Aix-en-Provence and Nice for 3 Generations

France | Jun 24 - Jul 1, 2024

Nathalie worked closely with us to plan the perfect Provence trip for our three generations! The day trips with A la Française were wonderful. Remy was a wonderful guide for the Aix-en-Provence Historical and Gourmet walking tour...informative and good pace. We LOVED the morning lavender fields tour, also with A la Française. Stunning photo opportunities. The Villages and Markets of the Luberon, also with A la Française, was also enjoyable, although maybe a bit too long? Or, maybe the heat just made us cranky by the end of the long day? Boutique Hotel Cezanne was clean, comfortable and well-located. Breakfast was excellent. Aix-en-Provence is a special, special city.
The train from Aix-en-Provence to Marseille to Nice was a bit of a nightmare, although we maybe should have assumed that it would be during the height of the summer season. We had great difficulty finding seats on the second leg of the train trip, but eventually managed to find three seats in three different train cars, just hoping that we all knew when to disembark.
Nice is bustling compared to the laid back vibe of Aix. Our hotel, La Villa Nice Promenade, was also clean, comfortable and well-located. Breakfast was tasty. Our first day trip was a private tour with Liven Up to Grasse, Tourrettes-sur-Loup, and St. Paul de Vence. The Fragonard perfume factory in Grasse is a must. Great, informative factory tour with shopping at the end! Beautiful city...wish we could have spent more time exploring. Tourrettes-sur-Loup was as lovely as we had remembered, although our stop was short here as well. St. Paul de Vence was as picturesque as we had remembered. We loved wandering along the alleys; however, the crowds made it less charming. It seems as though this is now a much more popular destination than it was in 1997! Our city tour of Nice with Michel (Liven Up) was special as he was born and raised in Nice! Our tour was fast-paced, but packed with special lookouts, sweet anecdotes from his childhood, and of course, the main attractions of the city. I wish we had scheduled a few more days in Nice!
Overall, we ALL truly enjoyed the trip...not an easy feat to please an 18, 48 and 78 year old with the same itinerary!
Merci Beaucoup, Nathalie!