The cult of the severed head - depicted in stone, from the Celtic oppidum at Entremont
A rather purposeful Dionysus directs his panther - museum of Arles
The perfectly proportioned Maison Carrée, temple to Augustus’ deified grandsons and heirs
The mighty Pont du Gard carried millions of gallons of fresh water to the Roman population of NÎmes
The stage wall at Orange. One has a real sense of sitting within an enclosed Roman theatre rather than taking part in an open-air experience.

2013 Tour Details

Mon 20th - Sun 26th May 2013
with Mr Tony O'Connor FULL

7 Days || £1895
(sgl supp £280)
without rail journey: £1745

2014 Tour Details

Mon 19th - Sun 25th May 2014
with Tony Wilmott

Mon 6th - Sun 12th October 2014
with Prof Tony King

Maximum Guests

France - Provence - The Good Life in the Sun

Quotes

He worked tirelessly and with good humour. Nothing was too much trouble... But his real joy and strength - sharing his knowledge - wonderful background stories and information. Terrific on site and well paced. Cannot wait to find another trip led by him.
Tony's knowledge, good humour and enthusiasm made the trip for me.
If I could give Tony 20 out of 10 I would - he was marvelous.
Quite outstanding. Imparted knowledge with erudition and wit. His enthusiasm and love brought the sites vividly to life.
Tony was excellent - extremely knowledgeable and yet friendly and informal.

Related Tour

Tour Type

Tour Codes

2013: PRR13A

France - Provence - The Good Life in the Sun

One perfectly situated and very comfortable hotel in the very heart of enchanting St Remy - good pool.
Near-perfectly preserved Roman monuments in this, Rome's first province outside Italy.
The height of Spring when the Provençal landscapes, which inspired Van Gogh and Cézanne, are at their best.

Today’s beautiful landscapes with avenues of cypress, rolling fields, vineyards and olive groves were once the point of contact between the developing Classical civilisations and the barbarians of northern Europe, who adopted the trappings of Greek and then Roman life with alacrity. This is a glimpse of what everyday life was like for the urban elite of a wealthy Roman province – aided by some of the finest Roman sites and monuments in Europe, as well as excellent regional museums.

We stay in one stylish hotel throughout (a central feature of this holiday), ideally situated in the medieval centre of the very pretty town of St Rémy. St Rémy de Provence is not only the epitome of the relaxed Provençal way of life - tree-lined boulevards, filled with simple, good restaurants, a weekly market selling the produce of the surrounding countryside - but it also lies at the heart of the Roman Province from which its name derives. The monuments of the high Empire, built to impress, subdue and draw-in the Gallic warriors and farmers of the region, can still be seen in remarkably complete state in the modern towns.

Provence is, of course, famous for its fine cuisine and fine wines – which certainly helps make our visit a most pleasurable experience. Guests are limited to a maximum of 18 people – making this the perfect relaxed, intimate introduction to Provence’s splendid past and charming present.

Itinerary

Day 1
Eurostar to Lille and easy change to arrive by train in Avignon where we will be met by our private coach and driven to St Rémy de Provence.

Day 2
A gentle day in Nîmes discovering the substantial ancient monuments which still survive within the modern city. This was the tribal capital of the Volcae Arecomici, whose sacred spring of Nemausus was also revered by the Romans, and then landscaped as a public park in the 18th century. The nearby Tour Magne affords wonderful views over the city for those who climb the hill and tower. Nearby is the castellum divisorium, which distributed the water from the aqueduct as it came into the city - a rare surviving example of this sophisticated plumbing. We also visit the Maison Carrée, temple to Augustus’ deified grandsons and heirs, and the amphitheatre.

Day 3
Free morning to enjoy the lovely little town of St Rémy de Provence, which Van Gogh chose as his home. Today is market day, and there is much to see and do. After lunch visit the nearby ruins of Glanum, a Gallo-Greek and Roman town set in a cleft in the rocks of Les Alpilles. It was abandoned during the later Roman period, when the centre of settlement moved to the present town of St Rémy, leaving romantically situated ruins.

Day 4
Morning visit to see the famous theatre and triumphal arch at Orange, both well-preserved because of their transformation into later defensive structures. The stage wall at Orange is magnificent, and was described by Louis XIV as ‘the finest wall in my kingdom’. A wine tasting and lunch have been arranged for you at the Vergers des Papes (Châteauneuf du Pape), before returning to St Rémy for a relaxing afternoon, possibly by the pool.

