One Perfect Week in Provence With Kids (2026): Paris, Crillon le Brave & Gordes
Provence is the region most people picture when they imagine France — lavender fields, hilltop villages, rosé at lunch, olive groves running to the horizon. With kids, it delivers on that promise more reliably than almost anywhere else in the country. The pace is slow, the food is extraordinary, and the landscape is beautiful enough that children respond to it without needing to be entertained. We did one week — Paris first, then two stops in Provence — and it was one of the best family trips we've taken in Europe.
Here's the itinerary.
Getting There: Paris to Provence
Fly into Paris. Spend two to three days in the city — see our Paris With Kids guide for the full breakdown. From Paris, take the TGV train to Avignon — fast, convenient, and one of the better European train journeys for children who can manage two hours. From Avignon, rent a car. Provence is best explored with your own transport — the villages, vineyards, and landscapes that make the region special are between the towns rather than in them.
Colonnes de Buren in Palais Royal Gardens are always fun for kids and adults.
Stop One: Paris
Two to three nights, depending on how much time you have. If this is your first Paris visit with kids, the Palais Royal Gardens are non-negotiable — the Buren columns in the courtyard are genuinely irresistible to children, who climb and jump between them for as long as you let them. Café Kitsuné on the corner for coffee while they run. The Bateaux Rouge boat on the Seine runs frequently and is easy to book day-of — good for an afternoon when you want everyone to sit still and see the city from the water. Carousels appear throughout the city and are inexpensive and universally effective.
For where to stay, where to eat, and everything else, see our Paris With Kids guide.
One of the suites at Hotel Madame Reve
Hotel Madame Reve — Our Paris base for this trip. In the 2nd arrondissement, walking distance to the main sights, with a rooftop that's worth using for an early evening drink once the kids are down.
Stop Two: Hotel Crillon le Brave
Two to three nights. Train to Avignon, then a 45-minute drive northeast through vineyards and dry stone walls into the foothills of Mont Ventoux — one of the most beautiful drives in Provence.
Late-afternoon swim in Crillon le Brave’s beautiful pool overlooking the surrounding area.
Hotel Crillon le Brave is a historic Provençal village that has been converted into a five-star hotel — not a hotel designed to look like a village, but an actual collection of stone buildings dating back centuries, connected by alleys and stairways and unexpected courtyards. The pool looks out over the surrounding valley and terraced vineyards. The late-afternoon swim with that view is one of the better family moments of the entire trip.
The hotel has bikes available for exploring the surrounding area — we rode to a nearby vineyard, which is the kind of afternoon that doesn't require any planning and delivers completely. The restaurant, La Madeleine, serves dinner in the village square in summer. Good Provençal cooking, excellent local wine, and children running between the restaurant tables in the evening light — exactly what a summer dinner in France should feel like.
One of the many nooks in the old village converted to the beautifully renovated Hotel Crillon Le Brave.
What to do in the area: Mont Ventoux is the dominant feature of the landscape. Day trips to Les Baux-de-Provence, Roussillon for the ochre cliffs, and the Luberon villages are all within reach from Crillon le Brave. The Provence Saturday market in Carpentras is 15 minutes away and worth building a morning around — fresh produce, local cheese, lavender products, and the organized chaos that makes French markets so good.
The hotel has bikes to explore the surrounding area.
Stop Three: Airelles, La Bastide de Gordes
Two nights. A 40-minute drive south into the Luberon, to the perched village of Gordes — one of the most photographed towns in France, for good reason. Airelles sits at the edge of the village with views over the valley and the surrounding countryside that are genuinely as good as the photographs suggest.
Pool at Airelles, La Bastide de Gordes has incredible views of Gordes and the surrounding countryside.
Airelles La Bastide de Gordes operates at a level of service that extends specifically to children — a detail worth calling out because it's not always true at this category of hotel. Welcome gifts for kids on arrival, dedicated kids' menus at every meal, a summer camp program during the season, a game room, and outdoor activities on the grounds. Our kids had the full experience and it held up. The pool has some of the best views in Provence — overlooking Gordes and the valley beyond, which makes every swim more photogenic than the last.
Gordes itself: Slightly touristy but genuinely beautiful — a medieval village built into the rock face with views in every direction. Worth walking the streets slowly rather than just seeing it from the hotel. The Abbey of Sénanque, with its lavender fields in front of the Romanesque abbey church, is about 10 minutes from Gordes and the single most iconic image of Provence. Go in late June or early July for the lavender at its peak.
Visiting a nearby vineyard on our bike ride around the area.
Day trips from Gordes: The Luberon is full of village markets, olive oil producers, and lavender farms. Ménerbes, Bonnieux, and Lacoste are all within 20 minutes and each worth a morning. The Pont du Gard — the best-preserved Roman aqueduct in the world — is about an hour away and genuinely impressive for children who can engage with the scale of it.
Practical Notes
Car rental: Essential from Avignon onward. The villages and landscapes that make Provence worth the trip are not accessible by public transport. Rent at Avignon TGV station for the most convenient pickup.
Wandering Palais Royal Gardens in Paris.
Driving: Roads in Provence are narrow, particularly into the hilltop villages. An automatic transmission makes it easier. Budget extra time for the mountain roads around Mont Ventoux.
Language: French throughout. English is less reliably spoken in rural Provence than in Paris — a few words of French go a long way and are always appreciated.
Food with kids: Provençal restaurants are genuinely good with children. The regional food — fresh vegetables, grilled meat, fish, cheese, good bread — suits children naturally without requiring a special menu. Don't over-manage it.
Wandering the streets of Gordes.
When to Go
Late May through early July is the best window — lavender blooms in late June, the weather is warm without the August heat, and the villages haven't yet reached peak tourist season. September is equally good and often better value. August is beautiful but crowded — every French family is on holiday simultaneously and the most popular villages fill up.
FAQs About Provence With Kids
Is Provence good for families? Yes — one of the best regions in France for family travel. The pace, the landscape, the food, and the manageable driving distances between highlights make it well suited for children of all ages.
How do you get from Paris to Provence? TGV train from Paris Gare de Lyon to Avignon TGV — about 2.5 hours. Then rent a car. It's the most practical routing for families.
How many days do you need in Provence? Five to seven days for the region alone. Our one-week itinerary including Paris covers the highlights without feeling rushed, but more time in each place would always be welcome.
Is a car essential in Provence? Yes. Public transport between villages is limited and the best experiences in the region require your own transport.