Aix-en-Provence & Lourmarin on your own-excursion from Marseille

[TW6cruiser]

I did post this question also on the Europe board section, but did not get many comments. Has anyone done this excursion? Did you enjoy it? I have been able to find a lot online about Aix-en-Provence but not a lot on Lourmarin. I know it is just a small village but if anyone who has done this excursion has any comments, I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

[kdowneymd]

Lourmarin is one of my favorite small (very) towns in Provence. Very picturesque, easily walkable. Interesting small galleries and shops. Great cafes and bistros. It is not nearly as crowded as other towns and a great place to visit. Be sure to stop and enjoy lunch.

[smixsell]

DW and I are taking this excursion in June, will let you know what we think when we get back.

[s2c4r5a4p]

We just got off the Crown May 6th and took this excursion. I booked it months ago and did not remember that it was "on your own". We signed up for Rome "on your own" and the escort on the bus told us about Rome even though it was "on your own". We had been to Rome before and knew what we wanted to do. The escort told us about where we would meet, at what time and gave people here phone number should there be a problem. She also booked one of the hop on hop off buses for about 6 people who wanted to use them (Yes she most likely got a commission but I thought it was nice to offer).

 

Our escort did not talk the whole way to Lourmarin until a block away and said to meet at the meeting place in 2 hours. All of us on the bus said "where is the meeting place". She had to answer each one of us once we got off the bus.

 

Aix-en-Provenc again we had little information from our escort about where to meet and when.

 

When we got back to the ship I went to complain and shore excursions told me it was a "on your own". I told them to please disregard everything I just said and was sorry I was mistaken. The guy told me that she was most likely a last minute replacement since she also did not speak every good english.

 

It was also May day a national holiday and only a few food places were open, no shopping.

 

Bottom line the towns were delightful, but do your homework to learn about where you are going, it will enhance your experience so much more. It was my mistake and a lesson learned the hard way.

[Cruise Junky]

We haven't done the excursion but we've spent two weeks in Lourmarin on land trips. Lovely little village with great food. Their market is wonderful.

[TW6cruiser]

Thanks for the responses. Our cruise leaves on May 27th, and we will be at this port on May 31st.

 

I know that at both stops we are "on our own". Even with an "on our own" I'd expect the guide to be a bit better than your experience. They should really be clear on where to meet, even in a small place.

 

For Aix-en-Provence I have a map, Rick Steves walking guide, etc., so I know we will be ok there. My concern more about Lourmarin is that I can't seem to find much out from looking online or even in travel guides. I am ok with wandering around and finding shops/restaurants for a few hours. Seeing small villages or towns is a nice break from the larger stops on the trip. Were you ok walking around without a map? was it easy to navigate?

[TW6cruiser]

P.S., the market is on Friday's per what I have found and we will be there on a Wednesday.

[Pmorton3360]

We took the bus to Aix de Provence. It was leaving before the train. I was surprised by all the many tour buses. It is a beautiful town. Though glad we didn't spend much for the trip.

 

Sent from my BLU STUDIO 5.5 HD using Forums mobile app

[Hlitner]

We haven't done the excursion but we've spent two weeks in Lourmarin on land trips. Lovely little village with great food. Their market is wonderful.

 

Yes, they do have a decent market. However it is a "weekly" market and only held on Fridays. Like most of the weekly markets the best time to visit is from about 9am - 12:30. The markets tend to end in the early afternoon. When we stay in the region (renting apartments) we always get a list of the various weekly markets and plan accordingly. It is possible to go t a market nearly every day...except Mondays. Monday is the one day for which we have never found a decent market.

 

Hank

[Cruise Junky]

Yes, they do have a decent market. However it is a "weekly" market and only held on Fridays. Like most of the weekly markets the best time to visit is from about 9am - 12:30. The markets tend to end in the early afternoon. When we stay in the region (renting apartments) we always get a list of the various weekly markets and plan accordingly. It is possible to go t a market nearly every day...except Mondays. Monday is the one day for which we have never found a decent market.

 

Hank

 

I've been to the Cadenet and Cavaillon. I also, think Avignon has a night market on Mondays but could be wrong. I'm a fan of Wednesdays :)

 

Monday

Alès

Bedarrides

Bedoin

Bollene

Boulbon

Cadenet

Cavaillon

Fontvieille

Forcalquier

L'Isle sur la Sorgue (evening farm market, May to Sept)

Lauris

Luynes

Mazan

Nice (antique market, Cours Saleya, until 6 p.m. See below)

Nimes (no food)

Piolenc

Saint Didier

Saint Etienne du Gres

Saints Marie de la Mer

[smixsell]

We booked this tour because DW wants to see the picturesque southern French countryside, and Lourmarin is supposed to be lovely. PS She lived in Paris for several years and speaks French fluently so we decided to go with an "on your own" tour.

