France, Provence
Corniche roads, the Verdon Gorge and the Luberon lanes all sit inside two hours.
First instinct from Marseille: head north east towards the Verdon.
Scored roads in range
12
Nearest great road
11 mi
Best rated nearby
9.7 / 10
Shortest full loop
56 min
Checked by the Drivers Atlas desk
Scored and written by the Drivers Atlas editorial desk, drawing on driven routes across the UK and Europe, mapping data and member road reports. Every road in the library carries a driving and scenery score set by the same method. How we score roads.
Last reviewed 22 April 2026
Under 60 km from the centre
Close enough for an evening run or a Sunday morning before the traffic wakes up.
Roughly 56 min of driving if you string the lot together and come back the way you came.
60 to 150 km from the centre
Far enough to feel like a proper trip, close enough to be home for dinner.
Roughly 7 hr 34 min of driving if you string the lot together and come back the way you came.
58 mi away · Var, France
Cliff hugging ledge road staring straight down into Europe's grandest limestone canyon.
24 km · 14.9 mi · Atlas rating 9.6 / 10
60 mi away · Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France
A vertiginous loop skimming the canyon rim with balcony viewpoints at every bend.
23 km · 14.3 mi · Atlas rating 9.4 / 10
85 mi away · Ardeche, France
A dramatic corniche skimming turquoise river bends beneath the Pont d'Arc natural arch.
32 km · 19.9 mi · Atlas rating 9.2 / 10
76 mi away · Var, France
Red volcanic rock plunges into azure sea along this coastal corniche below the Esterel massif.
25 km · 15.5 mi · Atlas rating 8.9 / 10
78 mi away · Alpes-de-Haute-Provence to Alpes-Maritimes, France
Sweeping historic highway tracing Napoleon's 1815 march through lavender country and pine ridges.
72 km · 44.7 mi · Atlas rating 8.8 / 10
150 to 400 km from the centre
Leave early, take the long way back and make a day of it.
Roughly 8 hr 37 min of driving if you string the lot together and come back the way you came.
101 mi away · Alpes-Maritimes, France
A looping summit road above 2800 metres that circles the peak itself for maximum theatre.
24 km · 14.9 mi · Atlas rating 9.7 / 10
132 mi away · Savoie and Hautes-Alpes, France
The spine of the Route des Grandes Alpes, a relentless climb to one of driving's holiest summits.
18.1 km · 11.2 mi · Atlas rating 9.6 / 10
168 mi away · Savoie, France
The roof of the Route des Grandes Alpes, a stark granite amphitheatre above 2700 metres.
16 km · 9.9 mi · Atlas rating 9.6 / 10
181 mi away · Corse-du-Sud, Corsica, France
Impossibly narrow ledge road through blood red granite pinnacles above the Gulf of Porto.
12 km · 7.5 mi · Atlas rating 9.6 / 10
126 mi away · Hautes-Alpes, France
Hairpins through larch forest give way to the lunar Casse Deserte, a surreal high altitude finale.
33 km · 20.5 mi · Atlas rating 9.5 / 10
106 mi away · Alpes-Maritimes, France, above Monaco
Napoleon's high road above Monaco, immortalised on film, staring down onto the principality.
16 km · 9.9 mi · Atlas rating 9.3 / 10
Longer
325 km · 5h 40m
Lavender, limestone gorges and the finest sustained GT road in France.
684 km · 13h 30m
Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean across seventeen alpine cols.
62 km · 1h 50m
The Monte Carlo Rally's night stage, and still the best test of a small quick car in Europe.
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