Hiking from St. Rémy through the olive groves, vineyards & pinewoods
Half-day
Starting from the Roman ruins outside St. Rémy de Provence center, your guide first leads you through the picturesque countryside around. You gladly ramble along olive groves and vineyards. Wandering away from the town, you then walk along cypress and oak tree-lined back roads, in the direction of the wild Alpilles hills. While walking at the foot of the range, you finally enjoy the peace inside pinewoods, on your way back to the starting point.
Walking time : 2.5 hours
Rating : easy
Season calendar : year-round (summer : 8am – 11am only, allowed on fire risk days)
Around the rock fortress of Les Baux
Half-day
Set in the Alpilles, our guided hike highlights places of historical interest as well as natural beauty. The Alpilles is a range of low mountains that rise between Avignon and Arles. Nevertheless, if we are talking about mountains and not hills, that’s because landforms are craggy and rocky.
You appreciate there a gentle nature walk all around the rugged spur atop which sits the fortress of Les Baux de Provence. The spectacular site has made the village one of France’s most famous one. The numerous small roof tiles of its stone houses are towered by the remnants of its medieval castle. This citadel was for a long time the symbol of the power of their lords.
During this circular stroll, you easily reach two different viewpoints, enjoying breathless panoramas.
Walking time : 2.5 hours
Rating : easy (rugged terrain)
Season calendar : year-round (summer : starting before 9am, not allowed on fire risk days)
In the footsteps of van Gogh from St. Rémy
Half-day
During his time in Provence, near Avignon, van Gogh spent one year in St. Rémy. This beautiful hike is named after some of the visited places where the painter set up his easel, transfixed by the luminous nature scenery.
Before walking outside the town, you glimpse the Roman remains of Glanum city, about 2,300 years old. Then, after climbing up through the woods to the Alpilles ridge, you enjoy outstanding 360° views. This walk is also known as ”the Rock with two holes” due to two big holes at the base of a crag you reach on the heights.
On your way back to town, you hike through the picturesque vineyards and olive groves that carpet the landscape near St. Rémy.
Walking time : 3 hours
Rating : moderate (steep slopes and rugged terrain)
Season calendar : year-round (summer : 8am – 11am only, not allowed on fire risk days)
Visits of Saint-Paul de Mausole and Glanum non included
Van Gogh’s Provence
(Photographs of sceneries that could have inspired the Dutch painter)
A nature walk en route to Les Baux de Provence
Half-day
During most of this scenic walk, starting from the Alpilles above St. Rémy, you keep all along the ridge, enjoying vistas in all directions. Suddenly, on the horizon, appears before you, among crags, the rock of Les Baux de Provence: a ruined château towering the tile roofs of the village’s stone houses. Perched on a bluff facing the Alpilles, the citadel, was abandoned in the 1630s. For 400 years, it had been the symbol of the power and independence of the lords of Les Baux, Princes of Orange. The castle entrance and the few streets in the village are worthwile. Furthermore, a visit to Carrières de Lumières, a son et lumière projected onto the walls of a former quarry nearby, might be of interest for you.
Walking time : 2.5 hours (point-to-point hike)
Rating : easy (rugged terrain)
Season calendar : year-round (summer : 8am – 11am only, not allowed on fire risk days)
Visits of Château des Baux (fortress remains) and Carrières de Lumière are non included.
Les Opies, atop the jagged line of the Alpilles
Half-day
Les Alpilles seem to be an island in the middle of the plains: south, the Crau plain, and north, the southern bank of the Durance River near its confluence with the Rhône River.
From the peak called Les Opies, you get a 360-view of Provence’s scenery: the Luberon mountains to the north-east, Mont Ventoux to the north and Montagne Sainte-Victoire to the south-east.
Starting from the pretty village of Eyguières, your guide first leads you through olive groves and vineyards to the excavation of a Gallo-Roman villa. This historical site was inhabited from the 1st-c. BC to the 9th-c. AD. Then, when entering the mountain range, your climb to the top should be quite short; but you will face a few steep sections. Whatever it is, you can rest assured that the payoff from this short effort will be worth it!
Walking time : 3 hours
Rating : challenging (steep slopes and rugged terrain)
Season calendar : year-round (summer : 8am – 11am only, not allowed on fire risk days)
ace
Hiking from St. Rémy de Provence to Les Baux
Full Day
When hiking from St. Rémy, to the wild Alpilles hills, you enjoy the visit of Les Antiques, two fairly well preserved Roman monuments. They are situated outside the town center, next to the ruins of Glanum, an ancient city that was founded 2,600 years ago.
Walking through pines, on back roads and forest tracks, you then gently climb to the Alpilles ridge path. Up there, you can admire beautiful nature scenery all around. Following the main ridge, you gradually approach Les Baux de Provence. Built on a rocky spur, the ruined medieval castle suddenly appear. Once the fief of lords among the most powerful in the South of France, this site is something unique. The castle entrance and the few streets in the village are worthwile.
After those 4 hours of hiking in the Alpilles range, an additional visit to Carrières de Lumières, a son et lumière projected onto the walls of a former quarry, might be of interest for you.
Walking time : 4 hours (point-to-point hike)
Rating : moderate (rugged terrain)
Season calendar : 1/1 – 6/15 & 9/15 – 12/31
Visits of Château des Baux (fortress remains) and Carrières de Lumière non included.
An exhilarating hike for adventurers by St Rémy
Full day
This outstandingly scenic one-day hike starts about 1km south of Saint-Paul de Mausole in St. Rémy de Provence. This monastary is famous owing to Vincent van Gogh‘s stay in 1889. While not very long, this walk is strenuous and suitable for hikers without fear of heights. Under the leadership of an expert guide, you hike challenging trails while enjoying spectacular scenery over the Alpilles Regional Natural Park.
Once you have left the Mont Gaussier, where the ladder trail with supportive handrail has been cut into a vertical cliff for about 200m, it is time for the last ascent. And you fairly quickly reach the Rock with two holes, an impressive stone formation, visible from St-Rémy, that van Gogh painted. You then walk down a dry valley back to town.
Walking time : 4.5 hours
Rating : challenging (steep slopes, rugged terrain and exposed pathways with supportive railings)
Season calendar : year-round (summer : 7am – 11.30am only, not allowed on fire risk days)
If you have a fear of heights, you had better choose another hike.
The vista from the Alpilles mountains ridge
Full Day
To start this day hike, your expert guide can meet you in the old town of St. Remy de Provence. After one hour of gentle climbing, you are allowed to spend the following two hours walking on the Alpilles ridge, up to the top of Plateau de La Caume. On the way, in addition to the vast panorama, you discover the great variety of Mediterranean nature, especially flora: the famous rosemary, thyme and lavender, of course, but also dozens of other species that blossom early in the year. The last hour on the heights, at the foot of impressive cliffs, is surely the most challenging.
Back to the plain, it is worth stopping for a visit of Château Romanin, at the foot of the Alpilles. Your local guide can fix a guided tour of the cellar and a tasting of the wines (visit fee non included).
Walking time : 5.5 hours
Rating : challenging (steep slopes and rugged terrain)
Season calendar : 1/1 – 6/15 & 9/15 – 12/31