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You, too, could Get Lost in Provence and have the experience of a lifetime, rugged, beautiful and amazing!

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Smartdates allow you to save 100's on your travel budget per passenger…. just by reviewing your travel dates! 

We have now spent over twenty years providing high-quality holiday accommodation. In our continued search for improved ideas for people who want to get away from it all at a reasonable price, we have developed Smartdates. 

This policy now allows people on smaller travel budgets to obtain quality accommodation for the same price as cheaper but less comfortable holiday accommodation. 

If you are a frequent flyer, you will know that some days of the week are less expensive than others (especially on low-cost airlines). Therefore, if you book a Thursday and save money and time at the airport and car hire queues.

* Smartdates are available from Jan to the end of June and Sept to the beginning of Dec.; if there is sufficient demand for the main season, we will make them available as well.

HOW TO GET HERE

Depending on where you live, the best way to get here is via Marseille Airport with its specialised budget airline terminal known as MP2.

This hub now caters to multiple European destinations and all the principal intercontinental hubs. MP2: Marseilles has the advantage of only being about 1hr.15mins from us by road.

The current destinations supported directly from this airport are shown on MP2's site.

Big Tips

Flights from regional centre airports in the UK are generally cheaper than those from London or South East England airports (Stanstead, Heathrow, City, Gatwick, Luton). This applies even if you are looking at the same Airline. Recently, I have been using Birmingham as the entrance point to the UK at a huge saving, especially in the Peak period. (Note: Airlines continuously change their schedules and airports, so please check.)

EASYCAR: I have recently learned that Easycar provides excellent savings over the other tie-ins with the leading airlines (even Easyjet). You still get to the leading car hire companies by a broker. You should check the rates out at: http://www.easycar.com/

Please note, however, that you must stick to your original planned rental; otherwise, the excesses are very strict. I've experienced it personally.

'CARHIRE 3000. com' is another similar company:  http://www.carhire3000.com/ which also offers reasonable rates and a 10% discount on advanced bookings. I imagine the penalty position is the same.

FLIGHTS

Easyjet (Linked car hire Europcar)

Easyjet now has a permanent hub at Marseille airport MP2 and offers a great series of flights.

http://www.easyjet.com/en/book/index.asp

British Airways

http://www.britishairways.com/travel/globalgateway.jsp/global/public/en_

Ryan Air

Ryan Air now has a permanent hub at Marseille Airport MP2 and offers a great series of flights.

http://www.ryanair.ie/

Please note you could be adventurous and have a two-centre holiday in different locations using MP2 as your cross-over point, i.e. Provence with us for a week and then on to Morocco for the subsequent return via MP2 to home.

Other near Airports:

If you can not get a flight direct to Marseille, try Nice. Some direct international flights will provide you with the pleasure of an extra night to see this area, and you can, believe it or not, stay in Monaco far cheaper than before. Check out  Hotels in Monaco  

Or you can also try Nimes, as there are now some direct flights here. Try flights through London as it is a significant hub for the rest of Europe.

You can then pick up a good rental at Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Easycar and be here within 2.30 hrs approx. (from Nimes or Nice) rather than spending 3 - 4 times the time coming down from Paris. 

Road and Rail

My research has shown that if you are coming from another continent or country outside mainland Europe, i.e. the US or the UK, you would be better off using a company like Easyjet, British Airways or Ryan Air, hiring a car through, say, Europcar or Hertz ( you can get a good discount) and then driving up from Marseilles. 

When I did a cost comparison driving from London to here for a family of four, if you take all the costs, including wear and tear, on your vehicle, you come off better with the air/hire car method. Add to this the advantage that you can gain two extra days of relaxation, and it becomes a serious contender for first choice.

If you live on the continental mainland of Europe, a car drive is financially better, but there are so many new budget carriers (see the MP2 list above) that this changes very quickly. Also, if you are coming for only a week, then why get tired on a long car journey? After all, you are going on holiday!

The French national summer holidays are the 15th of July and the 15th of August. These two periods are split roughly 50/50 into two weekly periods; therefore, the first weekend near the 15th of July, the nearest weekend in the middle two weeks later and the weekend nearest to the 15th of August are signalled as RED heavy traffic. The first weekend is going south, the second is going north and south, and the third weekend is going north.

Jan to July and the end of August onwards are good months for driving, but we allow 7 hours from Paris.

The TGV has very competitive prices now, including arrival choices at Aix en Provence, Avignon or Marseilles. (Where you can hire vehicles). These high-speed services are dependable and run to the minute of their timetables.

The nearest station to us is the one further South; being Aix en Provence, it is easier to get to us because it is nearer to the A51 autoroute (freeway, motorway).

The run from Paris takes precisely 3 hours. I have used it often and have been very impressed.

The SNCF (French rail service) also offers roll-on-roll-off car transport on specific timetables on a different train. It's well worth looking into if you are touring. 

Here is the SNCF French Railways train and ticket price search page, with other language options available.

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