Guided Walking Holiday in the Baronnies - Secret Provence

Your Holiday at a Glance


Guided walking Holiday	Les Baronnies: Secret Provence
Dates for 2010	12 - 19 June
Price	£695
Grade	grade explained
Profile	8 days: 6 days guided walking staying in two different guest houses central to the walking areas How do our guided walking holidays work?
Highlights	Unspoilt landscapes, quiet trails and varied walking through scented lavender fields, olive groves, wild scrub and forests Sleepy historic villages, unaltered for centuries perched on rocky slopes A favourable climate with 300 days of sunshine per year makes this an ideal destination for a walking Holiday Visiting the historic towns of Nyons with its wonderful market and Vaison la Romaine with its extensive roman remains Great local cuisine and fine local wines. Beautiful guest houses Visits to discover more about the local agricultural production
Accommodation and Meals	Very comfortable rooms in small B&B style accommodation in two historic properties with swimming pools in rural peaceful locations, central to the walking area
What's included	Transfer to and from Lyon and transport during the week. Full board accommodation with the excpetion of one evening meal. 6 guided walks
What's not included	Travel to Lyon, France, lunches on day of arrival and departure, one evening meal, drinks during the day, any entrance fees or excursions, travel insurance
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Les Baronnies - Secret Provence

Our guided walking holiday explores an area of the Drome-Provencial Known as Les Baronnies. Les Baronnies is a secret and unspoilt corner of France where the Alps meet the Provence with beautiful historic villages clinging to rocky mountain sides decorated in purple lavender flowers.

Sheltered by the mountains, its privileged position and distinct climate gives the region a remarkable light that draws you into the rugged and beautiful landscapes laid out before you. But it's not just your sight that will be bombarded on this unique guided walking holiday, it is also a region where wild Thyme, Lavender, herbs and pine produce a wonderfully scented landscape. Each corner of this fascinating area has its own characteristics. Rocky bluffs and cliffs define summit tops from which steep slopes marked by ravines descend into narrow gorges or wide fertile valleys covered in Lavender, fruit trees and olive groves. Oak forests, scrub and moorland add to the tapestry of vegetation covering the hills.

The historic legacy of the region is rich and is said to go back to Hannibal, the Carthaginian leader who crossed les Baronnies with his elephants around 200BC. There are a large number of well-preserved fortified medieval villages clinging to steep hillsides established by the barons of Mévouillon and Montauban in the 11th century. Their towers, walls and alleyways are now altered by a succession of historic events that have marked the region.

The double influence of the Alps and the mediterranean has created an exceptionally rich fauna and flora including orchids such as the Sabot de Venus, vultures, chamois wolves and wild boar. It is therefore not surprising that this secret and untamed area is planned to be designated a Natural Regional Park in 2012.

Walking Profile

The walking on this guided holiday is mixed allowing walkers of moderate ability to enjoy the ever changing views and landscapes. Some moderate ascents up and down valleys and hills are included in the week. Average distances are about 13km with about 400m of ascent. Most walks are well within the grade, although due to the nature of the landscape some small sections can be relatively steep. Paths are generally good and well defined, although they can be rough in places. The steep terrain means that it would be unwise to do this holiday if you suffered from vertigo.

destination Baronnies provence France guided walking holiday

Day 1: Arrival

Welcome, pick-up from Lyon airport or train station and drive to northern Provence

Day 2: Around Montbrun-les-Bains

Our day starts by a visit to the nearby hamlet of Reilhanette, which has little changed since the middle ages. Our day's walk then starts and finishes at Montbrun les Bains, a beautiful historic village perched on the hillside. It is classed as one of the prettiest villages in France and has buildings progressing up the hillside on 6 levels, with the remains of a renaissance chateau sitting prominently above. Our walk will explore this fascinating village before doing a short circuit contouring around the surrounding hills. 10km 240m climb

Day 3: Lavender country

Our day starts with a picturesque drive up a beautiful secluded valley to reach Barret de Lioure, a tiny village perched on the mountain slopes. After exploring this hamlet, we have a number of possible walks to take us onto the slopes of the Montagne de Bergies. Possibility of going to the summit. Great views in all directions. Our return drive will take us via the Col de l'Homme Mort for views over the Ferrassières plain and its immense fields of Lavender. Drive via the historic villages of Ferrassières and Aurel, and visit of a Lavender farm to find out all about its production. 14km, +445m

Day 4: Buis les Baronnies

Our walk today starts from Buis les Baronnies, historic town and important economic centre of this part of the Baronnies. Our walk rises quickly through orchards and then forests past the cliffs of St Julien. At the top of the climb we come out onto a ridge, providing great views all around including those of Mont Ventoux, the ever present giant to the south. We'll descend past the Chapel St Trophime and then take time out to visit an olive and fruit farm. Also possibility of visiting a vineyard to learn more about the Cote de Ventoux and Coteaux de Baronnies wines. On our return drive we'll have time to stop off at some of the pretty historic villages on route that line the Ouvèze Valley such as St Auban sur l'Ouvèze. 9km 470m climb

