Walking In Van Gogh's Provence Tour with 5 Reviews by World Expeditions

7 daysDuration

Small Group TourUsually 8-12 participants

12 peopleMaximum group size

18 - 99 yearsAge range for participants

EnglishGuide language

Starts

Ends

Avignon, France

Arles, France

Select Date

Best price guaranteed

100% financial protection.Bookmundi is a member of the Danish Travel Fund which guarantees for any payment made via us. Our guarantee covers all travelers, irrespective of nationality.

in travel credits

1 other person is considering this tour right now.

Highlights

Walk Through Painted Provencal Landscapes

Interesting Hiking in the Alpilles

Stay in Beautiful Avignon and Arles

The vineyards and olive groves

Retracing the life and brush strokes of Van Gogh

The cafes and restaurants of Saint Remy de Provence

The perched medieval village of Les Baux de Provence

The cafes and restaurants of Saint Remy de Provence

The perched medieval village of Les Baux de Provence

Itinerary

Follow in Van Gogh's footsteps and walk through picturesque Provencal landscapes in the Alpilles. In 1888 Van Gogh left Paris for Arles in Provence where, after a 16-hour train journey, he started the most ambitious and productive period of his life. He worked under luminescent skies and the bleaching Provencal Sun painting the fields, drawbridges, cypress trees, cafes, local folk and ancient Abbey Ruins. Here he exclaimed ‘My God! If only I had known of this country when I was 25, instead of coming here at 35!’ Living at Arles, his technique modified as he began to use the swirling brush strokes and intense colours that you see in works like ‘Bedroom at Arles’ (1888), and ‘Starry Night’ (1889). He seemed to imbue visible phenomena with vitality. In his enthusiasm he encouraged the painter Paul Gauguin to join him, but within weeks they began to have violent disagreements, culminating in a quarrel in which van Gogh threatened Gauguin with a razor. It was that night, in deep remorse, Van Gogh famously cut off part of his own ear. This walk traces his footsteps through some of the places that he painted and would have known well. More specifically you will be strolling in Les Alpilles, a small massif standing out as its white peaks rise apparently sheer from the plain of the Rhône valley, its slopes covered in vineyards along with olive and almond trees. Along paths dotted with cypress trees and lone chapels. Here you will discover the many images of the Alpilles' landscapes he painted from St-Rémy to the Baux-de-Provence and onto Arles. We are confident that you will have a better time of it than Van Gogh did; for a time he was in a hospital at Arles, he then spent a year in the nearby asylum of Saint-Rémy, working between repeated spells of madness. Just after completing his ominous Crows in the Wheat fields (1890), he shot himself on July 27, 1890, and died two days later.

day 1Arrival Avignon

Make your own way to Avignon. If you are taking the train from Paris, it's very likely that you're already following in the footsteps of Vincent van Gogh (he made his way from Paris to the south of France by train). At the time, Avignon was a key railway hub. Van Gogh's journey from Paris to Arles in February 1888 marked a turning point in his career, as his time in Provence was one of the most productive periods of his life.
Hopefully you will have time to explore the medieval bastion of religion and power politics that Avignon is. Try to visit the Palais des Papes, one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe, with the interactive 'histopad tour'. Once a fortress and palace, the papal residence was the seat of Western Christianity during the 14th century. There is also the famous 'pont' in Avignon, sung about by generations of French children. Its narrow design was in order so that no more than one or two riders abreast could cross the River Rhone at a time and could be controlled. The city is also filled with interesting cobbled streets, churches, gardens and of course plenty of restaurants to choose from.
Accommodation: Our normal hotel is an attractive 2* residence very close to the train and bus stations and in a quiet street close to the town's ramparts. It offers rooms designed with different cultural universes in mind: Provencal, Moroccan, African, Indian.

day 2Saint Remy Discovery Walk - 1 hour 30 minutes

day 3Circular Walk - 10 km/6.2 miles 3h +250m/-250m or 18 km/11 miles 6h

day 4Saint Rémy - Maussane - 13 km/ 8 miles, 4 h

day 5Maussane Circular Walk via Les Baux-de-Provence - 11.5 km/ 7 miles, 4.25

day 6Les Baux de Provence-Chapelle Saint Gabriel-Arles, 16 km/10 miles, 5.5 h +100m/-350m

day 7Arrangements end after breakfast

Get Trip Brochure & Exclusive Discount

Download a detailed PDF brochure and unlock an exclusive discount for this tour

What's Included

Accommodation

6 nights accommodation in 2 & 3 star hotels with ensuite facilities. Rates are on twin share basis.

Meals

6 breakfasts

Others

Taxi transfers on day 2 from Avignon to St Remy and on day 6, Maussane to Les Baux & St Gabriel's Chapel to ArlesLuggage transferDigital information pack including tailored navigation app and roadbook with mapsEmergency hotline

What's Excluded

Customer Reviews

4.8

based on 5 reviews

Availability

Loading availability...

Monthly Price Comparison

Good to Know

Cancellation

Payment

Travel Insurance

Visa

Other Practical Information

Do you need help from our trip consultants?

If you have any question about this tour or need help with planning a trip, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.

Our travel experts are ready to help.

Why Book with Bookmundi

in travelcreditsYou will earn USD 0 in travel credits when you complete this tour. Credits are automatically added to your account on your tour start date and can be used towards any future Bookmundi booking.

Best price guaranteed.

No credit card or booking fees.

100% financial protection.Bookmundi is a member of the Danish Travel Fund which guarantees for any payment made via us. Our guarantee covers all travelers, irrespective of nationality.

Carbon neutral tours.Algorithms and machine learning enables Bookmundi to calculate the carbon footprint for each tour. We then subsequently offset carbon emissions for all tour bookings on Bookmundi via investments in carbon reduction projects to help combat climate change.

25,000+ trip reviews, with an average rating of 4.8 out of 5.

What are customers saying about Bookmundi

4.67/5

Excellent based on 846 customer reviews from

Anonymous

Guillia put a great self-drive tour together for us and Susana looked after us as we travelled. (Even when we got lost) The car and accommodation was good and the guides patient and informative. Only issue we had was parking in small villages, garages, and cities. Apart from the parking we had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday, thank you.

1 week ago

Europe

Asia

South America

Africa

North America

Oceania

Polar

Food, wine, events and nightlife

Adventure and sport

Wildlife, landscapes and nature

Boat tours, water sports and marine wildlife

Sightseeing, attractions, culture and history

Air tours, road trips and transfers

Beach, romance, getaways and relaxation

Special interests and hobbies

Hi there

Highlights