Manosque
The thousand-year-old town has a rich heritage of ramparts, gateways and towers at the heart of a Provençal landscape.
Manosque, birthplace of Jean Giono
The real treasure of Manosque is its beauty » wrote its native son, Jean Giono, about his birthplace which elegantly blends its historic heritage with the typical charm of the hills of Provence.
The town of Manosque, meaning ‘inhabitant of the hills’ in Celto-Ligurian, lies in the Durance Valley between the Luberon hills which culminate at 700m, and the Pays du Verdon area. The thousand-year-old town has a particularly rich historical heritage of ramparts, gateways and towers at the heart of a Provençal landscape of plateaux with olive trees, holm oaks and ‘garrigues’ (heathland).
The pear-shaped old town has very pretty little squares of attractive houses. For a better view of the town and beautiful surrounding countryside go to the top of Mont d’Or hill and admire the panoramic views over the Lubéron, Sainte-Baume, Haut-Var and even the first peaks of the Alps.
It is impossible not to visit the Jean Giono Centre which showcases the writer and his work. This resource, research and cultural activity centre also features a permanent exhibition « Jean Giono ou le voyageur immobile (the stationary traveller) », temporary exhibitions, a library and a video-library, as well as organising literary walks, discovery courses and meetings with authors. In addition, the Fondation Carzou is a cultural centre which examines the themes pursued by the artist throughout his career. Manosque was immensely proud to be chosen by Jean Carzou as the venue for his monumental, dreamlike view of the Apocalypse, a gigantic fresco covering all the walls of the ‘Chapelle de la Congrégation des Dames de la Présentation de Notre-Dame’.
Three guided walks start from the Porte Soubeyran along paths used by the French Resistance. The nearby village of Volx is home to the ‘Ecomusée de l’Olivier’, an ecomuseum devoted to the olive tree and its relationship with mankind. (Suitable for visually-impaired visitors and also those with reduced mobility).
Manosque and the great outdoors
Nature is strongly present around Manosque with the Forêt de Pélicier, a man-made forest of 1,040 hectares planted in 1905 to help prevent soil erosion. The collection of Austrian pines, young oaks, holm oaks, Aleppo pines, Scots pines and cedars is criss-crossed by numerous woodland paths. In the hills the ‘Maison de la Biodiversité’ has a conservation orchard with 350 traditional varieties of fruit trees and a vegetable garden featuring forgotten varieties of vegetables. L'Occitane, the world-famous cosmetics firm, runs tours of its factory, museum and gardens, a fascinating experience marked by sensory encounters, which traces its progress in the world of beauty products, inspired by Man and Nature.
Have fun in, on and beside the water at the Plan d’eau de Vannades, a 15-hectare lake in unspoilt countryside just 5km from the centre of Manosque. It offers numerous sporting and leisure activities including swimming (lifeguard presence and access ramp for disabled visitors), sailing, rowing, picnic areas, crazy golf, badminton and pedaloes. We mustn’t forget La Forestière fishing lake where the meanders of the River Durance have made way for ponds to provide a treat for anglers fishing for carp, white fish and predatory fish. At the heart of the main economic area of Alpes du Sud, 50km from Aix-en-Provence and Sisteron, between the sea and the mountains, the town also lies at the meeting point of two Parc Naturels Régionaux (Regional Natural Parks), Luberon and Verdon.
"" I love ‘Correspondances’, a literary festival like no other in late September, devoted to correspondence and all creative forms based on exchange and dialogue. The readings, literary cafés, encounters with authors and writing desks in unusual places are an absolute joy."" A ‘Correspondances’ enthusiast and Gîtes de France regular.
How to get to Manosque in the Alpes de Haute-Provence :
By road : autoroute A 51 exit Manosque, RN 96.
By train : to Manosque.
By bus : regular services from Marseille, Aix-en Provence railway station and Marseille-Provence Airport.
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Oppedette
in SAINT-MICHEL-L'OBSERVATOIRE - Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
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Le Mazet des Chênes
in PIERREVERT - Alpes-de-Haute-Provence