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Start after breakfast from the unassuming town of Castellane (see Castellane), gateway to the canyons, and drive west on D952. The landscape becomes progressively more awe-inspiring as you enter the gorges and wind your way through towering walls of rock to Point Sublime . This is one of the most impressive viewpoints; savour it while enjoying a coffee or a cold drink at the pleasant Auberge du Point Sublime (see Auberge du Point Sublime, Rougon).

From here, drive for about 15 minutes and turn left on to the vertiginous Route des Crêtes, which winds past a series of ever higher viewpoints. Don’t rush this part of the drive, but stop at each for five or ten minutes, as the views vary all the time. Finally, the road swings around the shoulder of the massif, and far below you is the Verdon and the plateau country around the little village of La-Palud-sur-Verdon (see La-Palud-sur-Verdon). It will take you another 30 minutes to get there, so relax when you do with another coffee at one of the village restaurants.

From Le-Palud it’s a less daunting drive until the gorgeous turquoise waters of the Lac de Ste-Croix (see Lac de Ste-Croix) come into sight. The road runs high above the lake, bringing you to the delightfully pretty village of Moustiers-Ste-Marie. Reward yourself with lunch here: the village has two of the region’s best restaurants, La Treille Muscat and Les Santons (see Les Santons, Moustiers-Ste-Marie).

Allemagne en Provence stands between the rugged canyon country of the Verdon and the lavender fields of the Valensole plateau. It is dominated by the palatial Château d’Allemagne, founded in the 12th century, which is now a luxury guesthouse (see Château d’Allemagne, Allemagne-en-Provence).

Annot stands in unspoilt countryside in the Vaire valley. Many houses are built into the giant sandstone glacial boulders, known as the grès d’Annot – some have 17th- and 18th-century carved façades.

The location makes this inn special, with a terrace gazing out at the peaks of the Canyon du Verdon. The food is reasonable.

Provence’s northernmost town stands in the rugged Ubaye valley. High in the Alps, its cobbled streets are ringed by peaks that have a scattering of snow until June.

Beauvezer, in the dramatic Vallée du Haut Verdon, stands 1,179 m (3,600 ft) above sea level. Once a frontier fortress, it still has its formidable battlements.

Castellane is a lively market town surrounded by steep mountains. The Verdon flows through it on its way to the Grand Canyon. It is also a centre for adventure sports (see Castellane).

Squatting on a steep-sided crag, high above the narrow valley of the River Durance, the formidable defences of the Citadelle guard one of the strategic gateways to Provence (see Sisteron). Built in the 13th century, the bastions and ramparts, crowned by towers and a graceful chapel, are an awesome piece of military engineering. In summer, they become the venue for the Nuits de la Citadelle, an enchanting festival of music, theatre and dance.

A wonderful, simple inn serving typical dishes of the region, simply prepared.

Forcalquier is a beguiling old town, evocative of past glories, when it was the seat of powerful local lords and capital of the region. One gate of the old walled town, the Porte des Cordeliers, still survives, along with the restored cloisters and stark library of the 13th-century Couvent des Cordeliers, with its tombs of the town’s medieval seigneurs.