Plateau de Valensole
Plateau de Valensole
4.5
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Top ways to experience Plateau de Valensole
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
8 within 3 miles
Attractions
20 within 6 miles
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
260 reviews
Excellent
199
Very good
51
Average
5
Poor
2
Terrible
3
These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
This service may contain translations provided by Google. Google disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to translations, including any warranties of accuracy, reliability, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from forgery.
Davide L
Vercelli, Piedmont, Italy130 contributions
Jul 2024 • Couples
First time in Provence to photograph the bloom of lavender.
Spectacular landscapes, shame the
A flood of tourists entering the fields for souvenir gifts and selfies... really intrusive, and often disrespectful of the property and work of farmers. Although there were numerous signs not to collect lavender, people could be seen leaving with huge bundles of lavender....
A very positive experience
Spectacular landscapes, shame the
A flood of tourists entering the fields for souvenir gifts and selfies... really intrusive, and often disrespectful of the property and work of farmers. Although there were numerous signs not to collect lavender, people could be seen leaving with huge bundles of lavender....
A very positive experience
Automatically translated
Written July 8, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dmitrii Marinkevich
Manosque, France268 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
We are lucky - we live just 15 mine ride from this place. It’s dream of many ladies to visit these fields and to take photos. We found several great locations with breathtaking views. We had photo session with pro photographer one day. We also visited it with our friend and took photos.
You can find place to park your car. Some owners do not like that people come to their field.
You can find place to park your car. Some owners do not like that people come to their field.
Written July 21, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karen G
3 contributions
Jun 2023
Visited mid June 2023. The lavender fields were not as plentiful as we had hoped, apparently due to lots of rain a week or so before. It's nature so it's always a gamble. The fields we did see were lovely but not a deep a purple as I thought they would be. Also visited a beautiful village where you could hike up to a church with a star hanging in the gap between two large rock formations. Ensure whoever you are booking with is flexible and will go to fields that are actually in bloom. Good day.
Written July 8, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
dgjohansson
Ronneby, Sweden1,620 contributions
Jun 2018 • Couples
Having traveled around most of Provence I must say that this is THE spot to see lavender. No other place that I saw was even close to it. A good tour would be starting by entering from the south-west (D6) driving towards Valensole village. After that head eastward to Riez and then up towards Puimoisson before heading back to Valensole. You will pass some amazing fields this way and with roadside parking available too (they have warnings signs about photographing tourists on the road).
Written July 10, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Malkoppie
South Africa1,608 contributions
Jun 2018 • Couples
In mid June, a week before the lavender festival started, the fields were just starting to bloom. I wish we could have visited one or 2 weeks later for the full visual impact. The fragrance of lavender and sage hangs heavy in the air.
I googled before hand, hovering my little "street view man" over the roads to see where all the photos are taken. We enjoyed the D8, which was not busy and we could stop wherever we wanted. Of course everyone else has the same idea, so sometimes you have to wait quite a while for people to move out of the landscape if you want to take a photograph.
One thing I noticed was that locals don't have too much patience with the careless tourists crossing the roads and I can imagine that there are many nasty accidents. Please watch your children. Hold onto them if you are anywhere near a road. The roads are fairly narrow, which is a problem if 2 cars come from different directions. There is no space for them to move over in order to avoid a surprise pedestrian popping out of the fields.
I googled before hand, hovering my little "street view man" over the roads to see where all the photos are taken. We enjoyed the D8, which was not busy and we could stop wherever we wanted. Of course everyone else has the same idea, so sometimes you have to wait quite a while for people to move out of the landscape if you want to take a photograph.
One thing I noticed was that locals don't have too much patience with the careless tourists crossing the roads and I can imagine that there are many nasty accidents. Please watch your children. Hold onto them if you are anywhere near a road. The roads are fairly narrow, which is a problem if 2 cars come from different directions. There is no space for them to move over in order to avoid a surprise pedestrian popping out of the fields.
Written January 16, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tatjana V
Morges, Switzerland753 contributions
Jul 2019 • Family
There are two different Valensole, it is important to choose the right one, namely 14210-Valensole. If you go from Menton, the journey will take 10 hours to see the lavender fields, take beautiful photos, visit the shops with lavender products, have lunch and arrive back home. But it's worth it. It was a beautiful and unforgettable day.
Written July 11, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
PandaHouston
Houston, TX6,115 contributions
Jul 2018 • Couples
We stayed in Aix en Provence and headed to Valensole during early morning - arriving around 8 am and in the afternoon. We visited Valensole on July 2 and the lavender was a very lovely purple color. It was simply amazing.
If you can, rent a car because you affords you the flexibility of stopping wherever you want and for however long you want. However, be careful about speed traps. We realized we got a speeding ticket a few days after we returned the car. Apparently the radar cameras will catch you speeding. That morning we were on the way to Valensole and got the ticket on the turn off from Manosque to Valensole. We were only going 57 km in a 50 km zone. Our fine was a hefty 90 euros.
Also, if you are scared of bees, there are a lot of bees in the field. And not all of them are maintained the same. Some have more weeds than others. Some have more rocks and some have more soil. We really enjoyed photographing the beautiful lavender.
If you can, rent a car because you affords you the flexibility of stopping wherever you want and for however long you want. However, be careful about speed traps. We realized we got a speeding ticket a few days after we returned the car. Apparently the radar cameras will catch you speeding. That morning we were on the way to Valensole and got the ticket on the turn off from Manosque to Valensole. We were only going 57 km in a 50 km zone. Our fine was a hefty 90 euros.
Also, if you are scared of bees, there are a lot of bees in the field. And not all of them are maintained the same. Some have more weeds than others. Some have more rocks and some have more soil. We really enjoyed photographing the beautiful lavender.
