On our tour we take the time to savour the distinct personalities of each town: the sophistication of Aix-en-Provence, the beauty of Isle-sur-la-Sorgue with its canals and waterwheels, the quirkiness of Cadenet, centre for the production of wicker baskets in the 18^th Century, the ‘luxe’ of Gordes, a small very upscale and beautiful hilltop town, the atmosphere of Carpentras, where the market has been held each Friday since 1155!

Of course, food is the star of most markets and the ones in Provence do not disappoint. There are artistic displays of beautiful seasonal produce, roasted chickens, fresh fish, huge paellas, honey, herbs, spices, sausages and more varieties of olives than we knew existed. Most travelers can only look longingly at this bounty as they go back to their hotels and restaurant dinners... but not O! France guests!

We will have a beautiful villa as our home for the week. Not only do we avoid endless packing, unpacking, and moving around every couple of days, but we get to prepare wonderful feasts with our market purchases for dinner. Dinners at home are an O! France trademark and have been among the most memorable part of our tours.

By shopping at the markets and preparing our own dinners, I have been able to reduce the usual cost of an O! France Provence week by almost $1000 per person, which will appeal to all these shoppers out there whose budget has to stretch to cover their multiple purchases!

Our week is loosely based on a wonderful book: Markets of Provence, by Ruthanne Long. But we will do more than shop the markets. There will be an olive oil mill tour, a visit to the beautiful towns of Lourmarin and Roussillon, an art show projected on ancient quarries that is not to be missed…

The cost of this week is $2500 per person based on double occupancy which represents an outstanding value as almost all expenses except for lunches are included:

• Transfers to and from Avignon TGV train station
• Seven night’s accommodation in a beautiful villa (on a double share basis – all rooms have twin beds)
• All transportation in a minibus
• All breakfasts
• All dinners - with wine of course
• Admission to any attractions on the trip
• Tour of an olive oil mill
• A Provençal welcome gift

Due to the layout of the villa (there are 5 twin rooms available) and the way the rooms are priced, we cannot accommodate single occupancies. I know there are women who travel solo and would love to join this group – we can definitely match up roommates who are willing to share.

For more information please call Hélène at 905-510-2684 or email at hbuisson@ofrance.ca

Cheers!

Jim and Hélène
www.arthursellers.com
jaswalker@arthursellers.com
hbuisson@ofrance.ca