This pocket-sized full-colour guide to walking in Provence is designed for short-break walking holidays around Avignon and the Roman cities of Nîmes and Arles using the excellent public transport services. Avignon is just 2h30min from Paris by TGV (6 hours direct from London in summer); it is also served by coach and budget airlines.

Even ‘non-walkers’ will appreciate the large-scale city plans, descriptions of the sights, and recommendations for eating out in Provence. For each suggested restaurant there is a photograph of the décor and one of their dishes, sample menu, price guide, opening times, and a recipe for one of their specialities. Other sections include: planning your trip, logistics on arrival, local markets and specialities, glossary of local food terms, and a restaurant mini-vocabulary. A special feature is the emphasis on natural local foods suitable for those with food intolerances. All recipes have been made by the authors and are known to ‘work’.

Area covered: Besides Avignon, Nîmes and Arles, the book covers many other highlights: St-Rémy, Les Baux, the Alpilles, Barbentane, Gordes and the Pont du Gard (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) — all easily accessible by public transport.

The best months for countryside walking in Provence are from late September till May. In summer it’s best to just stroll around the sights and sites using the large-scale town plans and enjoy eating out in Provence!

This book is also available in a Kindle edition from Amazon websites world wide.

Your choice of where to look for accommodation will be governed by several factors. For instance, if you intend to hire a car you will benefit from a much wider choice. On the other hand if you plan to rely on public transport, you will need to choose a centre offering good access to the walk routes or excursions you plan to do. There is also the factor of what type of accommodation you plan to use, for example whether you plan to stay in a hotel or in a self-catering apartment or villa. The author provides useful advice on the various options in the Where to Stay chapter which will be found in the introductory pages of the book.

10 walks and suggested excursions by train, bus and boat
144 pages + large-scale plans of Avignon, Nîmes, Arles, and St-Rémy; area map; 1:35,000 topo maps for the countryside walks

1st ed, 2008; ISBN 978-1-85691-354-6; UK retail price £8.99 / USA retail price $14.99

Table of contents:

INTRODUCTION 4
the walks 5
the restaurants 5
the recipes 6
planning your visit 7
when to go 7
where to stay 8
what to take 9
planning your walks 10
verifying timetables in advance 12
on arrival 15
rail and bus passes 15
parking in the cities 15
tourist information 16
shopping for self-catering 17
markets 18
excursions in the area 20
excursions by train 20
AREA MAP 21
excursions by coach 22
excursions by boat 23
Walk 1 · around avignon 24

PLAN OF AVIGNON inside front cover
restaurant: le forum in place de l’horloge 34
recipe: petit salé aux lentilles (lean pork belly with lentils) 35
Walk 2 · around nîmes 36

PLAN OF NÎMES 38-39
restaurant: les jardins d’isa opposite the carré d’art 50
recipe: gardiane (beef or bull stew) 51
Walk 3 · around arles 52

PLAN OF ARLES 54-55
restaurant: le malarte on boulevard des lices 66
recipe: lobster or crayfish risotto 67
Walk 4 · from st-rémy to les baux 68
restaurant: au porte mages at the gates of les baux 76
recipe: galette de sarrasin garrigue (buckwheat crèpe
with provençal filling) 77
Walk 5 · from les baux to st-rémy 78

PLAN OF ST-REMY 83
restaurant: bistrot découverte in central st-rémy 86
recipe: filets de loup de mer au fenouil
(sea bass fillets with fennel) 87
Walk 6 · barbentane and frigolet 88
restaurants: le fournil de l’abbaye at st-michel-de-frigolet 95
le romarin in the centre of barbentane 96
recipe: souris d’agneau confites à l’ail (lamb shanks with garlic) 97
Walk 7 · pont du gard 98
restaurants: vers, pont du gard, uzès 105
recipe: soupe au pistou (vegetable soup with pistou) 107
Walk 8 · tour des opies 108
restaurant: la sartan in aureille’s church square 113
recipe: escalope de veau normande (veal escalope,
Normandy-style) 114
recipes: tapenade; moelleux au chocolat (‘molten’ chocolate) 115
Walk 9 · from aureille to le destet 116
Walk 10 · gordes and sénanque 122
restaurants: le provençal and la pause in central gordes 130
recipe: veau marenço (‘napoleon’s veal’) 131
WEBSITES 132
EAT GF, DF 134
eating in restaurants 135
self-catering 136
gf, df shopping 137
gf, df cooking; conversion tables 139
GLOSSARY (menu items, shopping terms) 140
INDEX 143
IN the restaurant (pocket vocabulary) inside back cover