Written July 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
meadow_grass
Dublin16 contributions
Jul 2018 • Friends
We stayed in Saint-Martin-de-Bromes and spent 2 days exploring the area. The endless lavender fields, smell, sound of bees and cicadas made such incredible combination of ideal relaxation...
Written July 26, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Foodange
Manchester, UK4,704 contributions
Jul 2019
If you’re visiting here, then seeing the lavender and sunflower fields at their best should be top of your list. It’s always difficult to decide when to go and how to avoid the crowds as it’s basically July.
We saw lavender in bloom everywhere and also noticed fields where it had already been cut so guess it depends on the weather and 2019 had been hot early.
We took smaller back roads and found sunflowers and lavender in bloom just as brilliantly as on the main routes.
Turn off the N85 at Mallemoisson, go via Thoard and back down via Champtercier. Then along the D4, turning off at Oraison to Entrevennes then Brunet. On this route we hardly passed a single car and certainly no tourist coaches. Only place we saw the hordes with selfie sticks was on the conventional main roads near Valensole.
Paraphrasing what someone said recently:
“Photography no longer encourages seeing; it simply encourages projecting, turning the world’s great vistas into mere backdrops for the selfish self” .... and guess what, wherever we are in the world, those doing it are from the same place ....
Valensole itself was awful; crowded with shops selling tat. Greoux was much better, with room to park and move.
Risk the crowds, enjoy the vistas and leave your selfie stick at home!
We saw lavender in bloom everywhere and also noticed fields where it had already been cut so guess it depends on the weather and 2019 had been hot early.
We took smaller back roads and found sunflowers and lavender in bloom just as brilliantly as on the main routes.
Turn off the N85 at Mallemoisson, go via Thoard and back down via Champtercier. Then along the D4, turning off at Oraison to Entrevennes then Brunet. On this route we hardly passed a single car and certainly no tourist coaches. Only place we saw the hordes with selfie sticks was on the conventional main roads near Valensole.
Paraphrasing what someone said recently:
“Photography no longer encourages seeing; it simply encourages projecting, turning the world’s great vistas into mere backdrops for the selfish self” .... and guess what, wherever we are in the world, those doing it are from the same place ....
Valensole itself was awful; crowded with shops selling tat. Greoux was much better, with room to park and move.
Risk the crowds, enjoy the vistas and leave your selfie stick at home!
Written September 11, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ger C
Bonnieux en Provence, France2 contributions
Aug 2019 • Couples
Provence is so nice..
Whatever the season. ..
Personnally I am enjoying open water swimming in the Lovely numerous Verdon lake.
Hot, clean & clear water
Whatever the season. ..
Personnally I am enjoying open water swimming in the Lovely numerous Verdon lake.
Hot, clean & clear water
Written August 22, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Can I rent a car in Valensole and what’s it like driving in the lavender fields in the 5 km radius area? Roads, traffic etc? Thank you
Written May 18, 2022
Buongiorno, qualcuno sa esattamente quando è previsto il taglio della lavanda quest’anno. Vorremmo andare dal 16 al 19, le informazioni che mi giungono sono discordanti. Sara troppo tardi quel weekend per vedere i campi fioriti?
Grazie mille
Written July 12, 2021
bonjour,
savez vous quand a lieu la récolte cette année, nous projetions d'y allez le week end du 16 juillet.... est ce trop tard?
merci d'avance
Natasha
Written July 4, 2021
Bonjour,
Voici les infos que j’ai trouvées pour vous:
La période de floraison de la lavande s’étend de mi-juin à fin août.
Elle varie en fonction des variétés de lavandes, du climat, de l’altitude et de la latitude. La météorologie locale est également un facteur déterminant pour la cueillette.
Le météo, élément déterminant de la récolte de lavande
La cueillette de la lavande dépend de l’hygrométrie, c’est-à-dire de l’humidité de l’air. En clair, une longue période sans pluie peut avancer la récolte de quelques jours, alors qu’un orage peut la retarder d’autant. N’hésitez pas à vous renseigner auprès des offices de tourisme des zones dans lesquelles vous souhaitez vous rendre
Cordialement
Régis
Written July 5, 2020
Bonjour we will be taking the train from Paris to Aix en Provence but need transportation to Chemin de Costebelle, Valensole. Is it possible to rent a car? Are there other methods of transportation?
We will be staying 3 days and have very limited command of the French language.
Written August 20, 2019
Totally agree. Having a car is so great. Though if anyone gets car sick being something to take. I can't stress enough if you are this near to make sure you see Verdon Gorge. It's absolutely breathtakingly beautiful. We saw it by dumb luck driving from Grasse to Plateau de Valensole. Wishing you a wonderful trip!!!!!
Written August 20, 2019
Hallo, wann wird die lavendel geernt? Bzw. von wann bis wann kann man die Lavendelfelder am besten besuchen?
Vielen Dank!
Written July 29, 2019
Bonjour;la lavande est généralement bien fleurie début juin et commence alors la cueillette en début juillet,puis la distillerie dès le 10 juillet (fête à Valensole vers le 15 ou le 21,selon météo). Les champs de Sauge sclarée (couleur rose pâle) sont moissonnés deux semaines avant. Bon voyage!!!
Written July 29, 2019
Bonjour, nous pensons passer un week-end dans votre région début août. Aurons-nous la possibilité de voir les champs de lavande en fleurs ou la récolte aura-t-elle déjà eu lieu? Merci
Written July 14, 2019
Bonjour. Non, ils récoltent en ce moment. C’est bientôt fini
Written July 16, 2019
Hello,
are lavenders blooming already? You've posted one photo with violet lavenders.
Written June 8, 2019
It just started. You see the small purple flowers - will be nicer in 1-2 weeks
Written June 19, 2019
Showing results 1-10 of 21
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing