Portraits of Southern France - Tarascon/Arles?

[ssiercks]

Getting ready to take the North->South Portraits of Southern France trip in just 6 weeks - Can't wait!

 

We're looking for some fun adventures to do on some of the longer stops. One idea was to rent a car in Tarascon/Arles and explore some of the many small towns in the area (Les Baux, wineries, etc).

 

According to the somewhat helpful itinerary guide on Viking's website, it appears we actually dock in Tarascan and then bus to Arles.. Is that true? Trying to figure out how/where to rent a car for the day there, so any advice is much appreciated.

 

Also, any suggestions for 'can't miss' sights in the area?

 

Thanks!

[Lolotte]

Just got back from that cruise. Although scheduled we did not dock in Tarascon because of lack of wharf space (?) and were in Avignon one extra day ( but got bused to Arles anyway for the tour). We did not mind, Avignon is a wonderful city with a lot to do. I would hesitate to book a car in Tarascon for that reason. After the cruise we did book a car in Avignon ( TGV station) with Europcar and spend 3 days doing what you want to do. (Europcar)

[Not a Georgia Peach]

We did this cruise in April and the boat did not dock in Tarascon - again due to the availability of docking space.

[MaxBuck]

Missing Tarascon is not something to mourn very deeply. Not much goes on there, nor in its sister city across the Rhone (Beaucaire).

[NCCruzQueen]

I was on the August 17th Scenic Rhone River cruise and we did dock in Tarascon. It is interesting to note that the driving distance between some of the next ports is small, 20-30 miles. The bus ride from Tarascon to Arles was about 30 minutes. Les Baux is a delightful place to visit.