If you told someone to name a place in France, my guess is that the first answer from most people would be “Paris”. After all, this capital consistently appears at or near the top of the lists of most-visited cities. Another French location that’s likely to come to mind might be Provence. You could suddenly be transported to warm and sunny fields of lavender, vineyards, hilltop villages, outdoor markets full of fresh fruits and vegetables, delicious, leisurely meals at quaint sidewalk cafés. Thanks to the “Year in Provence” trilogy by Peter Mayle, followed by the TV series based on the first book, many of us were drawn to this beautiful area of France. Therefore, when we saw an advertisement for a canal cruise, “Provence—from Sète to Arles” we knew that was for us.

Last year we took our first-ever hotel barge cruise on the Oise Canal, not far from Paris, because it offered the chance for us to visit an area of the country that we’d never seen. This time, although we’d been to parts of Provence, our experience onboard the previous péniche was so positive, we wanted to see what else we could discover. The departure port was Sète, a city that we like, and now we were going on 2 excursions in that immediate area with our fellow 20 passengers. 

First stop was the Etang de Thau that can translate as a “pond or lagoon” but to us it was more like an inland sea with hundreds of plant and animal species including clams, oysters, urchins, bass, and even seahorses. A visit to the museum explained much about the shellfish industry followed by tasting some of the delicacies. In the afternoon we stopped to see the 11th century Devil’s Bridge before continuing on to Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert, a member of the “Most Beautiful Villages of France.” It’s a picturesque medieval village with its UNESCO-listed abbey, and narrow streets lined with sandstone buildings still sporting Renaissance windows and Gothic lintels.

The next morning was spent sailing to Villeneuve-lès-Maguelone known for its fortified cathedral from the Middle Ages. We docked there to be close to a manade, a herd of horses or bulls, who are controlled by mounted horsewomen and men known as gardians. After a demonstration of their leading skills, we had a pause café to enjoy some of the products from the farm. Dinner back on board that evening featured local products including taureau (bull), rice, and wine.

We were off again on the Cânal du Rhone to dock in a city we had visited in 2019, Aigues-Mortes. This time, however, we had a guide through this walled town founded by Saint Louis (King Louis IX) in the 13th century. Not much has changed over the last 5 years, nor perhaps in the preceding 800 years, given the thick stone walls and towers that were meant to protect the inhabitants from invaders, both human and the sea. A visit to the Salt Museum revealed the centuries-long history of collecting the precious commodity, pink at times, that matched the color of the flamingos gathered nearby (featured photo across the top of today’s post).

We were now truly in the part of France called the Camargue, spending part of the day sailing through this protected natural area and later walking around the area’s capital city, Sainte-Marie-de-la-Mer. The town’s church is a pilgrimage site because legend says that the Virgin Mary arrived here by boat from Jerusalem. While we can’t confirm that, we would definitely agree with the tourist bureau’s brochure that says you will see, “wetlands, horses, bulls, and pink flamingos.”

The morning of our last full day on board was spent cruising leisurely down the canal that was begun in 1773. By lunchtime we had arrived in Arles, known for its Roman ruins and Van Gogh inspiration. A visit to an olive oil estate that included a tasting of several of their products was followed by a walking tour of this ancient city. The photograph in the first paragraph above is rue des Arènes. A gala farewell dinner awaited us back on the boat.

For this week-long vacation we were on a twin of the canal boat we had taken last year sailing from Pont-l’Évêque to Paris, again all-inclusive. That meant meals, drinks (with meals plus throughout the day) and excursions were all covered by the fare while gliding along the canal. This is slow travel at its best.