Welcome to Mas des Etoiles in Gordes, Luberon, Provence.  We tried to have a user-friendly approach.It is not yet totally completed. In fact it must be a living thing.

Main features to-day are :

- Many pictures with slide-shows. It is developped in particular for the Rooms Presentation, the overall review of  the B&B ( See EXPRESS TOUR), photos  of a few guest “live” !

- It is not a Tourist Guide,  but we endeavoured to give specific information to help the guest to take the best of his stay with us. These sections should be in continuous progress.

We have started to have a few links with guests or even  one of our 3 daugthers – Agathe – ’s blog, which features day-to -day life of a French Family (and photos taken here last Christmas with the kids).

Also we have a special link with Brasil, as we made friends with a very nice Brasilian Blogger – Jorge Bernardes -and his wife,    His narration of  his visit to Provence brought to us many guests who, themselves brought new ones etc … We recommend a visit of this blog as he explains very well what to see in Provence.

The other blog by  : “Confession of a Serendipitous Girl “  by Phil & Jen Rogers of Portland, Oregon, is also very interesting because they are traveling a lot and you also enter the current life of a smart American Family.

We have also made a link with Tripadvisor as there are comments  by guests explaining what they got.  ( There is a very bad  comment  coming from  an unfuriated and bad-mannered lady which had an unbelievable attitude, this happens.  It’s better not to meet her either for business or socially).  Annette has a lot to say about that. We cannot leave that unreplied.

Annette has started to-day with her own contribution to the website : She wills to make something on decoration etc , everything she likes. The first post is on how to do a “Tarte Tatin” !

She called the section (see above right) : The Angels’ Corner. I don’t know to whom she is referring.

The website will be in several languages but for the beginning we intend to mix French and English as most of our environment at least reads English. It is a pure homemade product started in the first days of  February. So be indulgent.

You will love this area between, let’s say Maubec and Bonnieux. Last Spring I went direct to Oppede (don’t be confused : Almost all villages in Luberon have a more modern neighbor with the same name. The reason is the villages originally were on the hills to have a natural protection with walls etc… As the risk decreased, people started to live in the valley. So there are 2 Maubecs, 2 Oppede and so on.

The begining of the tour is at Maubec, the old village. You must absolutely go first to the camping ( first turnabout at Robion and left). There you have  a scenery with two “campaniles” in a very quiet environment. You will see a superb estate and when you are in front of the campanile you look back at the mountain. You go down, you will see “La Bergerie ” one of our favorite restaurants on the left, and then you follow the Bike Road (special signs). Far away, you will see the Oppede Castle and the chapelle. From there, you take one of the small roads and you get to park in Oppede. There is no alternative. You pay but you are right where you have to be? And the park area looks secure. So then you visit 1- The Sainte Ceceile gardens and you go uphill to the Chapelle. This is very worhwile and you have a very good view.

After that, you go down through a hamlet named Les Minguets. There is a small store on the left ” Les Atrtisanales de Provence”. They sell in particular exquisite jams and other local products. Then YOU TRY TO GET LOST … in the direction of Menerbes. And you will make a lot of discoveries. If you follow my map anyway, you will arrive in Menerbes with the best view. Normally, you won’t have  enough time to visit Menerbes which is a bit rude. Best is to go to Abbaye St Hilaire and Lacoste without wasting too  much time. Abbaye Saint Hilaire is real rewarding. They explain you well the story. In Lacoste it is important to find the way to go just behind the castle. There is the best view and often Pierre  Cardin is displaying modern scultures. You will see Bonnieux in front of you. Bonnieux is an austere place and if you have little time don’t try to visit. As it is a 2-level village you can get exhausted very fast. And it is mostly North-oriented so in the shade, and cold.

All small roads below Lacoste are very good. In fact during this trip, you will meet very few tourists ! They all are in Gordes or Roussillon. All this tour can take 2-4 hours, depending on the stops. If you do it in the morning, what we recommend because of the light, you must have a reservation for a restaurant for a quick lunch. Good options would be Café de la Poste in Goult or Caf&é de la Gare in Bonnieux (it is not exactly in Bonnieux but onthe road to D900, almost in fronty of the Cave Vinicole de Bonnieux).

