Walking in Provence: 9 Best Walks, From the Luberon to the Sea
Nine walks from the Luberon villages to the Calanques, with real distances, 2026 fees, the summer closure rules and how to reach each one without a car.
Quick links
Don't want to read all this?
We've planned 2,000+ hiking trips. Send your dates, fitness and group size — we'll map the route and book every night.
Walking in Provence is more than lavender fields. The paths cross limestone ridges, old ochre quarries, cedar forest and a coast of white cliffs, and most of the best walks are short enough to finish by lunch on a hot day.
This guide picks the nine best walks in Provence, one of the best regions for walking in France. The first three are our self-guided walking weeks; the other six you can walk on your own from a village base.
The essentials:
Where: the Luberon villages, the Alpilles, the Calanques near Cassis and Moustiers at the Verdon.
What: village-to-village paths, ochre trails, forest ridges and coast paths.
Difficulty: 3 to 20 km a day, rarely more than 550 m of elevation gain.
When: April to June and September to October; forest access is limited in summer.
Why Go Walking in Provence
The Luberon villages sit 8 to 16 km apart, a day's walk, and each one has a hotel, a café and a weekly market. Waymarked paths link them, from the long-distance GR routes to short local loops, so you rarely walk on a road for long. Most days end in a village square by mid-afternoon.
Most of the walking is on farm tracks, forest paths and old mule roads, not mountain trails, and the hard part is the heat, not the climbing. That is why spring and autumn are the walking seasons, and why summer days start early.
The 9 Best Walks in Provence
The list starts with our three walking weeks in the region, each with its route and day-by-day stages. Walks 4 to 9 are day walks, with the distance, the 2026 fee where there is one and the best time to go.
1. The Luberon Villages: Apt to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
Walking: 71 km over six days of 8 to 16 km
Elevation gain: about 2,000 m in total, 550 m on the longest day
Route: Apt, Bonnieux, Roussillon, Gordes, Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
Grade: 2 out of 5 for fitness and for terrain
Season: April to October
Our eight-day Walking Holidays in Provence tour is an inn-to-inn week across the Luberon. You start in Apt and finish at the spring in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, and your luggage moves between the hotels while you walk.
The days follow farm tracks, forest paths and old mule roads between hill villages. Most days are 11 or 12 km with 200 to 320 m of elevation gain, so you arrive by mid-afternoon with time for the village itself.
Map
The route runs west along the north side of the Luberon ridge. Two nights in Bonnieux and two in Gordes give you a circular walk from each without moving hotels, and the Petit Luberon loop is the only day that gains more than 500 m.
Apt from the air, the market town at the east end of the Luberon walk
Arrive in Apt, the market town at the east end of the walk. The Saturday market fills the old centre, and the candied fruit shops are open every day.
Apt from the air, the market town at the east end of the Luberon walk
Dry-stone walls and garrigue on the Luberon farm tracks between Apt and Bonnieux
12 km with 320 m of elevation gain past stone farmhouses, orchards and vineyards to Bonnieux, a village stacked up its hill around an old church.
Dry-stone walls and garrigue on the Luberon farm tracks between Apt and Bonnieux
A path through the Forêt des Cèdres on the Petit Luberon ridge above Bonnieux
A 12 km circuit with 510 m of elevation gain up to the Forêt des Cèdres on the ridge above Bonnieux and back. It is the hardest day of the week.
A path through the Forêt des Cèdres on the Petit Luberon ridge above Bonnieux
Roussillon's red and orange houses above the ochre cliffs, the day-4 finish
12 km with 200 m of elevation gain across the valley to Roussillon, where the houses are painted in the same red and orange as the ochre cliffs beneath them.
Roussillon's red and orange houses above the ochre cliffs, the day-4 finish
Joucas above its vineyards, the lunch stop between Roussillon and Gordes
11 km with 230 m of elevation gain by way of Joucas, a quiet village for lunch, then up to Gordes and its castle.
Joucas above its vineyards, the lunch stop between Roussillon and Gordes
A walker beside the dry-stone bories of the Village des Bories near Gordes
An 8 km circuit with 200 m of elevation gain through oak woods, across the small Sénancole river and past dry-stone huts called bories.
A walker beside the dry-stone bories of the Village des Bories near Gordes
The Romanesque church of the Abbaye de Sénanque, passed on the way to Fontaine
16 km with 550 m of elevation gain past the Abbaye de Sénanque and along the Mur de la Peste, a plague wall built in 1721, down to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse.
The Romanesque church of the Abbaye de Sénanque, passed on the way to Fontaine
The old mill wheel on the Sorgue in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, the end of the walk
Breakfast by the Sorgue and a last look at the spring, one of the largest in France, before the journey home.
