Aix — Cassis & Coast: private taxi tour

We leave Aix to the south and an hour later we dive into the Calanques. First stop, Cassis. The little harbour ringed by colourful houses, the fishing boats, the ice-cream shops, the terraces facing the water: it is one of the prettiest harbours in Provence. I leave you time for lunch or a drink, or to take a boat to the Calanques if you wish. Then we follow the coast to La Ciotat. This is where the Lumière brothers screened their first film in 1895, at the Eden Théâtre, now restored: the oldest cinema in the world still in operation. The Figuerolles calanque with its odd shape, the Mugel beach at the foot of a listed botanical garden: the town is gentler and more genuine than you might imagine. We finish in Aubagne, Pagnol's town, on the way back. The santon workshops, the writer's birthplace, the shaded Place des Aires: a few minutes are enough to feel the atmosphere. Back to Aix through the hills. Book on +33 6 98 46 63 34.