PLACES
Alpilles, Les (mountain chain) 5, 20, 22, 68-87, 73, 81, 108, 110, 111, 116, 118, 118-9, 121
Antiques, Les (Roman site) 70-1, 80-1, 82, 83
Arles 4, 5, 14, 15, 19, 21, 23, 52-67, 52, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 63, 64, 66
town plan 54-5
Aureille 108-115, 110, 112, 113, 116-121, 118-9, 120
Avignon 4, 5, 6, 8, 17, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24-35, 24, 26, 28, 31, 32, 34
town plan inside front cover
Barbentane 88-94, 88, 90, 94, 96
Baux, Les (-de-Provence) 21, 22, 68-87, 68, 70-1, 73, 76, 78, 81, 80-1, 83
Camargue 21, 22
Destet, Le 116-121, 116, 118, 118-9, 119
Fontaine de Vaucluse 21, 22
Fontvieille 20, 21, 22
Gardon (river) 98, 102, 105
Glanum (Roman site, near St-Rémy) 58, 70-1, 79, 80-1, 83
Gordes 122-131, 124, 126, 128, 129
Village des Bories 124, 125
Montagnette, La (mountain) 88, 90
Montmajour, Abbaye de 20, 21
Nîmes 4, 5, 12, 5, 16, 18, 21, 36-51, 36, 40, 41, 42, 45, 46, 49, 50
town plan 38-9
Opies, Les (part of the Alpilles chain) and Tour des Opies 108-115, 108, 111, 111
Peiroou, Lake (near St-Rémy) 68-87, 70-1, 80-1, 73
Pont du Gard 20, 21, 98-107, 98, 100, 102, 103, 105
Rhône (river) 21, 23, 29, 30, 31, 52, 61, 65
St-Michel-de-Frigolet (abbey on La Montagnette) 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 95
St-Paul-de-Mausole (monastery, near St-Rémy) 83, 84, 85
St-Rémy (-de-Provence) 13, 15, 21, 68-87, 70, 70-1, 74, 80-1, 84, 85, 86
town plan 71, 83
Sénanque, Abbaye de (near Gordes) 122-131, 122, 124, 127
Vers (-Pont-du-Gard) 98-107, 100, 104, 106
Villeneuve-les-Avignon 23, 30

RECIPES
apéritif of white wine, thyme and honey 91 (see photo caption)
escalope de veau normande (veal escalope Normandy-style) 114
filets de loup de mer au fenouil (sea bass fillets with fennel) 87
galette de sarrasin garrigue (buckwheat crèpe with Provençal filling) 77
gardiane (beef or bull stew) 51
lobster or crayfish risotto 67
moelleux au chocolat (‘molten’ chocolate 115
petit salé aux lentilles (lean pork belly with lentils) 35
soupe au pistou (vegetable soup with pistou) 107
souris d’agneau confites à l’ail (lamb shanks with garlic) 97
veau marenço (‘Napoleon’s veal’) 131

Updates for walks and car tours (drives) given below supplement those provided in the guidebook. It is vital that this Update is read in conjunction with the text of the book, but note that the Update applies only to the edition stated and not to any earlier editions. (If you have an older edition of this book you can “upgrade” to the latest edition at half price.)

Information has been forwarded to us by users of the book, and Sunflower Books offers the data in good faith but cannot be held responsible for any misleading or inaccurate content in the Update. Unless indicated otherwise, what appears here has not been verified by the author or publisher, so please allow due caution when new or amended routes are suggested. Each piece of information is dated; bear in mind that some of the older observations may have since been overtaken by events or further changes. If, during your holiday, you are using the current edition of the guide and are able to provide any additional updating to add to this page, we will be pleased to hear from you. Please send information, preferably in hard copy, by post, to Sunflower Books, PO Box 115, Exeter EX2 6YU (or if you prefer, by e-mail, to mail@sunflowerbooks.co.uk).

To date, Sunflower Books has not received any information suggesting necessary amendments to the text in this title.