"Tourrettes-sur-Loup, City of Violets " a Tourette-sur-Loup Travel Page by Beausoleil

Tourrettes (spelled this way in the MichelinTourist and Motoring Atlas) is a short but spectacular drive from Vence above Nice. Be sure to pull off the road somewhere along here to get a photo of the town on the mountain.

It is very touristy, but that doesn't take anything from the charm or from the views from the walls. Our theory is that we are tourists so if we want to do tourist things, we do them . . . and have a grand time.

Tourrettes is the City of Violets and is the only place in France where the cultivation of violets is still the principal occupation for about eleven families. In the late 1800s the agricultural activity of the village centered mainly round the violet.

The flowers are picked between 15 October and 15 March and are used for sweets and for perfume by the perfumeries in Grasse.

There is a Violet Festival on the 1st or 2nd Sunday in March. Check the town web site for dates nearer to the festival.

There is parking just below the town walls and a little ceramic map highlighting the sights. Then you just wander the lovely cobblestone streets, visiting shops and galleries and supporting the French economy. There are restaurants where you can stop for coffee or wine and groceries, and specialty shops where you can buy a picnic if that's your preference.

Nearly every town has a sundial. We love to look for them.

. . . and there are those wonderful views.

This is a typical little shop along one of the streets. I think we must have wandered through most of them. I was particularly taken by the blue door, hence the shop name. I love that shade of blue; it goes well with stone; it reminds me of Provence.

83 Grand Rue
phone: 33 (0)4 93 24 19 25
http://www.tourrettessurloup.com/indexus.htm