Saint-Saturnin-Lès-Apt: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

In Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt, the “Des moulins au château et rues du village” route is an easy 2.6-kilometre circular walk. The route takes approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes and passes 28 cultural heritage sites.

Those choosing Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt as a holiday destination may wish to rent a holiday apartment.

Culture and History

Historical traces include the Romanesque castral chapel of Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt. It was built in the 11th and 12th centuries over the remains of a Roman structure and a 6th-century church, and was consecrated by three bishops in 1056.

Stone-paved paths lead to the medieval settlement on the ridge. There, visitors can see preserved remains of the old fortification walls, gates and square towers. A restored windmill also stands on the village ridge, surrounded by a former grain-drying area and the ruins of the outbuildings used for bagging and storage.

The waterworks of Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt date back to a reservoir built in 1763. In 1902, they were supplemented by a 14-metre-high dam immediately downstream.

The mill site also contains a lime kiln. Gypsum and lime were fired in it; it may have contributed to the production of plaster.

Landscape

Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt is situated on a rocky promontory and offers panoramic views over the Luberon. Garrigue, as well as oak and pine forests, covers a large part of the municipality on the southern slope of the Monts de Vaucluse.

Nature

The Aptian marls of La Tuilière are extremely rich in fossils. Ammonites, belemnite rostra, snails, mussels, corals, sea urchins and shark teeth can be found there.

Visitors can park at the school car park and follow the signposted path south to the La Tuilière site; information panels are available on site.

The aiguiers are cisterns carved into the rock that collect surface runoff and rainwater on large limestone surfaces. They can only be reached on foot via the “Sur le sentier des aiguiers” hiking trail.

Further destinations: Blauvac, La Motte-D'aigues, Vitrolles-En-Lubéron, Sainte-Cécile-Les-Vignes, Merindol, Cheval-Blanc, Caderousse, Modène

More about Vaucluse.