Provins Things to Do

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This XIIIth century edifice was used as a covered market during the Fairs of Champagne. Visit this place not only for its beautiful civil architecture (cross-ribbed vaulting, sculpted pillars...), but also to discover the different types of trades and merchants that existed in those days.

An audio guide (about 35mn, free, just leave an ID card at the hostesse) will take you back to a XIIth century fair, where you'll meet an italiant merchant, a Provins woollen cloth merchant, a money-changer, a flemish merchant, a letter-writer, a weaver, a potter, a quarryman a stone cutter and a parchment maker!
Absolutely fascinating!

PRICE:
Adult: 3,40€
child (5-12 year olds): 1,90€

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Caesar's Tower is the symbolic monument of Provins!
Built in the XIIth century by the Counts of Champagne, on the edge of a rocky spur, this tower protected the former palace of the counts.
The tower is a magnificent and outstanding illustration of the history of medieval military architecture.
You will visit the former chapel (called model room as it houses a cross-section model of the tower), the guard's room, the Governor's office, the lower room, the battlemented parapet, the amazing framework of the tower's roof from where hangs a bell casted in 1511 and wheighing 3.000kg!!!

The best view over the town is definitely from the tower!

PRICE:
adult: 3,40€
child (5-12 year olds): 1,90€

Originally these galleries were probably used as a quarry to extract a earth that was needed for degreasing woollen cloth. Later they became hiding places, storerooms during the fairs, places of worship., or meeting places for the freemasons!

You will also visit two two beautiful vaulted lower rooms. One, poorly decorated was used to accomodate paupers and pilgrims, while the second one, used by merchanys as their "showroom", is very decorated (pillars' carved capitals, stairway...)

Make this your first stop. The Visitor Center is next to the main parking area at the entrance to the walled town. Pick up a map of the town so you will have a sense of the location of the attractions (Caesar's Tower, the Grange, the Underground tour, etc.). But in this town, even the "non-attractions" are beautiful. Simply stroll around, soak up the ambiance, appreciate the glory of this ancient place.

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The walls are very thick and the towers are ether round or square with lookout area on the tops. The bases are broad and sloping to inhibit scaling. It looks like there was even a moat and there may have been wooden hoardings . At the North corner was a large tower with heavy looking walls said to be 3 m thick (Tour aux Engins). The hardest part of the walk was clambering up the grassy slope to the road which entered at the North through the Porte de Jouy

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We walked along the 12-13C ramparts as sunset approached in order to stimulate our appetite for the gourmet meal ahead. We exited the walls through the Porte St.-Jean with the remnants of a "murder-hole" in the gate. Outside there was not yet a tourist office, but only a parking area. On the left along the wall was the first of the Medieval performance venues (not yet functioning before the busy season). Nearby one whole segment of wall was being restored.

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When we visited Provins 10 years ago, the Tourist Office had not yet learned how to trap tourists but was moving in the right direction. Critically the Michelin rated the Tour 2* in a 1* town. At the time the tower and ramparts were undergoing extensive repairs (not the least for safety of visitors). The jousting style exhibitions had just begun, there was nothing in the Grange, there was no museum and the underground was usually closed. The tower was free. What it offered was its structure and a view. Since we had been in others of the 12C, this was enough. Besides we were elderly and climbing both up and down were stressful. As you can see, we concentrated on the churches. This an example of a Donjon situated on top of a motte. There would have been defenses below.

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You have to walk through or by the Place if you are going between the Grange aux Dimes and the Tour de Cesar or Eglise St.-Quiriace. For us it was "out-back" behind the Hostellerie where we were staying (See Hotel Tip). The Place is for sitting and viewing old houses and roof tops. Near its center is a large cross (Croix des Changes) on whose base official notices were anciently placed. Next to it inside a protective fence is a wrought-iron old well cage. From the name of the Place, I suspect that the long gone castle stood between here and the Donjon (Tour de Cesar) seen in the background in the broad view picture.