The village lanes and vaulted passages

Below the castle, Les Baux is a small grid of stone lanes that climb between houses built half into the cliff: vaulted passages, worn steps, arched doorways, and gaps between buildings that suddenly show the whole valley. The stone is pale and the shadows are hard, which makes the passages the useful part — they act as natural frames and soften the light on faces at almost any hour.

Timing decides everything. From about eleven to five in season the village belongs to the coaches, and the lanes are narrow enough that this is not a small difference: two people cannot stand still for a frame. The first hour after opening and the last hour of the day are a different village — shutters closed, nobody about, and the light raking along the walls.

Underfoot it is stairs, cobbles and polished stone throughout, and the gradient is real from the bottom gate to the castle. Shoot on the way up rather than the way down, and keep flat shoes for the walking. The southern edge of the village, along the Chemin des Remparts, looks out over the olive plain and gives the wide frames without needing the castle ticket.