Le Castellet – 21 images

We spent a phenomenal Barbara birthday weekend based in Le Castellet, a striking little hilltop village about 15km north of Bandol and 30km northwest of Toulon (and to cover all the bases, about a two-hour drive southwest from Nice and about 45 minutes east from Marseille).

Mid-autumn is a nice time to go: still lots of color, relatively warm days and pleasantly cool evenings and just enough people around to keep desolate off of the list of memorable descriptors.

Had a spectacular dinner at Le Pied de Nez where we discovered Château Vanniéres, my favourite wine discovery on 2023.

Wine-wise, Le Castellet is part of Côtes de Provence Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) of Bandol. Vineyards form a hefty part of the nearby landscape, mixing nicely with olives and further afield, tall cypress and stone pines in the shadow of Sainte Baume massif.

There are plenty of little shops, a terrific bakery and lots of great views in all directions, especially towards to Mediterranean just after sunrise. Not surprisingly, it is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association. Worth a visit is the Eglise Saint Sauveur, or the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, which dates back to 1153. It had its first major expansion six centuries later, in 1754. Three images below.

Visited 5-8 November 2023