The best of Provence

Gorges du Verdon

Arriving at the spectacular-setting of the Hotel des Gorges du Verdon is a relief after a series of nerve-jangling hairpin bends on the D952. All is sparkling, modern, eco-friendly and full of the greens, gingers and lavender tones of the Gorges region. It's a short walk to the start of the route des Crêtes (for serious walkers), but it's just as good to watch them leave from the terrace and stay for a dip in the hotel pool.
+33 4 92 77 38 26, hotel-des-gorges-du-verdon.fr, doubles from €161.50 B&B, or €1,050 a week

Where to eat
Auberge du Point Sublime for its name alone.
Rougon, +33 4 92 83 69 15, auberge-pointsublime, dish of the day €17

Don't miss
The turquoise waters of the Lac de Sainte Croix are great for swimming and boating, otherwise it's hiking, rafting, canoeing and canyoning in the gorges.

St-Rémy-de-Provence

Composer Charles Gounod wrote his opera Mireille here and gave his name to the town's oldest hotel. Hotel Gounod stands on the corner of the main market square in St-Rémy-de-Provence and the madcap interior is full of musical memorabilia, as well as a collection of religious statuettes and curiosities. The hotel also has a tea room and is near the restaurants, chocolate shops and boutiques of one of France's oldest and prettiest towns. The Roman village of Glanum and the sanatorium where Vincent van Gogh "stayed" are just up the road.
+33 4 90 92 06 14, hotel-gounod.com, doubles from €99

Where to eat
L'Estagnol serves lots of local lamb, olives and polenta in an lively atmosphere.
+33 4 90 92 05 95, restaurant-lestagnol.com, set menu €30. Closed Sun-Mon

Don't miss
The Carrieres de Lumieres is a stunning light show in the old quarries outside Les Baux. The current show features Gustav Klimt and runs until January 2015.
carrieres-lumieres.com

Saint-Paul-de Vence

Hilltop Saint-Paul is known for its art galleries, boules court and the Colombe d'Or restaurant, where you can dine under a signed Matisse and sit close enough to splash soup on a Picasso. In the wooded valley below at the Orion B&B is a collection of four fantastic treehouses named after characters from the Jungle Book. It also has a shimmering eco-green freshwater pool to dive into and a sauna next door.
+33 6 75 45 18 64, orionbb.com. Treehouse for two from €400 (£330) for two nights (21 March, 30 June and 1 September-10 October), from €1,000 for four nights (July and August) B&B

Where to eat
A five-minute walk up the hillside from Orion takes you directly to La Brouette, where Scandinavian-style wood-smoked trout is served on a flowery terrace.
+33 4 93 58 67 16, Facebook page, menus from €20

Don't miss
La Fondation Maeght, a modern art gallery and sculpture garden hidden in the Provencal hills, celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2014.
+33 4 93 32 81 63, fondation-maeght.com. Open July-Sept 10am-7pm and Oct-June 10am-6pm, admission €15 adults, kids under 10 free

Marseille

In 2013 Marseille was Europe's Capital of Culture and the legacy of that means it's a great time to experience its spectacular new architecture and redesigned port. Stylish bistros and hotels have opened, but the height of urban chic is still Hotel Le Corbusier: it occupies the third floor of the Swiss-born architect's massive, concrete Cité Radieuse. Guests can stay in original, oak-floored rooms or "cabins" based on his monastery-cell design. On the roof is a pool, a running track and an art gallery from where there are mesmerising views of the mountains and the islands of Frioul.
+33 4 91 16 78 00, gerardin-corbusier.com, four-person suites from €119 and single (cabin) rooms from €78. Breakfast €11.

Where to eat
O'Bidul is a favourite with Marseille's in-crowd.
+33 4 91 33 93 78, Facebook page. Open Tues-Wed midday-2pm, Thurs-Sat midday-2pm, 7.30pm-10pm, lunchtime menu is €17

Don't miss
MuCEM is Marseille's new national museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations and the centrepiece of the dazzling new docks development.
+33 4 84 35 13 13, mucem.org. Open Wed-Mon 11am-7pm (summer), 11am-6pm (winter), late opening Fridays (10pm), admission €8 adults, €5 concessions, family ticket €12 (2 adults, up to 5 kids)

Haut-de-Cagnes

Haut-de-Cagnes is one of Provence's best-preserved perched villages. Steep, cobbled lanes lead into artists' workshops, which are hidden behind stone archways. Within the medieval city walls is Chateau Le Cagnard, a haven of luxury. The old Guard Room, where the knights used to dine, is hand-painted with fabulous elephants and there are curios dotted all over the hotel in alcoves and cabinets including a Napoleonic cannonball, antique parchments and a tiny lift with a fanciful unicorn painted on the door. Renoir's house-museum is also nearby.
+33 4 93 20 73 22, lecagnard.com, doubles from €142.50 B&B

Where to eat
L'Atelier combines the best of Provencal local dishes with a twist of Asian flavours.
12 place du chateau +33 4 92 02 00 00, no website, three-course meal about €30

