{"id":5159,"date":"2010-07-27T16:14:19","date_gmt":"2010-07-27T20:14:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/?p=5159"},"modified":"2012-12-27T11:40:27","modified_gmt":"2012-12-27T15:40:27","slug":"toulon-history-culture-fun-underneath-conservative-surface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/2010\/07\/27\/toulon-history-culture-fun-underneath-conservative-surface\/","title":{"rendered":"Toulon: History, Culture and, yes, Fun underneath the Conservative Surface"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"img alignright size-medium wp-image-5168\" style='width:300px;'>\n\t<img src=\"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/mont-faron-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of Mont Faron in Toulon\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/>\n\t<div>Photo of Mont Faron in Toulon<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Despite its rich history and ideal location, Toulon is usually not considered one of the sexy spots on the Mediterranean coast, unless, that is, you\u2019re sensitive to the Gallic charms of the French officers stationed in its immense naval base. But the general consensus will quickly prove unfair to the new visitors when they discover that besides being a major military port, this unsung gem half-way between <a title=\"Travel tips about Marseille, France\" href=\"\/blog\/category\/south-france\/south-france-travel-guide\/provence\/marseille\/\">Marseille<\/a> and <a title=\"Tips to visit Saint Tropez, France\" href=\"\/blog\/category\/south-france\/south-france-travel-guide\/french-riviera\/saint-tropez\/\">Saint-Tropez<\/a> has also plenty going for it, all to be enjoyed in the city\u2019s stunning setting between the <strong>magnificent natural harbor<\/strong> and the dominant <strong>Mont Faron<\/strong> in the background.<\/p>\n<p>Just tempting faith on the treacherous road that\u2019ll take you to the top can be the adventure of a lifetime! However, if you\u2019re not that much of a thrill-seeker, the cable car will do just as well.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Originally colonized by the Greeks, the Ligurians and the Romans, Toulon quickly established itself as an urban center that counted. Nowadays, the rambunctious Old Town still displays a stunning cathedral and numerous historical fountains in its narrow streets and small squares. The daily Proven\u00e7al market on the Cours Lafayette still offers myriads of local products to locals and travelers alike.<\/p>\n<p>The classy Upper Town is Baron Haussmann\u2019s domain, which he designed in the mid 19th century as a field test before moving on to even bigger and better improvements in Paris. Grandeur and modernity are everywhere, whether in the Toulon opera house, the Place de la Libert\u00e9, the Grand Hotel, the train station, the Gardens of Alexander I, and more. You cannot go wrong by leisurely perusing these <strong>marvels of architecture<\/strong> and urban planning.<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"Tips to visit Toulon and Hyeres, France\" href=\"\/blog\/category\/south-france\/south-france-travel-guide\/french-riviera\/toulon-hyeres\/\">Toulon<\/a> is a city of culture as well, and its wide range of museums is there to prove it. Predictably enough you\u2019ll find the <strong>Museum of the French Navy<\/strong> and the <strong>Museum of Old Toulon<\/strong> and its Region, but the Museum of Art is also worth a detour with its impressive collections of contemporary art while the self-described Museum of Asian Arts will give you the opportunity to visit the former <strong>house and garden of famed French author Jules Verne<\/strong> in nearby Le Mourillon. If Asian art is not your cup of tea, Le Mourillon has enough beaches and water sports facilities to keep you busy and in shape. If you are interested in visiting Toulon, we have many <a title=\"Vacation Rentals in the French Riviera\" href=\"\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/french-riviera\">vacation rentals in the French Riviera<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"img alignleft size-full wp-image-5161\" style='width:277px;'>\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/865\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/picture-pr-apt\/0865\/0865D56.jpg\" alt=\"South France Accommodation 3 Bedroom Rental in Bandol, French Riviera (PR-865)\" width=\"277\" height=\"221\" \/><\/a>\n\t<div>South France Accommodation 3 Bedroom Rental in Bandol, French Riviera (PR-865)<\/div>\n<\/div>This is also where New York Habitat has a lovely villa and garden <a title=\"South France Accommodation: 2 Bedroom Vacation Rental in Toulon, French Riviera (PR-634)\" href=\"\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/634\">2-<\/a><a title=\"South France Accommodation: 2 Bedroom Vacation Rental in Toulon, French Riviera (PR-634)\" href=\"\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/634\">bedroom rental \u2013 Toulon-Le Mourillon (PR 634) <\/a>near the beach. You\u2019ll be able to enjoy the quietness of a residential neighborhood and the proximity of big city amenities.<\/p>\n<p>If you prefer a smaller town, we have an apartment <a title=\"South France Apartment: 2 Bedroom Vacation Rental in Bandol, French Riviera (PR-496)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/865\">3-bedroom furnished rental \u2013 Bandol (PR-865)<\/a> in Bandol, right on the coast between Toulon and Marseille and a short drive from Cassis. Make sure to taste the local wines while you\u2019re there!<\/p>\n<p>Even more picturesque is the harbor town of Sanary-sur-mer, between Bandol and Toulon, where you can enjoy your vacation from our apartment with a view <a title=\"South France Accommodation: 1 Bedroom Vacation Rental in Sanary sur Mer, French Riviera (Pr-857)\" href=\"\/south-france-apartment\/vacation\/857\">1-bedroom furnished rental \u2013 Sanary (PR 857)<\/a> in an old country house up in the hills.<\/p>\n<p>So the choice is yours! Pack your bags, become one of the illuminati and let us know what you think about Toulon and its well-kept treasures in our comments section.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Despite its rich history and ideal location, Toulon is usually not considered one of the sexy spots on the Mediterranean coast, unless, that is, you\u2019re&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[100],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5159"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5159"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12667,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5159\/revisions\/12667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nyhabitat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}