The old mill wheel on the Sorgue in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, the end of the walk
The price covers seven nights in 3-star hotels with breakfast, the luggage transfers, a digital guidebook, the GPS app and support during the trip. The tourist tax is paid locally.
Three of the walks further down this list, the ochre trail, the cedar forest and Gordes to Sénanque, are days of this week. They are also easy to walk on their own from a village base.
2. Van Gogh's Provence: Avignon to Arles
Walking: 76 km over five days of 7 to 20 km
Elevation gain: 840 m in total, 355 m on the Alpilles day
Route: Avignon, Châteaurenard, Saint-Rémy, Maussane, Arles
Grade: 2 out of 5 for fitness, 1 out of 5 for terrain
Season: March to November
Van Gogh's Pathways in Provence is a seven-day walk from the popes' city to the Roman one. It is the flattest of our Provence routes, and the longer days are long because they are flat, not because they are hard.
Two of the days are 20 km, but neither gains more than 170 m. The one real hill is the Alpilles, the small limestone range between Saint-Rémy and Maussane that Van Gogh painted from the asylum window.
Map
The route heads south from the Rhône through market gardens to Saint-Rémy, crosses the Alpilles and comes down through olive groves to Les Baux and Arles. The season is longer than in the Luberon because the lowland paths stay walkable in March and November.
The Palais des Papes in Avignon, the start of the Van Gogh route
Arrive in Avignon and settle into the walled city. The Palais des Papes, one of the largest Gothic palaces in Europe, is a few minutes from the hotel.
The Palais des Papes in Avignon, the start of the Van Gogh route
The Pont d'Avignon over the Rhône below the popes' city
7 km around Avignon: the palace, the old town lanes, the Rocher des Doms garden and the view of the broken Pont d'Avignon over the Rhône.
The Pont d'Avignon over the Rhône below the popes' city
The two castle towers of Châteaurenard, the end of the first 20 km day
20 km with 170 m of elevation gain through vineyards, olive groves and farmland to Châteaurenard, whose two castle towers stand on a hill above the town.
The two castle towers of Châteaurenard, the end of the first 20 km day
The mausoleum and triumphal arch of Glanum on the edge of Saint-Rémy
15 km with 135 m of elevation gain to Saint-Rémy, with time for Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, where Van Gogh stayed, and the Roman ruins of Glanum.
The mausoleum and triumphal arch of Glanum on the edge of Saint-Rémy
Limestone crags of the Alpilles, crossed on the 355 m climb to Maussane
14 km with 355 m of elevation gain over the Alpilles on rocky paths, then down through olive groves to Maussane and its oil mills.
Limestone crags of the Alpilles, crossed on the 355 m climb to Maussane
The ruined castle village of Les Baux-de-Provence on its rock spur
20 km with 140 m of elevation gain by way of Les Baux-de-Provence, a ruined castle village on a rock spur, then along cypress-lined paths to Arles.
The ruined castle village of Les Baux-de-Provence on its rock spur
The Roman arena in Arles, the last morning of the Van Gogh route
A morning for the Roman arena and theatre, or for the places Van Gogh painted in 1888, before the train home.
The Roman arena in Arles, the last morning of the Van Gogh route
The price covers six nights in 3-star hotels with breakfast, the luggage transfers, the guidebook, the GPS app and support. As on the Luberon week, the tourist tax is extra.
Saint-Rémy works well as a base for a few days of walking without the tour. The Van Gogh trail through town and the Alpilles paths all start within a short walk of the centre.
3. The Riviera Coast Path: Menton to Nice
Walking: 42.5 km over four days of 7 to 14.5 km
Elevation gain: 630 m in total, never more than 200 m in a day
Route: Menton, Cap Martin, Monaco, Beaulieu, Cap Ferrat, Villefranche, Mont Boron, Nice
Grade: 2 out of 5 for fitness, 1 out of 5 for terrain
Season: February to November
The Côte d'Azur is the eastern edge of the same region, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, and its walking is different again. Our seven-day French Riviera Hiking Holidays tour follows the coast from Menton to Nice on the paths round the headlands.
The walking is on promenades and rocky headland paths rather than hills, apart from Mont Boron above Nice. The coast railway runs beside the whole route, stopping at Menton, Monaco, Beaulieu, Villefranche and Nice, so a short day is always possible.
The six walks below are the ones to do on your own. Four are in the Vaucluse around the Luberon, one is on the coast east of Marseille and one is at the Verdon, about two hours east.
