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Moustiers-Ste-Marie sits below a narrow notch at the base of rocky cliffs. Above the village, the Notre-Dame de Beauvoir chapel sits high in the notch, behind the ruins of the ancient defensive walls, and hidden in the shadows for most of the day.
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Also: |
Faience Pottery |
Aix Verdon Itinerary |
Nearby: |
Aiguines 15 km |
Aix-en-Provence 87 km |
Allemagne-en-Provence 23 km |
Bargeme 56 km |
Bauduen 33 km |
Castellane 45 km |
Manosque 50 km |
Plus Beaux Villages |
Quinson 35 km |
Riez 15 km |
Roumoules 12 km |
Sainte Croix Lake 5 km |
Tourtour 43 km |
Valensole 29 km |
Verdon Gorges 10 km |
Hotels near Moustiers-Sainte-Marie: |
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie |
15 km Aiguines |
29 km Valensole |
35 km Quinson |
43 km Tourtour |
50 km Manosque |
87 km Aix-en-Provence |
Moustiers-Ste-Marie is a lovely village, in a gorgeous setting. It's there for tourists, though, so don't expect a "natural" Provencal village. A small "train" provides guided tours of the village and surrounding points of interest.
The main theme of Moustiers is to sell the, admittedly beautiful, "faïence" ceramics (see also Faience Pottery), and the village is packed full of Faïenceries shops.
There are very few normal shops, but there are some terrace cafés for relaxing and a fair number of restaurants. Our first fairly critical view of Moustiers has improved with repeated visits, and a Reader's Comment (below) adds another positive touch.
The village sits astride a rushing mountain stream that divides the two halves with a narrow rocky canyon. The view of this mini-gorge, with small waterfalls down inside and medieval houses above, is beautiful. The sound of the river, and the running fountains all over the village, give Moustiers the feeling of an Alpine village. The village has narrow medieval streets and vaulted passages, and becomes more "natural" when you get up above the ceramics shops.
The center piece of the village is the 12th-century Notre-Dame church, beautifully restored in 1928. It's topped by a four-level Lombard Romanesque (Italianate) bell tower, carved from golden-brown tuff.
The "crown" of the village is the star, suspended high across the Rioul valley by a forged-iron chain. The golden star hangs above the Notre-Dame de Beauvoir chapel, with the chain fastened into solid rock on each side of the gorge. The chain and star project was done as a promise by Sir Blacas, a knight who returned from a long captivity during the crusades.
The Notre-Dame de Beauvoir chapel, sitting high in the notch above the village, dates back to the time of Charlemagne in 8th century, and was restored in the 12th and 16th centuries. The chapel is actually built on the site of an even older one from the 5th century. The steep walk up to the chapel follows a wide paved path, passing through defensive doorways similar to the citadel path at Entrevaux. The path, lined with 12 stations of the cross, has been used for pilgrimages to the chapel since the year 470.
Views. A walk up to the Notre-Dame de Beauvoir chapel will give you a fantastic view, from the red-tiled roofs of the village to the expanse of the Maire valley, the far hills and the Lac de Ste Croix. A walk up the hill south of the village to the cemetery gives another excellent view, of the village, the Notre-Dame de Beauvoir chapel, the surrounding hills and the Lac de Ste Croix.
Faïence
Most of the shops make their own faïence pottery, in ateliers that are outside of the village, and most advertise "unique" items. The shops are well organized and professionally run, and the value (and prices) of the faïence is well established. We have examples of the Moustiers faïence on a separate Faïence Pottery page.
History
An abbey was founded here in the year 434 by Saint Maxime, the bishop of Riez, who came here from the Abbey de Lérins with a few monks. In the beginning they occupied a few caves in the rocky gap. Around the 10th century, they fortified a permanent village (castrum) at the site of the current village.
Medieval:
The town was ruled by the Lords of the Moustiers family until the 12th century. It became an independent "consulat" until the 13th century, when it was united with the Count of Provence. At the end of the 14th century, Moustiers was destroyed and the occupants massacred during the succession of Reine Jeanne. During the Wars of Religion, Moustiers sided with King Henry IV and avoided the depredations so common during those times.
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie was flooded in 1685 and again in 1702. The town had a thriving paper industry and the famous faïence industry that made the town wealthy during the 17th and 18th centuries (and is having a comeback now).
Office de Tourisme
Tel : 04 92 74 67 84; Fax: 04 92 74 60 65
Web: www.ville-moustiers-sainte-marie.fr/
Email: moustiers@wanadoo.fr
Dates
Every Fri - Marché - Market
Museums & Sites
- Musée de la Faïence
- Location: on the west side of the village, beside the Mairie
- Open, Winter: Sat-Sun, 11h-12h, 14h-17h
- Open, Summer: daily and weekends.