Day 5: Montagne de Chamouse

We'll drive to the Col de Perty which at 1302m allows us to start our walk from high up. Our route takes us along a fairly gentle ridge through forest and then moorland to the summit of the Montagne de Chamouse. At 1531m this summit offers exceptional views across the summits and valleys of the Baronnies. The extraordinary light in this part of France makes for clear luminous views where the relief really stands out. Length varied according to conditions and the group. +230m

Day 6: Nyons

Our rest day will take in visits to the historic centres of Nyons, where you'll be able to visit its historic building, its roman bridge as well as visiting olive mills, lavander distilleries and wineries. Our days tour will then take us to Vaison la Romaine with unique roman remains before returning via the pretty perched village of Brantes.

Day 7: Circuit de la Bohémienne

Walking from Aulan, a pretty 12th castle that sits at the top of the gorge Couranche at the start of the Toulourenc Valley. Our walk follows a picturesque valley through mixed woodland to reach the Col de la Bohémienne with its rocky slopes and ravines. We then contour to the small perched village of le Poêt en Percip - the former historic capital of the Baronnies - before gradually climbing through slopes of scrub, pasture and lavender fields, to reach a ridge with great views over the valleys and hills to the east. Descent directly to our B&B. 13km 530m climb

Day 8: Departure

Drive to Lyon and transfer home. If time allows we will stop off in Grignan, a picturesque historic village with an amazing chateau.

Contact us about this guided walking holiday

Montbrun les Bains Baronnies Provence France guided walking holiday

Near Aulan Baronnies Provence France guided walking holiday

Lavender Ferrassieres Baronnies Provence guided walking holiday

Brant Baronnies Provence France guided walking holiday

Gorge near Aulan Baronnies Provence France guided walking holiday

Landscape near Montbrun Baronnies Provence France guided walking holiday

Once you have booked on this guided walking holiday, further information about the walking, the region and what to bring, will be sent to you. We do have a web page dedicated to what clothes and equipment you should bring. In addition, our travel shop has direct access to all the top walking and travel retailers. Please contact us if you need any further information.

Please note: Further information about the walks in the Baronnies will be sent to you prior to your holiday. We will endeavour to keep to these walks as far as possible on our guided walking holiday; however they are subject to change. In addition, we like to maintain a certain degree of flexibility to take account of the group’s abilities and interests, and the local conditions. The final selection of walks will be made by your guide during the week after consultation with the group.

Accommodation & Meals

We will be using two small B&B style guest houses in traditional historic properties during the course of our guided walking holiday. They are exquisite properties in peaceful rural surroundings offering authentic and very comfortable accommodation with swimming pools.

A hearty and healthy continental breakfast provides the perfect opportunity to discover the local specialities such as home-made jams and local cheeses. At midday we will eat packed lunches prepared by our hosts and they will be eaten during the course of the walk. All evening meals will be taken at your guest house and will embrace the fine selection of local specialities from the Baronnies with its selection of fine herbs.

Name	Type	Details	Rating
La Honas	B&B	Renovated 17th century farm house situated in beautiful surroundings in the heart of the Baronnies
La Maison de Marguerite	B&B	Renovated traditional 19th century farm house situated close to the historic village of Montbrun les Bains

Travel Options

Flight Options

Transfers from Lyon

Transfers between Lyon Airport or train station and the Baronnies region of Provence, France are included in the price of your guided walking holiday.

The airlines Easy jet, BMI and British Airways have scheduled flights from the UK to Lyon airport. You can use the price comparison site Wegolo to compare the routes and prices for different low-cost airlines.

Please visit our travel shop for links to useful sites for reserving airport parking or booking train tickets

Note: Please check concerning the availability of a holiday before booking any flights. If you need further information or would like to discuss any aspect of your travel arrangements, please contact us, we’re here to help you.

We would be happy to book travel arrangents to Lyon, France on your behalf for this guided walking holiday.

By Train

Eurostar and the TGV provide a relaxing journey from London to Lyon Part Dieu changing at Lille. Please use Rail Europe's train finder to organise your train journey.

There is a practical train time leaving London at about 9am and arriving in Lyon at 3pm. Please contact us before booking to check for other practical times.

Self Drive

Channel ferry crossings from Dover are provided by a number of operators including:

P&O Ferries

Norfolk Line

Once in France, the journey from Calais to the Lyon area takes about 7 hours (excluding long breaks).

Tolls amount to about 35 euros each way. Controlled parking is available at the airport for 50 euros. Other secure but non-surveilled parking is available free of charge.

Parking is available at the guest houses if you wish to drive direct to the walking holiday destination in the Baronnies. Please inform us of this at the time of booking so when can provide you with directions to the first guest house.