Environment
St. Martin de Castillon is a beautiful authentic Provencal village at walking distance from the camping (± 45 minutes).
At short distance from the campsite you can find plenty cultural, natural and culinairy entertainment.
The Luberon is known for its natural beauty, its great walking possibilities and the vast amount of diverse activities that can help to create a pleasant holiday.
In the large cities within a one hour driving radius (e.g. Aix en Provence, Avignon, Arles and Marseille) you can find a lot of cultural sights.
The Provence was the domain of the "painters of light", which is demonstrated in the museums in the larger cities.
There are several lavender routes that offer the possibility to visit a lavender distillery and several wine routes that offer the possibility to visit a château (wine cellar) or participate in a wine tasting session.
The Mediterranean sea with its beaches, the Calanques (creeks) near Cassis, the old harbour of Marseille, the lake of St. Croix and the Gorges du Verdon (a huge canyon) are some of the more popular daytrips.
The Mediterranean sea is about a five quarters drive from the campsite and has more than enough places to visit the beach or to enjoy yourself on a terrace. The Gorges du Verdon and the lake of St. Croix are about a five quarter drive as well. You can rent canoes and pedal boats.
Cycling enthousiasts and mountain bikers have all their wishes forfilled at the Mont Ventoux.
The Montagne de Lure and the Luberon as a whole offer many cycling routes and cols to climb.
Shopping
In the surroundings of the camping you find a variety of opportunities to do your shopping:
- St. Martin de Castillon has a small, cosey village shop.
- Apt, Forcalquier and Manosque have supermarkets.
- The larger places have their shopping streets.
- Céreste (or any other small village) has several small shops.
- Provencal markets are held in most of the villages and towns.
- Alongside the road, on a farm or with a winegrower.
In the shopping streets of Apt you will find nice shops. Take special notice of the butchers (boucherie) where you can buy the most wonderful catering meals. Just heat them on the camping, add a nice salad and bread and you will have a fantastic dinner! At the Provencal bakeries (boulangerie-pâtisserie) you can also find the most delicious "ready for use" snacks; cooking will be a piece of cake.
On the magnificent Provencal markets you can buy all kinds of things. Cold cuts, cheese, vegetables and fruit, fresh fish, bread, biological products, etcetera. But also: grilled chicken, pizza, paëlla and other ready to use products. Every market is a spectacle of colors: Provencal fabrics, pottery and products for tourists.
Every Saturday morning one of the largest markets of the Provence is held in Apt.
Restaurants
The Provence is the place par excellence to have a nice meal.
Lamb, fish, crustaceans and shellfish, fresh vegetables and fruit, a variety of cheese, cold cuts and sausages. All of these are products that the Provence is known for.
Lunch (12:00-13:30) as well as dinner (from 19:30) are 'hot' meals in this area.
Imagine this: an early breakfast, a nice trip in the morning and then treat yourself to lunch on the terrace of an unknown village.
Let them surprise you with the "menu du jour". For about 15 Euro (sometimes even less) you'll have a feast. We also recommend a "Salade composée" with bread and a pichet (carafe) of wine or a cold beer!
For a nice dinner you can visit several cute restaurants in the neighborhood, ranging from simple to a high culinary level.
We have tips for nice restaurants.