An interesting spot near-by is the Pont Romain (Roman Bridge)..

In the afternoon, a good idea is to head to Roussillon.  In fact there is also several lunch possibilities over there. One is Les Glycines right in the center. You have a very nice terrace and a view on the ochres.

The great cities of Provence – Aix, Arles, Avignon, Marseille – have different qualities. We most recomment to visit Aix-en-Provence and Arles first.

To visit a city, the best advice we can give is don’t try to do too much. You must take time, sit, people-watch, absorb the atmosphere and personality of the city … and feel well.

Aix-en-Provence old center

Aix is handsome with a kind of sophisticated style. It looks attractive, wealthy , with many trendy stores, a lot of young people (there is a good University). In fact it is known as one of the best cities to live in France. As a tourist you will see France almost at its best with many good characteristics of our Country. What we call “Quality of Life”. And finally we are proud of this city. Everybody wants to live here. You can walk easily and get to most of the city in less of a day… A place we have on our list of potentialities, Annette and I, for the “next step” …

Arles is different. It is smaller but there you have a very well preserved side of Provence. Quiet and you can imagine very well the olden times back to the Romans. Arles is to-day in the headlines as a statue of julius Caesar has just been found in the river with many other artifacts of the Roman City. A new Archeological Museum seems to have a lot of interest.

We advise to clearly forget Marseille. he city is just too huge (the second largest in France) and specific. It’s like NYC for a Frenchman on the first time. In general it is out of the scope.

Avignon : Le Palais des Papes

And Avignon, why not ? Avignon is the closest from us largest city. It has a lot of History. But something goes wrong : Impossible to drive, a lot of unusual people, a dispersed center without unity. So it is good for a few spots like Palais des Papes or the famous Pont d’Avignon and that’s it. We would prefer much Villeneuve-lez-Avignon which is “human” and has a lot of spirit.

Anyway, in Avignon, a critical point is resoled when you know taht there is a unique excellent parking lot almost under the Palais des Papes. You get there from the Rhone River banks. It’s easy. We have a map.

To go back to Aix and Arles …

La Montagne Ste Victoire

Aix is about one hour from Gordes. Our advice is to go with the highway A7 you will take at Avignon Sud (Exit 31). It is better to avoid Cavaillon which is messy and you never know when you are going to get out. A7 has no interest except that you go very fast and you arrive in Aix fresh for doing things. An alternative is to go there through Cheval Blanc and Rognes ( look on the map). On the way back you might try to come back through Lourmarin or the N7. However on these roads do not expect to be fast and better take your time. In Aix, the parking might be a problem if you are not prepared. This city trafic is a nightmare if you get lost.We have a map for you and you will be very close from Cours Mirabeau which is the center spot. Our advice is you hae a lunch in one of the restaurants of Cours Mirabeau or near-by. We have a few good ones on hand.

Another point : Aix is at the foot of Montagne Sainte Victoire. For me, it is one of the most fascinating mountain in Provence. You might have a glimpse to it. There are several ways to do it. One scenic one is to take the road to Pourrieres and to comeback by A8.

Arles is also about one hour from us. But the approach is very different as you can combine several things and have an exceptional day.

Arles, a well-preserved city

I am not going to describe this city in detail. It is charming but it is up to you to appreciate.

To get there I recommend to take the small road from Orgon to Eygalière, Maussane, les Baux (Cathedrale d’Images and the old village), Fontvielle. All these names are worth spending time just to have interesting time : An oil farm here, a brocante there , a defile of guardians fiercely mounted on their horses and cows, a bistro etc …, If you stop in Saint Remy the risk is you don’t have enough time either to take benefit of Arles. Arles is a good spot to have a dinner on a terrace. Then come back with the highway. It’s easy.

Of course, Saint Remy is worth mentionning. Like Lourmarin, it is one of the jet set point of high reputation. There you can cross Caroline de Monaco or famous show bizz personalities I will not detail. You get fancy shops ans also a fine atmosphere in the small streets.

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Around the Property

Les Baux and Saint Rémy …