Transportation Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
Bus
Department 04, Alpes-de-Haute Provence Buses
See Beyond's Alpes-de-Haute Provence (04) Bus Schedules for downloading Alpes-de-Haute Provence bus-lines map and bus-line schedules [pdf for each line] (link for PDF files).
Marseille - Gréoux - Riez - Castellane Bus FH-27
LER line 27 (part A): 3 buses/day, between Marseille and Riez, trip time 2 hrs. Stops: Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, Venelles, Meyrargues, Peyrolles, Pont Mirabeau, St Paul-lez-Durance, Vinon, Gréoux-les-Bains, St Martin-de-Bromes, Allemagne-en-Provence, Riez.
LER line 27 (part B): 1 bus a day between Riez and Castellane (via the Gorges-de-Verdon), trip time 1h30. Stops: Riez, Roumoules, Moustiers-Ste-Marie, Lapalud, Rougon, Pont de Soleil, Castellane.
• On the LER website (http://www.info-ler.fr/fr/lignes-horaires/carte-et-fiches-horaires-n287. , select Ligne 27: Marseille / Greoux / Castellane to display the bus schedule PDF.
Riez - Moustiers-Ste-Marie Bus
The Riez - Moustiers-Sainte-Marie bus line has several buses a day; trip time 35 minutes. Schedule available via the Riez town website (see Beyond's Riez page). Stops: Riez, Roumoules, Moustiers-Sainte-Marie.
Transportation - Car
- Driving from Nice is 150 km, 2h30, via Grasse, up the Route Napoleon (N85) to Castellane and along the Gorges de Verdon.
- Travelling from Moustiers-Sainte-Marie to Bonnieux is a 2-hour, 104 km drive, via Riez (15 km), Valensole (30 km), Manosque (50 km), Cereste (70 km) and Apt (90 km).
- Driving to Lourmarin (94 km, 1h50), the route goes southwest via Riez, Allemagne-en-Provence, Saint Martin-de-Brômes, Gréoux-les-Bains (40 km), Vinon-sur-Verdon, and joins the A51 autoroute (52 km). Then it's west to exit 15, north to Pertuis and west to Lourmarin.
- Moustiers to Castellane is one hour, but allow extra time for sightseeing along the way. Castellane to Grasse is an hour, but traffic can be slower in the middle of the summer.
Sports
Fishing
AAPPMA La Truite Moustierenne
Fishing Association
Location:
Mairie de Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
Tel: 0492 746 619, or 0493 936 259
Libre Service
Fishing permits (carte de pêche)
Tel: 0492 746 605, or 0493 936 259
Paragliding
Verdon Passion
Paragliding outfit in Moustiers-Ste-Marie, 45 km west of Castellane and about 50 km south of Digne.
Tel: 0492 746 977; Fax: 0492 74 60 71
Hiking
Maps:
IGN (1/25,000) #3442 OT "Gorges su Verdon, Moustiers-Ste-Marie"
Didier Richard (1/50,000) #19 "Haute Provence Verdon"
The hills around Moustiers-Sainte-Marie are steep, but mostly forested, and the hiking is excellent.
The GR4 (Grande Randonnée) passes 1 km south of the village. To the west, the GR4 climbs the wooded hillside (from 537 m to 819 m) and crosses the high plains, with lavender fields, to Riez and points west. To the east, the GR4 goes through the hills above the Grand Canyon du Verdon to La Palaud-sur-Verdon, then down into the bottom of the canyon to the far end, climbing out past Rougon and on to Castellane.
There's a maze of hiking trails in the mountains north of the village. Go to the end of the highest road in the village, up to the north (left of the high chapel) by the waterfall. The trail going up to the west circles around to the north into the mountains. You can continue on forever, or circle around to the right and loop back to the village from the east.
At the cemetery, south of the village, the hiking trail past the Ste-Anne chapel follows a Roman road to the east, climbing to a peak of 939 m. Here, too, you can loop around to the left and back to the village, find other loop hikes in the nearby mountains, continue on northeast (the astronomique observatory Le Chiran is at 1905 m) or continue on to the southeast to the Gorges du Verdon.
Reader's Comments
Comments contributed by Lynn, Ceret; April 2007
Hallo Beyond France -
My husband and I (British) live in southern France near Perpignan.
We recently had a great trip touring part of Provence - ending with a night at La Bastide de Moustiers.
I found your site interesting and informative before our trip but I would just like to correct one thing. We counted 11 places to have a meal or snack in Moustiers. Yes, of course there are a lot of pottery shops but there are also at least three places with outside terraces for a pause-cafe.
The village probably does seem a lot more 'natural' out of season.
Highly recommended.
Dining
Treille Muscate
• In the Michelin Bib Gourmand Guide 2010
Location:
Place de l'Eglise
Open: 11 février-14 novembre
Closed: Wed except mid-high season; Thur excepte July-Aug.
Web: www.restaurant-latreillemuscate.com
Cuisine régionale
Lodging - Hotels
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Photo gallery of 13 photos for Moustiers-Sainte-Marie