Provence with Aaron Barnett

Bienvenue à Marseilles! France’s ‘second’ city is one of the busiest seaports in Europe, with a buzzing energy, an infectious charm, and a sprawling patchwork of cultural influences: Provençal and Corsican, North African and Arab. We’ll dive right in at the Vieux Port, in the heart of Marseilles’ old town and continue our walking tour past Le Panier and through the electric streets toward La Catedral de la Major.

After this orientation for the senses, we’ll relax at our hotel or continue exploring Marseilles’ cobblestoned streets and steep twisting alleyways. We’ll reconvene for cocktails on our terrace before rolling up our sleeves and diving in to a one-of-a-kind cooking workshop at Michelin-starred Alcyone. Here, alongside Aaron and a local chef, we’ll celebrate the traditionnel and moderne sides of Provençal cuisine, and make our way through a stunning five-course meal with regional wine pairings. This is true immersive indulgence and the only proper way to begin your journey through Provence. 

Today, we gather ingredients for an only-in-Provence elevated picnic. In the morning, we leave the city behind and point our compass to Aix-en-Provence for a walking tour and a visit to their legendary farmer’s market. Here we’ll meet with two local chefs, and together with Aaron, they’ll procure the raw material for a fresh, local lunch.

Armed with aromatic spices and stalks upon stalks of vegetables, we’ll make the short jaunt to Villa des Chefs for a special meal prepared by Aaron. As he slices and dices our market-fresh ingredients, Aaron will share with us the nuances of preparation which bring the true essence out of every single vegetable.

After lunch, it’s off to tour one of the cultural gems of Marseilles, Notre-Dame de la Garde. Originally a medieval church, this basilica was rebuilt in the 1800s and remains a focal point of the region today. After touring the site and relishing in the incredible views from its limestone perch, we’ll return to our hotel for some well-earned rest and relaxation.

You’ll have the evening to embellish as you wish. A tapas style bodega dinner? Michelin star-dining? An art walk? Perhaps, you’ll do all three.

After a leisurely breakfast, we’ll walk to the port and board our private boat for a cruise through stunning Parc National des Calanques. Majestic limestone cliffs tower above narrow fjord-like channels of turquoise waters and golden beaches—the national park’s landscape is unique in the world. We’ll explore by sea, with plenty of time for swimming and soaking up the sun deck-side. Lunch on board is a light and local—Provençal cheese and charcuterie accompanied by a full-bodied white from the fishing village of Cassis, a tiny appellation that produces highly prized white wines in a region famous for its rosés.

We’ll have free time late this afternoon back in Marseilles to flaneur our way around and maybe join a game of pétanque at one of the city’s many tree-lined parks.

Another night, another Michelin star. Tonight, we’ll dine at Ludovic Turac’s Une Table au Sud, overlooking the harbor. Chef Turac is one of the youngest chefs ever to earn a Michelin star; tonight we celebrate the catch-of-the-day, every dish a remixed interpretation of standard Mediterranean fare. 

Today, we celebrate 500 years of Provençal history and hospitality with a visit to an elegant estate, which has been making wine and olive oil since the 15th century. We’ll be greeted on the castle grounds with a flight of their flagship wines. Soon after the tasting, we’ll move onto a more golden nectar…olive oil. Provençal olive oil is some of the best in the world, and here Aaron will wax poetic as we sample a handful of varietals that they’ve perfected over the centuries. A storybook lunch is next featuring heritage wine pairings and ingredients plucked fresh from the sprawling estate.     

After strolling the grounds one last time, we’ll return to our hotel for appetizers, followed by a leisurely tour of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

Dinner tonight is on your own. We’ll see you bright and early tomorrow.

Provence’s colors and texture—its ancient ruins and medieval villages, its dappled fields and swirling skies—have inspired artists like Van Gogh, Cézanne and Picasso for generations. Today, we’ll head to the town of Arles and stand in awe of Provençal art and ecology.

Our first stop is the gardens of  La Chassagnette, which has earned a rare Michelin ‘green’ star, recognizing culinary excellence and an unparalleled commitment to sustainability. After a tour of their grounds, we’ll lunch on local dishes sourced straight from the delta, including the Camargue’s legendary red rice.

After the meal, our learning experience continues at Luma Arles, a newly opened, 27-acre arts complex with a spectacular tower designed by Frank Gehry. This is no mere museum; it’s an interdisciplinary creative campus offering a total environment at the intersection of art and ecology, and an homage to the unique ecosystem of the surrounding Camargue wetlands. As late afternoon descends through breaks in the willow groves, we’ll return to the hotel for a classic Provençal experience—a hyperlocal wine and cheese tasting paired with a light and lively dinner.

Today it’s off to the countryside to take in Provence’s stunning beauty by bike. We’ll hop on our e-bikes and climb up gentle hills, through the vineyards, by and past picture-perfect villages and up into the medieval hilltop town of Les-Baux-de-Provence, perched on a rocky outcrop crowned with a ruined castle. The town, inaccessible by car, is a storybook of cobbled alleyways, Renaissance facades and several magnificent hôtels particuliers that have been revived as art galleries and museums.

After soaking up the view and the history, we’ll meander down the hill into the heart of the Alpilles mountains to Carrières des Lumières, an immersive art museum etched into the limestone of a former quarry, with larger-than-life multimedia works by Cézanne, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Kandinsky and Dalí among others. We’ll bike back to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence for an afternoon to relax and explore on our own.

In the early evening we’ll reconvene for the ultimate pièce de résistance of our trip, a farewell dinner scripted by Aaron, a celebration of our time together and a meal as rich and enchanting as Provence itself.

It’s our last day, and after breakfast we’ll bid adieu to Aaron, and to our fellow explorers. Then we’ll head to the airport in Marseilles, renewed and invigorated by the food, drink and memories of Provence. Until we meet again!