4. The Sentier des Ocres, Roussillon
Loops: about 30 minutes or about 50 minutes, on paths with steps
Entry: €3.50 for adults in 2026, free for under-10s
Open: from February to the end of December, closed 25 December and 1 January
Our tour: day 4 ends in Roussillon, see entry 1
Roussillon sits on one of the richest ochre deposits in Europe, a band of coloured clay about 25 km long between Goult and Gignac. The Sentier des Ocres is a short walk through the old quarries below the village, from yellow through orange to deep red.
The trail closes the evening before any day of heavy rain or storms, decided at 6pm. Go at opening time in summer, when the light is soft and the paths are empty; in July and August it opens at 9am.
5. The Colorado Provençal, Rustrel
Trails: Sahara circuit 2.1 km (40 minutes), Belvédères circuit 3.9 km (1 hour 45)
Parking: €8 per car from May to September, €6 in spring and autumn, €2 on foot
Season: closed from mid-November to early February; book mornings in July and August
Getting there: about 12 km north-east of Apt
Rustrel's Colorado is Roussillon's wilder neighbour, a landscape of ochre cliffs, fairy chimneys and white sand left by 120 years of quarrying. The first pickaxe went in in 1871, and the last ochre worker stopped in 1991, so the quarries are recent history rather than ruins.
Two marked circuits start from the car park. The Belvédères loop is the one to walk, climbing only 70 m to viewpoints over the Sahara and the Désert Blanc. Walkers must stay on the paths.
6. Gordes to the Abbaye de Sénanque
Distance: about 3 km each way, 30 minutes to an hour
The abbey: founded in 1148, still home to a community of seven Cistercian monks
Visit: €8 for adults in 2026; modest dress and silence inside
Our tour: day 7 passes Sénanque, see entry 1
Gordes is the most photographed village in the Luberon, and the walk down to Sénanque is the best way to arrive at the abbey. The path drops into the valley of the Sénancole, so the church appears below you between the trees.
The lavender is at its best from late June to mid-July, and the monks harvest it around 15 to 20 July. Visitors may not walk into the field, and guided visits of the abbey run in French.
7. The Cedar Forest of the Petit Luberon
Size: more than 250 ha of Atlas cedar on the ridge above Bonnieux, at about 700 m
Trails: a discovery trail with five stations, and marked walks of up to 11 km
Summer: the car park and three marked trails stay open on high fire-risk days, 5am to 8pm
Our tour: the day-3 loop from Bonnieux, see entry 1
Foresters sowed Atlas cedar on the Petit Luberon in 1861, and the forest is now one of the coolest walks in Provence on a summer day. The paths run along the ridge with views north to Bonnieux and Mont Ventoux and south over the Durance valley.
It is one of the few places exempt from the summer closures: from 15 June to 15 September the other forest roads close, but the cedar forest trails stay open.
8. The Calanques: Port-Miou to En-Vau
Walk: 7.8 km return from Port-Miou via Port-Pin to En-Vau, about 3 hours, 360 m of elevation gain
Grade: graded difficult by the park, for the rocky descents to the coves
Park: Calanques National Park, created in 2012
Summer: red fire-risk days close the park on foot; check the Mes Calanques app the evening before
Between Marseille and Cassis, the Calanques are white limestone inlets, and the national park calls itself the only peri-urban national park in Europe. From the Port-Miou shuttle stop in Cassis, the path crosses the headland to Port-Pin and drops to En-Vau, the most enclosed of the coves.
Carry at least 2 litres of water each in summer, as the park advises, and wear shoes with grip for the polished limestone. Further west, the Sugiton cove needs a free booking on summer weekends and every day from late June to the end of August.
9. Moustiers-Sainte-Marie and the Verdon
The chapel path: 262 steps up to Notre-Dame-de-Beauvoir, lined with the Stations of the Cross
The star: hung on a 135 m chain between the cliffs, the current one since 1995
The lake: Lac de Sainte-Croix, 2,200 ha, created by the EDF dam in 1974
Getting there: about 2 hours east of the Luberon by car
Moustiers is one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France, built into a gap in the cliffs at the entrance to the Verdon. The walk up to the 12th-century chapel is short and steep, and the top looks down on the whole village.
Legend says a crusader hung the first star to thank the Virgin for his release. The Verdon's gorge trails, including the Blanc-Martel, are proper hikes, so they are on our sister brand's guide to hiking in Provence.
When to Walk in Provence
Provence walks best in spring and autumn. Summer is hot and the forests can close on high fire-risk days, and the lavender flowers just as the summer closures begin.
Young vines under the Luberon ridge in spring, the best walking weeks of the year
Green hills, wildflowers on the ridges and warm rather than hot days. Every forest path is open, and the Ochre Trail and the Colorado are quiet before the summer holidays.