Don't miss
The seaside racetrack at Cagnes-sur-Mer has summer and winter meetings.
+33 4 92 02 44 44, hippodrome-cotedazur.fr. Check website for event details

Aix-en-Provence

Among the old quarter's golden facades is the Hotel Cardinal, the guesthouse incarnation of everything Provencal. Bills are still hand-written and breakfast is served in a formal salon lined with gilt-framed mirrors and paintings of Mont Sainte-Victoire. Upstairs a few rooms have kitchenettes and most are furnished with creaking antiques. It's the perfect base to visit the Musée Granet, wander around Aix's markets and people-watch from cafes on the cours Mirabeau.
+33 4 42 38 32 30, hotel-cardinal-aix.com, doubles from €78

Where to eat
Carton Rouge offers a fantastically-cramped, zinc-tabled, full-on bistro experience, complete with wine barrels and blackboard menus.
+33 4 42 91 41 75, no website, lunch €25

Don't miss
Giant optical illusions fill the Fondation Vasarely museum complex just outside Aix to celebrate the work of Hungarian-French artist Victor Vasarely.
Fondation Vasarely, +33 4 42 20 01 09, fondationvasarely.fr, open Tues-Sun 10am-1pm, 2pm-6pm, admission free

Cotignac

Cotignac is in the heart of Provence's wine region. The village is popular with holidaymakers because of its fountains, tree-lined avenues and the backdrop of troglodyte dwellings. Chateau Nestuby has five bedrooms and offers B&B accommodation that is surrounded by its beautiful vineyard. The bedrooms have sunflower-yellow bedspreads, van Gogh chairs and creaky oak wardrobes and outside there's a 20-metre long freshwater pool to swim in. Breakfast is in the dining room under a suspended cartwheel.
+33 4 94 04 60 02, nestuby-provence.com. doubles from €85 B&B

Where to Eat
Restaurant Les Pins is a short drive away in Sillans-la-Cascade, but worth it for the shady terrace.
+33 4 94 04 63 26, restaurant-lespins.com, three-course menu €30

Don't miss
It's a 30-minute walk to the cascade waterfall from the village centre. Once there, a wild swim awaits the brave in a secluded but popular lagoon with water crashing down from the cliff above.

Camargue

There's nowhere else in the world like the Camargue. Black bulls, white horses, pink flamingos, hawks and eagles occupy the salt marshes, paddy fields and vineyards that fill the Rhone delta to the south of Arles. It's a great place for cycling (the tallest hill is only two metres high), horse-riding and bird-watching. The best way to experience the place is to stay on a ranch. L'Etrier has five rooms, a beautiful pool surrounded by white buildings where all beams are covered in horse-craft ironmongery. The view is endless, dreamy flatlands.
+33 4 90 97 81 14, letrier.com, doubles from €100 B&B

Where to Eat
Les Saladelles is famous for its bucketloads of tellines: type of clam, but bull steak is also high up on the menu.
Salin de Giraud, +33 4 42 86 83 87, hotel-salin-beauduc.fr/restaurant, lunchtime menu around €20

Don't miss
Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer has great sandy beaches, a famous gypsy festival at the end of May, and lots of cowboy shops.

L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

A picturesque campsite for visits to Avignon and the Vaucluse, L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue made its fortune from the crayfish, silk and paper industries. Today, moss-covered water wheels still push water along the canals of this peaceful, inland town, known as the Venise Comtadin. Camping La Sorguette has a selection of striped yurts that flap gently in the mistral wind as well as teepees, pods and tent cabins, all beside the river and a short walk from the centre of town.
+33 4 90 38 05 71, camping-sorguette.com, yurt for three to six people costs from €567 per week (5 July-23 Aug)

Where to eat
Café Fleurs au jardin d'Aubanel is right on the water's edge and is a glass-sided salon – as well as the perfect place to have lunch.
+33 4 90 20 66 94, cafefleurs.com, set menus from €19.50

Don't miss
The antiques market is the biggest outside of Paris with around 400 dealers offering everything from marble lions, lace underwear and studded boules to complete stone fountains.

Cassis

Winston Churchill learned to paint in Cassis. The seaside port became known as Bloomsbury-sur-Mer with Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant all frequent guests. Cassis today is still one of the most bohemian yet classiest resorts in Provence, with great seafood bistros, boat trips and a twice-weekly market. A short stroll from the centre is the Clos du petit Jésus B&B, which has just one airy, contemporary room for guests. The first-floor terrace overlooks a pool and is a perfect place to share an aperitif with the hosts.
+33 6 62 89 74 08, clos-du-petit-jesus-cassis.com, double from €140 B&B

Where to eat
Restaurant Le Mistral is on the port and serves assorted seafood platters with local Cassis wine.
+33 4 42 01 72 81, lemistralcassis.com, buffet-style seafood lunch €19

Don't miss
Les Calanques de Cassis are perfect for swimming (along the coves) or walking across the cliff tops, which are the highest in Europe.