France | Cliff Jumping in Gorge du Verdon

Days 5 & 6

The highlight of our trip was the decision to go to Gorge du Verdon, in a large national park in the South of France.

We had only seen pictures and a few videos before making the choice to drive there, and we can certainly say they do not do the nature and views justice.

We stayed at a B&B just outside of Bauden, France. 

The view from our room was incredible and we spent the majority of time on our balcony. (Though we could've done without the tall grass right in the middle of our view...)

On our one full day in the area, we headed to the Gorge to rent a kayak and swim. Unfortunately, the storms in the forecast (which, may I say, never occurred) prevented the kayak rental shop from opening, but that didn't keep us out of the water.

We jumped off the cliffs and swam in the bluest freshwater I've ever seen in my life. It was magical.

Thoroughly exhausted, we took our car up the road to Moustiers Sainte-Marie, an adorable little French town carved into the mountain side. I finally found my french scarf souvenir and some delicious coffee to boot - so I would consider the stop in the town successful! Of course, we weren't tired enough from the morning swim, so we hiked up the mountainside.

The paths were friendly for the not-so-experienced hiker, but be warned...it was almost pure uphill paths. At the top, a medieval church greeted us and offered a bit of refuge from the climb.

Home from our trip now, we talk all the time about our highlights, where we would go again, where we wouldn't bother stopping at, etc.... And Gorge du Verdon always wins the competition. We will definitely be taking the entire family back someday!

Pictures don't do the beauty justice, so check out the travel vlog we shot! Scroll up and click play!


Next stop: Driving the perilous road (not for the faint of heart) to Nice to catch a bus to Italy!