Breathe in the scent of Provence’s lavender fields

Lavender is the flower that best defines France, owing to the immense carpets of purple blooms that blanket the landscape of Provence. Get out among the purple haze, inhale the delicious summer winds, and explore magnificent hilltop villages, historic churches, and attractive valleys.

Lavender encounters are plentiful from mid-June and mid-August, particularly in the Luberon valley, the Plateau de Valensole near Manosque, and the Sault region. This region has farmed lavender for hundreds of years, and bundles of chopped lavender, known locally as paille (straw), are still packed tightly into steam stills to extract its essential oils. The huile essentielle de lavande de Haute-Provence (Haute-Provence lavender oil) has been protected by its own appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) since 1997, however the great majority of farms produce lavandin, a higher-yielding hybrid.

This hybrid between English and Portuguese lavender yields five times as much oil as fine lavender, or lavande. Only a few farms continue to plant the more delicate lavande varieties, which cost significantly higher prices and (according to connoisseurs) have a far finer scent. Many farms and distilleries are open for visits; details may be found on the Routes de la Lavande website, and an associated booklet is available from local tourism offices. Lavender festivals are also held in Valensole (mid-July), Sault (mid-August), and Valréas (early August).

Idyllic locations to snap a quintessential photo also include Abbaye Notre-Dame de Sénanque, a 12th-century abbey framed by lavender; the blooming fields around the honey-colored village of Sault; and farms and distilleries on the Valensole plateau, beneath the scoured limestone summit of Mont Ventoux.