Martini and Matteo Giovanetti, dominates the city, the surrounding ramparts and the remains of a 12th-century bridge over the Rhone. Beneath this outstanding example of Gothic architecture, the Petit Palais and the Romanesque Cathedral of Notre-Dame-des-Doms complete an exceptional group of monuments that testify to the leading role played by Avignon in 14th-century Christian Europe.

Arles

Arles is a pretty town in the south of France, close to Avignon. It has greatly inspired Vincent Van Gogh. For more than fourteen months, he produced a multitude of paintings and drawings in Arles, most of which are now considered major works of art of the late 19th century.
Your experienced art guide will take you to the sites featured in some of Van Gogh’s most treasured paintings, including Le Café de Nuit. We will also get to see the Amphitheater, the theater, and Van Gogh Heritage. This city definitely is a must-see for every Art-lover.

Saint-Rémy de Provence

We will get to visit the asylum where Van Gogh went and to discover the amazing views from there that inspired him. An expert storyteller will take us on a guided tour and will help us get the best of it. This place is a little bit less known than Avignon and Arles but we could not do a Van Gogh trip without going to Saint-Rémy. This village had a lot of importance for him, this is the reason why we added it to the program.

Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer & the Parc Naturel Régional de Camargues

A delta open to the Mediterranean, the territory of the Camargue Regional Nature Park covers three municipalities: Arles, Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, and Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône. It extends over more than 100,000 hectares and 75 km of coastline. Marshes, fields and rice paddies follow one another; wild pink flamingos and farmed bulls are found side by side. Van Gogh went to Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer a few times and was greatly inspired to paint amazing landscapes. For example, this is where he painted the watercolor Fishing Boats on the Beach at Saintes-Maries. This little village is really a must-see, not just for Van Gogh but also for its architecture and position in the Parc Naturel Régional de Camargue.

Hotel

We cannot yet tell you in which hotel we are staying. To make this trip as pleasant as possible for you, we decided to spend all nights in the same hotel. We will choose a four-star hotel in Avignon. It’s a beautiful city and we can’t wait for you to stay there! Normally, there will be single rooms, double rooms for couples or parent/child (one large bed), twin rooms for 2 friends sharing (2 single beds), and twin rooms for solo travelers who would like to share a room (2 single beds).

Transportations

We depart on Thursday afternoon, this way we will be able to enjoy the entire Friday and Saturday in Provence. The actual time and departure point(s) will be communicated about one week before the trip. We will be traveling on a 4* luxury bus with reclining comfort seats, footrests, air-conditioning, an on-board toilet, and a DVD-system with at least three flat screens. Along the outbound trip way, you will be served some drinks and snacks (waffles, candy bars). 

Comments

• The trip will be carried out by one of our trusted coach partners.
• This trip is carefully planned. Still, all timings are indicative and may change if required by circumstances.
• The trip is sold as a package. You cannot go on your own transportation or arrange your own accommodation. If there are specific things that you do not want in the package, please let us know and we may consider a small discount.
• You are personally responsible for getting a good cancellation and travel insurance that covers you for unforeseen emergencies and medical expenses before or during the trip. 
• You are personally responsible for using the hotel room in an appropriate way. Any missing or broken items will be billed after the trip.
• Expat Club cannot be held liable for long delays that influence the program (e.g. missed guided tours), neither can Expat Club be held liable for weather-related cancellations or any other unforeseen events that influence the course of the trip, including, but not limited to technical problems with the coach, strikes, weather, etc.
• Expat Club cannot be held liable for personal injuries during the trip. Joining this trip is safe but still at your own risk.
• If you do not find a room partner on your own, we will find one for you (male/male, female/female). During the outbound trip, we will connect you with others in the same position. If you decide to take a single room during the trip, then you will have to fully pay for it yourself. If you book this option, you are never forced to pay for a single room.
• If you book a double / twin room and your travel partner cancels, you will have to pay the single room supplement or share a room with another person (if available).

Texts and Photos: © avignon-tourisme.com | © arlestourisme.com