Visiting Gordes (France): the “Most beautiful small town in the world”.
Gordes is the most famous hilltop village in Provence. Travel + Leisure named it “the most beautiful small town in the world” in 2023.
On a rocky promontory 340 meters above sea level, Gordes overlooks the Calavon Valley, offering great views of the famous Luberon mountain range facing it.
The area was occupied by the Romans in the 1st century BC. A Roman road passed the town in the valley below and a Roman temple was built on the hill. Later, in the 11th century, a castle was built and the town grew around the castle.
Artists have been inspired by Gordes and some have come to live here. Marc Chagall lived in Gordes for a year between 1940 – 1941, only leaving to go into exile in the United States (the Germans thought of his work as “an assault on Western civilization”). A few years later, the famous Hungarian artist Victor Vasarely moved here in 1948 and opened Gordes’s first art museum.
Today Gordes is one of the most visited towns in Provence and isn’t lacking in tourists. We were here on a tour covering the most beautiful towns in the region and of all the places we visited Gordes was the most packed with tourists. I’d go as far as to say that it was a deluge of tourists, overwhelming for a town of its size. It doesn’t help that Gordes was an “Emily in Paris” shooting location: the 5-star Airelles hotel was the site of one of the shows episodes.
So what to do in Gordes?
Tuesday market. If you like markets, Tuesday is the day. You should come early: we had arrived in Gordes around 10:30 and the places was already getting packed. You’ll find everything in the market that Provence is known for: Local cheeses, herbs and spices, nougat, lavender, olives, fruits and vegetables, Fois gras, Olive oils…
Viewpoint: When coming into town, everyone stops at the viewpoint. It’s the best spot to see Gordes in its entirety. Some tourists just stop here for their photos and don’t bother visiting the town itself (hence the description of this spot as “Monkey rock” by some locals).
Note: you can easily walk to the viewpoint from town, it’ll take you about 10 minutes. We were given 45 minutes of free time in Gordes by the tour and we were put off by the crowds…so we walked back towards the viewpoint, taking photos along the way.
The Castle of Gordes (Château de Gordes) costs 7 Euros to visit. Reviews on Trip Advisor are generally negative so unless its been at the top of your list it might not be worth it…
Really, Gordes is a very small town and there’s not much to it. I’d recommend walking around the small cobblestoned streets, enjoying the views over the valley and having a drink and people-watching.
Some more photos to show you what a picturesque town Gordes is.
Practical Information on Gordes
- How to get to Gordes. Gordes is located about 38km from Avignon, 72 km from Aix-en-Provence and 92 km from Marseille. You can’t depend on local transport, buses are infrequent and even if coming from nearby Avignon you’d have to change buses. The best way to get there is to have or rent a car.
- You can visit Gordes on this tour. That’s what we did. The tour took us to 5 villages and historic spots: Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, Gordes, Roussillion, Les Baux de Provence, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and the Pont du Gard.
- How much time to spent in Gordes. Our tour gave us 45 minutes which I think is about all you’ll need to get a good feel of the town.
- What to see nearby. Right across the valley from Gordes (a 10 minute drive) is Rousillion, known for it’s oche quarries. We actually found it more interesting than Gordes. Also near by is Fontaine-de-Vaucluse which is beautiful and a must-see in the region.
Related: 10 Things to Do in Avignon
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