After its descent from the Alps, the River Durance makes a wide curve to the west before joining the Rhône, skirting the massive rock-fold known as the Luberon that runs for 50km between Cavaillon and Manosque. The Luberon has long been escape country for well-heeled Parisians, Dutch and British, but has also attracted a good number of artists; the artists' organization Artifices currently organizes summer exhibitions and visits to studios in Apt and the surrounding villages (details on 04.90.74.01.26). But the main attraction is the countryside itself and the tiny, immaculately preserved villages.The Luberon's northern face is damper, more alpine in character than the southern face, extremely cold in winter, and dotted with tiny villages clinging stubbornly to the foothills. The southern slopes, by contrast, are Mediterranean in scent and feel. It's almost all wooded, except for the summer sheep pastures at the top, and there's just one main route across it, through the Combe de Lourmarin.
Pages in section ‘Luberon’: Apt, Parc Naturel Régional du Luberon, The Abbaye de Silvacane.
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