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Late June through July is the best season for lavender in Provence. This field is near Valensole, the last week of June (2009).
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Also: |
Lavender |
Lavender Apt |
Lavender Buech |
Lavender Digne |
Lavender Drome |
Lavender Fields |
Lavender Forcalquier |
Lavender Sault |
Lavender Valensole |
French Lavender |
Nearby: |
Avignon |
Carpentras |
Digne-les-Bains |
Forcalquier |
Gordes |
Riez |
Sault |
Valensole |
Season
Lavender fields bloom from late June to mid October, depending on the area and the seasonal weather. Best is from the last week in June through July. Lavender is harvested from July to September.
Wheat fields and lavender fields are found in the same areas, and often side-by-side. The wheat ripens just before the lavender season, so lavender fields are often bordered by golden bands of grain, backlighted by the sun.
We've also found sunflower fields in the lavender areas, a couple of times just beside the lavender. End June is too early for the sunflowers, but July-August should bring some stunning views to the sunflowers and lavender together.
By Car or Bus
Visiting lavender fields works best if you have a car, so our advice is to rent a car if you can.
Public-transport trips can work, but we don't have details. In Avignon you can take 1-day bus tours. There will probably be bus tours for lavender fields, or tours to Gordes or Apt or Sault. The bus-tour companies are clearly visible when you walk from the station into Avigion, or ask at the Office de Tourisme.
A normal, public bus trip between these towns could be a method for seeing the lavender fields along the way.
Bus Carpentras - Sault
- Route: Carpentras, Mazan, Mormoiron, Villes-sur-Auzon, Monieux, Sault.
- Cars Comtadins; tel 0490 672 025
Bus Apt - Sault
- Route: Apt, Villars, Saint Saturnin-lès-Apt, Petits-Cléments, Grand-Cléments, Rustrel, Saint Christol, Sault.
For details, contact the Gare Routière Avignon (tel 0490 820 735) or the Office de Tourisme in Sault, Apt or Carpentras.
Valensole Plateau
The Plateau de Valensole has a lot of lavender fields in a fairly small area. To visit some great lavender fields here, take this 33-km loop drive: Valensole D56 east to Puimoisson; D953 north to the "Poteau de Telle" junction; the D8 west back to Valensole.
• On the D8 between Valensole and the D953 junction (4 km north of Puimoisson) has lavender fields. At the "Poteau de Telle" junction (D8/D953) are massive lavender fields.
• On the D6 between Valensole and Riez, about 5 km southeast of Valensole, there are nice lavender fields near the entrance to the Petit Arlane (Centre Naturiste).
Sault and Mont Ventoux
The area of Mont Ventoux, including the town of Sault, northeast of Avignon and Carpentras, has lovely lavender fields.
Due east of Avignon, there are some lavender fields in the area around Gordes, Apt and Saignon. Some of these fields also contain the picturesque stone Bories.
Senanque Abbey
It's only a single field, but the famous lavender field north of Gordes has the 12th-century Senanque Abbey as a backdrop.
Lavender from the Cote d'Azur
From the Cote d'Azur (Nice-Cannes area), the nearest lavender fields are at the Pays de Valensole. The drive up to Castellane is about 1h30. From Castellane, it's 45 km west across the Gorges de Verdon to Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, at the northern end of the Lac de Sainte Croix. This takes about an hour with the summer traffic, but you should allow some time to stop and enjoy the view as well. From Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, the road west climbs up to the Valensole plateau and directly into the lavender fields. The total journey (one-way) would be about 2-1/2 hours, excluding stopping to look around.
An alternate route would be west on the autoroute to Brignoles (exit 35, about 1 hr), and then north via Barjols, Tavernes, Montmayan, Quinson and Riez (65 km, another hour).
To have a look as fields of wild lavender, drive up to the Plateau de Calern north of Grasse (about 1 hour to 1h30 from Nice). Amidst the rocky terrain and fields of other wildflowers, the hillsides to the east of the telescopes are covered thickly with wild lavender.
Snakes!
We were warned near Apt (Saignon Bories) by a passing motorist to watch out for vipers in the lavender fields. In St Saturnin-les-Apt hotel-resto it was explained to us that vipers do in fact nestle in (and even nest) in the shade beneath the lavender plants; manual picker ladies used to chop through them inadvertently while harvesting the lavender. In our extensive wandering through the fields we've not seen any, but we're being especially careful now.
Festivals and Corsos de Lavande
July 14 Apt - Fête de la lavande
July 2nd-half Riez - Fête de la lavande
July 2nd-half Valensole - Fête de la lavande
Aug 1st weekend Valrés - Corso de la lavande, with floats, folkloriqe, etc.
Aug beginning Digne-les-Bains - Corso de la lavande
Aug mid Esparron-sur-Verdon - Fête de la lavande
Aug mid Riez - Journée du miel et de la lavande (honey and lavender)
Aug mid Sault - Fête de la lavande, with floats, folkloriqe, etc.
Additional Information
- Comité Départemental du Tourisme des Alpes de Haute-Provence
- Maison des Alpes de Haute-Provence
- 19 rue du Docteur Honnorat
- 04005 Digne-les-Bains
- Tel: (33) 492 31 57 29
- Office de Tourisme du Pays d'Apt
- Place Bouquerie; 4 ave Philippe de Girad
- 84400 Apt
- Tel: (33) 490 74 03 18
- Comité Départemental du Tourisme du Vaucluse
- La Balance, Place Campana
- BP 147, 84008 Avignon Cedex 1
- Tel: (33) 490 86 43 42
- Office Intercommunal du Tourisme du Pays de Forcalquier
- Place du Bourguet
- 04300 Forcalquier
- Tel: (33) 492 75 10 02
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- Verdon Accueil - Office de Pôles
- 04210 Castellane
- Tel: (33) 492 83 67 36, or (33) 494 70 21 64
- Office de Tourisme et Thermalisme de Digne-les-Bains
- 04001 Digne-les-Bains
- Tel: (33) 492 31 42 73
- Office Cantonal de tourisme d'Orpierre
- Pays du Buech
- Tel: (33) 492 66 30 45
- Office de Tourisme de Nyons
- Drôme
- Tel: (33) 475 25 10 35
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Photo gallery of 5 photos for Lavender Fields of Provence