La Camargue
The Camargue Regional Nature Park
The Camargue has to be one of the most romantic and idyllic places in the World and comprises much of the largest delta in Western Europe located south of Arles.
This Zoological and Botanical reserve created in 1970 was established as the Parc Naturel Régional de Camargue in order to protect its uniqueness, although the central area around the Étang de Vaccares has been protected since 1927. It covers an area of 360 sq miles/930 sq Km consisting of lakes and marshes surrounded by cultivated fields growing the famous red rice of the area.
The Camargue is probably best known as the home of the fabulous greater flamingo whose pink colouring make a fantastic sight and the also equally stunning Camargue White Horses not to mention the small Camargue Black Bull used in the local ferias.
Perhaps the most notorious inhabitant of the Camargue is the less than fabulous Mosquito whose ferociousness knows no bounds as the author of this guide can attest to!
Look out for the Guardian a kind of local cowboy who looks after the bulls and horses and also note their distinctive white thatched roof houses with viewing poles for keeping an eye on their charges.
Tips: Visit during Spring or Autumn and avoid the heat of summer if you can. Also, try to go when the wind is off the land which, as the locals will tell you, blows the mosquitoes out to sea ensuring a more comfortable visit!