"Provence is made for cooking," raves writer Luke Barr in Travel + Leisure. With us, you'll walk in the very forests, fields and orchards that nurture each produit du terroir. Sample wine where the grapes are grown. And expand your culinary repertoire alongside our charming local friends. Provence was made for this.
Days 1-2 Kick off your trip with a hike on the Alpilles mountain range, with gorgeous vistas over the region | Have an immersive art experience at Carrières de Lumières | Peruse the charming streets of Les Baux de Provence, one of the Most Beautiful Villages in France | Enjoy a wine-tasting and lunch with a local artist at a traditional Provençal farm | Sample rich olive oils and tour the distillery at Moulin du Calanquet.
Days 3-4 Join chef Yvan Cadiou for an exclusive hands-on cooking class | Alongside local art historian Marie-Charlotte Bouton, gaze at the same landscape painted by van Gogh over a century ago | Shop for local specialties in the Les Alpilles market | Voyage further into the Luberon Valley—the land of honey, lavender and cherries immortalized in Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence | Hike past Provençal farms, cypress groves, olive trees and vineyards | Discover regional farm-to-table secrets with a cooking demo by a friend of Alice Waters and enjoy an exquisite dinner at Le Mas Tourteron.
Days 5-6 Visit picturesque perched hamlets like ochre-hued Roussillon and Gordes | As you hike, see goats grazing on wild rosemary, thyme and sage | Explore lovely Bonnieux, perhaps climbing the 12th-century church tower for views of the valley below | Taste unforgettable Michelin-starred regional cuisine | A dreamy final morning in elegant Gordes ends at medieval Sénanque Abbey, a quintessential image of Provence.
Another wonderful trip. I loved the mixture of natural beauty, history, culture and cooking on this trip. Great job! We have six more trips reserved..- Austin, TX
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Accommodations may vary based on departure date. Any difference from what is listed below can be found by clicking on your desired date on the Dates & Prices tab.
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An enchanting hideaway in the heart of the Alpilles Mountains with magnificent gardens. A Relais & Châteaux member. (pool, spa)
A refined 19th-century manor house owned and lovingly renovated by a mother and daughter. (pool)
This Small Luxury Hotels of the World member features a Michelin-starred restaurant, a tranquil setting and stunning views of the Luberon. (pool, spa)
There's no better way to find out about Backroads than by hearing it from the people who have traveled with us. For more about the Backroads Experience, read our Guest Testimonials.
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Comments about Provence Active Culinary Walking Tour:
Another wonderful trip. I loved the mixture of natural beauty, history, culture and cooking on this trip. Great job! We have six more trips reserved..
Comments about Provence Active Culinary Walking Tour:
The trip exceeded our expectations.The inns were beautiful and unique and the food was amazing! Our leaders were knowledgeable, accommodating and organized. By the end of the trip we were sad to part with their company as well as our fellow travelers. The daily activities allowed for flexibility and individual differences within the group. Each day held something new and exciting to experience. Overall a truly wonderful trip!
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The earlier you book, the more choice you'll have and the lower your price. And you can always change your mind—you won't be charged to transfer to a different trip before your final payment is due.
Please click on a date below for specific pricing and possible itinerary variations.
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AVAILABLE TO BOOKi GOING FASTi CONTACT USi PRIVATE TRIP - RESERVEDi
Interested in a Private Trip? Check out the Make It Private tab for private dates available, or call us at 800-462-2848.
Every Backroads trip is designed to appeal to a wide variety of interests and fitness levels. We know your pace may vary from one day to the next—and your traveling companion's may differ somewhat from yours. So we present a range of mileage options, and each day you decide exactly what and how much you want to do.
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| Daily Route Options | ||||||||||
| Day | EASYGOING | ACTIVE | AVID | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 | ||||||
| miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | |
| 1 | 3 | 400 | 5 | 400 | ||||||
| 2 | 5* | 500 | 8 | 900 | 11 | 1100 | ||||
| 3 | 3* | 300 | 4* | 400 | 5* | 1000 | 7 | 1300 | ||
| St-Paul-de-Mausole & Van Gogh Walking Tour (1 Hour) | ||||||||||
| 4 | 4* | 100 | 7* | 600 | 7 | 900 | 8 | 900 | ||
| Visit of St-Rémy (2 Hours) | ||||||||||
| 5 | 2* | 400 | 4* | 800 | 6* | 1000 | 8* | 1300 | ||
| 6 | 2* | 400 | ||||||||
| Walking Tour of Gordes (1 Hour) | ||||||||||
Note: The terrain on this trip includes forested mountain trails, paved and dirt roads, limestone hill paths and village walkways.
* Includes shuttle.
Learn more about how we determine our activity levels and fully support a range of abilities and interests.
Please note that our distance and elevation figures come from Ride with GPS. Other sources (such as Map My Ride and Garmin devices) may give differing elevation figures due to different GPS and mapping technologies. Readings from a Garmin or a smart phone are influenced by other factors such as air pressure.
We design and support our Provence trips to suit mixed abilities and varied interests—so you can set your own pace, then change things up as the day unfolds. And all guests are free to do the same, traveling together or apart, with no one cramping anyone else's style. Which sounds easy in theory, but it's hard to pull off. Here's more on how we do it.
Backroads has the best-qualified people to lead your trip in Provence, and our guests back that up, rating our Trip Leaders an average of 9.75 out of 10 for all-around quality of performance. Get the facts (and no fluff) on how we recruit and develop the very best people for your trip.
Our Trip Leaders in Provence live in the area and are deeply engaged in their communities, giving them unique inside knowledge they're happy to share in making your experience that much richer. They'll introduce you to people, customs and parts of town you'd likely never encounter on your own—and teach you a few local phrases to help break the ice.
In choosing the ideal experts to enrich your travel experience, we look for people with a wealth of local knowledge, but also the ability to convey their insights in English. Too often travelers find themselves smiling politely, not quite understanding what they're being told. Our experts share intriguing facts, anecdotes and inside stories that stay with you forever.
If we told you many companies' leaders can't actually speak the language where they lead trips, you'd say incroyable... ridicolo... không the tha thú. At Backroads, fluency in the local language is a given. Find out more on the best leader recruitment, training and development in the business. (And by the way, that was "unforgivable" in Vietnamese.)
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Gather your favorite people to share a Backroads adventure on a ready-to-book Private Trip - featuring all the legendary Backroads hallmarks from expert leaders to unforgettable activities. You can pick from the selection of dates below for your group; some dates are only available for 16 or more guests while other dates are available for 8 or more guests. If your party has fewer than 8 guests, or your preferred date is not available, we'll create a departure just for you. Call or email us to reserve your date.
Click on a date below for specific pricing and possible itinerary variations.
8 AVAILABLE TO BOOK FOR 8 OR MORE GUESTS 16 AVAILABLE TO BOOK FOR 16 OR MORE GUESTS RESERVED
Don't see your ideal travel date? Make a Date! i
Invite your family and friends on an adventure that's entirely your own - for your group of 8 or more. Find out more
I simply can't imagine a better way to immerse yourself in the life of a region, to explore hidden corners and appreciate nuances while enjoying the benefits and enormous satisfaction of traveling under your own power. These are experiences you cannot have behind the wheel of a car, or on a train or a tour bus. Active travel is, at its heart, a way of connecting more authentically with the world. Sure, Backroads provides amazing leaders, superb accommodations and meals, and opportunities you could never arrange on your own. But all of our comprehensive planning and support is aimed at something far simpler: bringing you the immediate, highly personal satisfaction of discovering a new world on your own terms.
— Tom Hale, Founder & President