Young vines under the Luberon ridge in spring, the best walking weeks of the year
A lavender field in flower, a sight that lasts from late June to mid-July
Lavender season: the field at Sénanque flowers from late June to mid-July and is cut around 15 to 20 July. Start early, and check the forest access level each evening from 15 June.
A lavender field in flower, a sight that lasts from late June to mid-July
A pine track in the summer heat, when red fire-risk days close the forests
The hottest months, when red fire-risk days close the Calanques and many Luberon forests. Walk early, carry at least 2 litres of water and choose routes that stay open, such as the cedar forest trails.
A pine track in the summer heat, when red fire-risk days close the forests
Vineyards before the harvest, when the Vaucluse forest closures end on 15 September
Harvest time in the vineyards and the end of the Vaucluse closures on 15 September. The Bouches-du-Rhône rules run to 30 September, and the Luberon week runs until the end of October.
Vineyards before the harvest, when the Vaucluse forest closures end on 15 September
Summer Closures in the Hills
From June, the prefectures limit access to the forests on days of high fire risk. In the Bouches-du-Rhône, home of the Calanques and the Alpilles, the season runs from 1 June to 30 September, and since 2025 only a red day closes the massifs to walkers.
In the Vaucluse, which covers the Luberon, the levels run from 15 June to 15 September: green, yellow, red and red E. Check the next day's level on the Vaucluse fire-risk map or on 04 28 31 77 11. The Var uses five levels.
The Bouches-du-Rhône map for the next day appears at about 6pm, on the myProvence Envie de balade app. For the Calanques, the park's Mes Calanques app shows which paths and access points are open.
Eat and Drink Along the Way
Every village on these walks has a market day, from Apt on Saturday to Coustellet on Sunday, and a picnic from the market is the usual walker's lunch. Most of what is on the stalls grows within sight of the paths, and the food is a good reason to stop early in a village.
These four are the ones to look out for between Apt and the coast.
Getting There Without a Car
There is no direct train from London to Provence. Eurostar reaches Paris in about 2 hours 16 minutes, or you can change at Lille. From Paris the TGV runs on to Avignon in about 2 hours 40 minutes, or to Aix-en-Provence in about 3 hours 5 minutes.
Avignon TGV station is 6 km outside the city, and a shuttle train links it to Avignon Centre, next to the old walls. From Marseille airport, the Bus+13 shuttle runs to Vitrolles-Aéroport station for trains to Avignon and Arles, and the A2 bus goes to Aix TGV.
In the Luberon, the regional Zou! buses reach the walking villages: line 915 from Avignon to Apt and line 907 from Avignon to Cavaillon and Coustellet. Line 917 links Apt with Roussillon, Joucas and Gordes, and line 918 serves Bonnieux.
Check the Zou! timetable before you plan a day around a bus. On our walking weeks the luggage goes by van between the hotels, and the tour notes give the train and bus times to the first hotel.
How Much It Costs
Most walks on this list are free, and the Calanques and the cedar forest are free to walk, apart from parking. The paid ones are small:
Cost | Price |
Sentier des Ocres, Roussillon | €3.50 |
Parking at the Colorado Provençal in summer | €8 |
Abbaye de Sénanque visit | €8 |
Our walking weeks include 3-star hotels with breakfast, the luggage transfers, a digital guidebook, the GPS app and support during the trip. Dinners, lunches, entry fees and the tourist tax are extra. Single rooms are available on request.
What to Pack
Trail shoes or light walking boots with a good grip cover every walk here. The limestone in the Calanques and on the Alpilles is polished smooth in places, and grip matters more than ankle support on those descents. Walking poles help on the steps at Moustiers and the drops to the coves.
Pack a sun hat, sun cream and at least 2 litres of water each for a summer day, as the Calanques park advises. A 20 to 25 litre day pack carries water, lunch and a light layer for the mistral, the cold north wind that can blow for days.
Ready to Walk Provence?
Our self-guided walking holidays in Provence cover the Luberon villages, Van Gogh's Provence and the Riviera coast, from spring to autumn. Each week includes:
3-star hotels with breakfast every night
Luggage transfers between the hotels
A digital guidebook and GPS navigation app
Support during the trip
Frequently Asked Questions
Plan with a hiking expert
Free advice from a team that knows these routes inside out - real people, not a bot
HASSLE-FREE
We handle itineraries, accommodations, and anything else you prefer not to deal with, so you can enjoy a carefree hike.
TRUSTED BY MANY
We are a financially protected company, fully bonded and insured, keeping your money safe and allowing you to travel with confidence.
TRIED & TESTED ADVENTURES
Only the best walking tours in France, cherry-picked by our team with an in-depth knowledge of the region.
UNBEATABLE SUPPORT
Our 24/7 customer support is where we show our passion, bringing you a better experience by making your well-being our number one priority.
