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On Porquerolles and Embiez, cycle the forest paths to creeks and beaches.

Home of Henri Bardouin, the connoisseur’s pastis . Like all pastis , Bardouin is based on star anise but here they add 50 other herbs and spices, many from the surrounding hillsides. The result is an apéritif more richly flavoured than better-known brands.

Courses held in water rich with marine life.

The Coulon family have been established in Provence’s most famous wine village since 1695 – time enough to perfect their skills. The Boisrenard red is the proof. They also run the Musée du Vigneron, the region’s best wine museum.

Yves Rousset-Rouard was a film producer and a politician before plunging his fortune into this stylish set-up. The Côtes-deLuberon wines are treated with respect and the on-site Corkscrew Museum is unique.

The quintessential Provence wine domain: the wines, especially the rosés, show true Provençal character. The visit also takes in a museum dedicated to the region’s traditional santon figurines (see Santon Figures).

In a wooded residential suburb, this Swedish-run domain has a fanatical and innovative attitude to wine quality. The Cuvée Clos d’Ière is among the most expressive of Provençal wines. The welcome at the cellar is both easy and relaxed.

In a superb location, set back from the sea and next to a bird sanctuary, Alain Combard and his family make wines of great finesse. The visitors’ entrance to the cellar is, oddly, round the back of a steel tank.

Producers of herb-based liqueurs, including a pastis made with more than 50 plants (see Distilleries & Domaines de Provence).

Clonal selection has been necessary to create lavender plants whose flowers remain blue even after drying.