[tv24]

Haven't been on this tour, but last April we DIY'd by renting a car in Nice, driving to a HomeAway apartment in Aix, and then used that for a base of touring the small towns of the Luberon valley. Lourmarin was our favorite, but we had the good fortune of a personal tour by a man who ran one of the town's small museums. He is a friend of a friend, and we speak French, so it was a wonderful day. Even so, Lourmarin is picturesque, interesting, just charming. And we loved our 4 nights in Aix which has its own museums and terrific places to eat and drink.

[TW6cruiser]

I appreciate all the comments. I think we will go ahead and do this excursion. I'll be sure to report back when we return from our cruise.

[s2c4r5a4p]

Yes, Lourmarin is very easy to do without a map. Just wander and enjoy. We ventured on about half of the streets and still were able to stop and have hot chocolate and shop. You will be fine without a map. Can't imagine it is more than a mile square. Enjoy it really is a delightful village to see!

[KimCHouston]

My husband and I took this on-your-own tour last year. It seemed like a good fit since we like to have time to walk around, take pictures, shop, maybe find a cafe to sit, have a beverage and watch the world go by. Lourmarin was a nice place to do this. It is a very pretty, small village. It was easy to walk around, and we had plenty of time to take pictures, pop into a few shops and visit a cafe. Aix is much larger. We were given a map, which wasn't particularly helpful. It was not market day, and we didn't find the shopping there to be very interesting. I knew we were in trouble when we saw Gap and Body Shop. We would have liked Aix a lot more if it was market day. For what it's worth, if I had it to do over again, I would look for a private tour operator who offers market tours. That way you get the pretty scenery, the pretty village, and a chance to see the markets that are such an important part of the lives of locals. You can try some local foods, maybe buy a souvenir or two and enjoy a feast for the senses. The Princess tour was easy, but next time (God willing) I'll try to get to a market or two.

[TW6cruiser]

Thank you all so much for the help.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Colo Cruiser]

We are in Toulon on a Sunday and am being told by tour companies that I have contacted that most everything (markets/food stores) are closed in Aix and surrounding areas on Sundays.

[lolane1]

I do hope you went ahead and booked this excursion. I did it last year as a solo and it was really great. I enjoyed Lourmarin far more than Aix. It's a small village, listed a one of the most beautiful in France. And it is! There are great opportunities for shopping, including a wonderful linen shop. Streets are small, narrow and picturesque. And it is the village that Peter Mayle lived around in his book "A Year In Provence" - which is an excellent read to put you in the frame of mind of Provence. There are plenty of places to buy the famous Marseilles soaps, particularly if you walk up to the castle's gift shop. And, btw, there are free public restrooms up there.

Aix was nice, a larger city, but just OK for me. I did seek out a french Jambon e Frommage sandwich there because there is nothing better than french ham. Do make a very strong mental note of where to meet the bus later and be on time. One mother and daughter nearly missed it and ran after the bus which left without them. Thank goodness for traffic and bus passengers alerting the driver. They made it but several blocks away from the original meeting place.

[TW6cruiser]

Yes we are booked on it for May 31. I'll report back afterwards. I was having such a hard time finding info on Lourmarin but comments from everyone here have helped.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Travlin grrl]

We did this cruise last summer and took this excursion.

Aix-in-Provence is more on your own so you might want to get a map to research it first. We just kind of winged it. Lots of shopping with nice shops down narrow streets of the Main Street.

Here is a link to my blog

http://travlintheworld.blogspot.com/2016/08/marseilli.html

and I have a few photos on there.

[Colo Cruiser]

We did this cruise last summer and took this excursion.

Aix-in-Provence is more on your own so you might want to get a map to research it first. We just kind of winged it. Lots of shopping with nice shops down narrow streets of the Main Street.

Here is a link to my blog

http://travlintheworld.blogspot.com/2016/08/marseilli.html

and I have a few photos on there.

 

Thanks for the link.

Maybe I missed it but how did you get to Aix from Marseille?

[TW6cruiser]

The excursion is a bus on Princess. They take you to Lourmarin and you have a few hours on your own there and then Princess takes you to Aix and you have time on your own there. Then Princess takes you back to the ship.

[TW6cruiser]

We did the excursion and enjoyed it. I feel silly now, having asked anyone for a "map" of Lourmarin ahead of time! As some posted here, it is a small village and certainly no map was needed to walk around. We enjoyed exploring and having a snack. We also enjoyed visiting Aix-en-Provence. It was a larger City than I imagined. We did the walking tour from the Rick Steves book and it worked out well. Our "escort" from the tour company did pass out maps for Aix but they were quite poor. As others have stated, bring your own map ahead of time.