Villefranche-sur-Mer to Grasse and Gourdon: Private day trip

Dating back to the Middle Ages, the hilltop town of Grasse became the perfume capital of the world after it began manufacturing perfumed gloves in the 16th century. Today, Grasse’s perfumeries are responsible for ⅔ of French production and the historic Fragonard, Galimard, Molinard manufacturers provide free guided tours. For those who want to delve even deeper into the perfume tradition, the International Perfumery Museum trace’s perfume’s 3000-year history, even offering a perfume-plant-conservatory garden. Even if perfumes aren’t your passion, Grasse has one of the largest and best-preserved old towns in Provence. The main thoroughfares are painted in pastel orange to lighten the narrow streets, but duck into an alley and you’ll find an authentic Provence where laundry is hung out to dry from original unpainted houses. The single most important historical monument is the 12th century Cathedral Notre-Dame-de-Puy where you’ll find stark Romanesque architecture, Baroque ornamentation, and three paintings by Rubens.