Valensole and Moustiers from Aix

A la Francaise takes eight guests from the Aix tourist office to a Valensole producer, Moustiers-Sainte-Marie and the shore of Lac de Sainte-Croix, back by about 6:30 p.m. Pick it because Aix is the closest start: about 1 h 45 to Moustiers, so more of your day happens outside the van.

Valensole, Moustiers & the Verdon from Aix

About this experience

A la Francaise runs small minivan days out of Aix-en-Provence. This one leaves from outside the main door of the tourist office on Avenue Giuseppe Verdi a little before 9 a.m., heads up the A51 to the Valensole plateau and stops at a local producer, with the lavender fields around it in early summer. Then it's on to Moustiers-Sainte-Marie for free time and lunch at your own expense, and to Lac de Sainte-Croix for a swim. The last stop is the view from Pont du Galetas, where the canyon opens into the lake. You're back in Aix around 6:30 p.m.

The case for it is geography. From Nice, Moustiers is about 2 h 15 away; from Aix it's about 1 h 45, per the village's own access page, and Valensole sits on the way rather than on a detour. The Nice tours spend half their day on the road. This one gives you more time on your feet.

What it isn't: a canyon tour. The listing now puts Valensole first in its title, and that's fair. You look into the gorge from the Galetas bridge at its western end, and you don't drive the rim roads of the deep section. There's no boat in the price. And outside mid-June to mid-July the producer stop is about the products and the story, not purple fields. Guests rate it 4.6 from 85 reviews, and several name their guides for finding quiet fields.

A central meeting point in Aix, no hotel run needed
A Valensole producer, with lavender in early summer
Free time and lunch in Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
A swim in Lac de Sainte-Croix
The view into the canyon from Pont du Galetas
Eight guests at most

How the day runs

Before 9:00Aix tourist office
Meet outside the main door at 300 Avenue Giuseppe Verdi. Get there ten minutes early.
Mid-morningValensole producer
A stop at a producer on the plateau. In late June and early July the lavender rows run right up to the road.
Late morningMoustiers-Sainte-Marie
Free time in the village and lunch at your own expense. Climb toward the chapel or browse the faience workshops.
AfternoonLac de Sainte-Croix
Free time on the shore, swimsuit on.
Late afternoonPont du Galetas
The view from the bridge into the mouth of the canyon, with pedal boats heading up between the walls.
About 6:30 p.m.Back in Aix
Drop-off in central Aix after about 9.5 hours.

Lavender rows in bloom beside a field of ripe wheat on the Valensole plateau

Hands painting a blue pattern on a faience plate in a Moustiers workshop

Boats on turquoise water under the road bridge at the mouth of the Verdon canyon

What's included

Included

Air-conditioned minivan, eight guests at most
A guide for the whole day
Stops in Valensole, Moustiers, at the lake and at Pont du Galetas

Not included

Lunch in Moustiers (at your own expense)
Hotel pickup: you meet at the tourist office
Boat rental at the lake

Who it suits

Book it if

You're based in Aix or Marseille and want the shortest road to the Verdon
Lavender matters and you're travelling between mid-June and mid-July
You'd rather swim in the lake than watch the gorge through a window
You like small groups and a meeting point you can walk to

Skip it if

You want the rim roads and Point Sublime: this day stays at the western end
You want to get onto the water in the canyon: look at the private boat picnic instead
You're coming in August for lavender: the plateau is cut by then, see our lavender dates

Tips before you book

Bring a swimsuit and a towel. The lake stop is a real swim stop, not a photo stop.
Lunch in Moustiers is your own. Eat light and quick if you also want time in the village.
For lavender, aim for the second half of June. The plateau blooms from about 15 June, per the regional tourist board, and the harvest starts in late June.
Wear shoes with grip. Moustiers is steep, cobbled and stepped.

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Frequently asked questions

How far is Moustiers from Aix-en-Provence?

About 1 h 45 by road, per the village's access page. That's the shortest run of any city day trip to the Verdon; from Nice it's about 2 h 15.

Does the Aix tour drive along the Gorges du Verdon?

Not the rim roads. It visits the western end: Moustiers, the lake and the view from Pont du Galetas, where the canyon opens. For the Route des Crêtes or Point Sublime you need a car or a Nice tour that drives the canyon road.

Will I see lavender on the Aix Valensole tour?

Only in season. Valensole blooms from about 15 June to 15 July and the harvest starts in late June, so late June to early July is the safe window. Outside it, the producer stop is about the products, not the fields.

Where does the Aix tour start?

Outside the main door of the Aix-en-Provence tourist office, 300 Avenue Giuseppe Verdi, a little before 9 a.m. It finishes back in Aix at about 6:30 p.m.

Ready to book

Book Valensole & Moustiers from Aix

The shortest drive to the Verdon: a Valensole producer, Moustiers and the lake, in a group of eight at most.

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