Day 5
Arles, where many monuments of the Roman town are still remarkably complete within the winding streets of the later city. The amphitheatre survives so well because it became a fortified village during the post- Roman period, when the towers were added to its outer walls. The theatre is nearby, and it is possible to go underground into the cryptoporticus which once supported the forum. The excellent archaeological museum stands beside the site of the Roman circus. St Trophime cathedral is one of the best examples of Romanesque architecture in the region. Time to explore Arles or sit and drink in the ambience.

Day 6
Visit the the Pont du Gard, just part of the huge Roman aqueduct which carried water to Nîmes. If it is warm enough it is possible to have a swim here, beneath the arches. Free time this afternoon.

Day 7
To Avignon to catch the train home, possible visit dependent on train times.

What's Included

Train - Eurostar and TGV
Local Travel - Private a/c coach
Guide Lecturer - Tony O'Connor. Not to be confused with "guest lecturers"! The guide lecturer will be with you from breakfast to supper, and probably even a drink in the bar afterwards. There is the occasional site where they may not be allowed to guide because of local regulations (we normally manage to circumnavigate these) but otherwise the guides are just that. They will have been chosen because of specialist knowledge and their ability to communicate and interest you. After 26 years of making tours worldwide, we are highly appreciative of the attributes of a good guide, and intensely critical of people who do not possess them
Meals - Lunch included Days 2 & 4; dinner with wine - included Days 1,3,5 & 6
Entries & Tips - Entry to all sites in programme; tips included
Fieldnotes written for the tour

Hotel

6 nights in a hotel in St Rémy de Provence, ideally situated in the centre of town, and has been stylishly but rather idiosyncratically decorated. A warm, welcome, comfortable ambience and wonderful breakfasts have more than compensated for this in the opinion of previous guests. There is also an excellent swimming pool.

Reading List

This list is no more than a guide to some books that you may find useful to read in advance of the tour. Talks given on the tour will attempt to fill in the background to what we are seeing, so no prior knowledge or pre-tour cramming is expected or needed. In many cases, we expect that you will find some of these books even more interesting and useful to read once the tour is over. We will be providing you with a set of field notes to accompany your study holiday. These will be sent to you before departure with your air tickets and final travel details.

James Bromwich (1993) The Roman Remains of Southern France - a guideboook, Routledge. Extremely well written guide book to the sites, with excellent plans and explanations. (Guide Lecturers Choice)

Barry Cunliffe (1989) Greeks, Romans and Barbarians - spheres of interaction, BT Batsford Publishing, London. Gives a good background understanding of the interaction between the Iron Age tribes of western Europe and the civilisations of Greece and Rome.

J. Drinkwater (Croom Helm, 1983) Roman Gaul

A. Trevor Hodge (2002) Roman Aqueducts and Water Supply, Duckworth. Clear explanations of how water supplies worked, from source to use. Good descriptions of the Pont du Gard and Nimes aqueducts, and of the mills at Barbegal.

A. Trevor Hodge (1998) Ancient Greek France, Duckworth. An illustrated history of Provence and the French Riviera, which concentrates on the early settlement of the area by Greeks around 600 BC.

Anthony King (1990) Roman Gaul and Germany, British Museum Publications. General account of the Roman history of the region.

Jeremy Knight (Tempus 2001) Roman France, An Archaeological Field Guide

J. B. Ward Perkins (1992) Roman Imperial Architecture, Yale University Press, Pelican History of Art. Good general introduction to the monuments of the Empire.

M. Pobe and J. Roubier (1961) The Art of Roman Gaul. This is out of print at the moment but may be available through your local library.

A. L. F. Rivet (1988) Gallia Narbonensis, Batsford

T. Wiedemann (1995 Routledge) Emperors and Gladiators, comprehensive discussion of amphitheatres and games

Henry Cleere (2001 Oxford Archaeological Guides) Southern France this is out of print at the moment but worth tracking down.

Theodore Andre Cook (2001 Signal Books). Old Provence, first published in 1905 an evocative account of Provence at the start of the 20th century.

Guide Books:

Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls (2004) Cadogan Guide to Provence

Book Now!

Mon 20th - Sun 26th May 2013 with Mr Tony O'Connor

Singles: Full

Twin/Doubles: Full

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