Pivoine: Avignon to Sète

You’re welcomed aboard Pivoine in Avignon by your dedicated crew and guide. Toast the start of your adventure with chilled champagne. After settling into your generous cabin, enjoy an early-evening cocktail cruise past the famous medieval bridge, Pont Saint-Bénezet (also known as the Pont d’Avignon). Later, enjoy your first gastronomic experience on board, a perfect blend of seasonal delicacies, irresistible wines and balmy views.

After a delicious breakfast of tempting pastries and local treats, step out on a walking tour of Avignon. This stunning walled city was the home of the Popes from 1309-77. Visit the magnificent Palais des Papes, the former papal palace — don’t miss the gardens with views across the river to Villeneuve-les-Avignon. Enjoy free time to shop, sit in a gorgeous square watching the world go by or sample Avignon’s café society. Return to the barge for lunch and an afternoon cruise towards Vallabrègues. From here, you enjoy an excursion to marvel at the historic Pont du Gard, a monumental, three-tiered aqueduct built by the Romans in the first century. Dinner is served on board tonight.

As you savour breakfast on board this morning, you will be able to admire two spectacular fortresses, Beaucaire and Tarascon. Mid-morning, you leave the Rhône and enter the Canal du Rhône à Sète: gateway to the Camargue. After lunch, arrive in the small hamlet of Galician and join your guide for a fascinating tour of Arles. With extraordinary Roman ruins, shady boulevards and colourful houses baking beneath the sun, Arles famously inspired the artist Van Gogh to paint hundreds of works here from 1888-9. Return to the barge late afternoon and anticipate a delectable dinner on board.

Today, enjoy a morning excursion to a lavender farm. Step into a fragrant dreamland where hues of purple paint the landscape and the air is filled with a symphony of soothing scents. Return to Pivoine and cruise to Aigues-Mortes. Disembark with your guide to visit the medieval walled town where Louis IX launched two Crusades to the Holy Land in 1248 and 1270. Drenched in fascinating history, the imposing walls, ramparts and towers also conceal a charming and lively hub of shops, markets and cafes. Grasp the photographic opportunities before enjoying lunch at local, finedining restaurant. This afternoon’s cruise takes you through the salt marshes, a spellbinding haven for pink flamingos and other wildlife. Dinner tonight is served on board.

Continue cruising through the iconic marshes this morning, admiring the otherworldly scenery of pink-tinged salt flats and serene lagoons. After lunch on the barge, your guide takes you to Mèze. Board the Mansathau oyster boat to glide across the Étang de Thau, a vast saltwater lake renowned for its oysters and mussels, delicacies that you will be invited to sample. Return to Pivoine in Villeneuve-lès-Maguelone, where you spend the evening immersed in one of the Camargue’s most spectacular landscapes. Relax with an aperitif on deck before dinner is served.

Today, after a morning cruise, alight to explore Sète, whose intricate network of streets, canals and bridges has led to the town being called the ‘Venice of Languedoc’. Late morning, take a short drive to the beautiful seaside port of Commented [JP1]: Have these two sentences been mistakenly repeated or is there a cruise through the salt marshes on both days? If both days we need to give some different details Marseillan, where you will enjoy lunch at an alfresco restaurant serving the freshest seafood. Before returning to the boat, embark on a sensory journey at the NoillyPrat factory, where the air is infused with an aromatic alchemy of herbs and spices. Witness the meticulous craft of vermouth-making as skilled artisans blend flavours in oak barrels. Conclude your visit with a tasting, savouring the rich heritage of this iconic French aperitif. Back on board, your chef is busy preparing an epicurean farewell feast. Relish the enchanting ambience as you exchange stories of your extraordinary trip.

Please check out this morning by 09:00. 

After breakfast, your crew bids you farewell as you disembark for your onward travel arrangements. We look forward to welcoming you back on board soon. 

Please note, in exceptional circumstances it may be necessary to alter the route without prior notice.