One Day In Arles – The Ideal Itinerary

Whether you’re exploring one of the great Roman cities of Europe, or following in the footsteps of Vincent van Gogh, one day in Arles is enough time to see much of this gorgeous Provençal city.

Arles is small enough to see most of its sights in one day, as well ass have time to wander its beautiful old streets and squares, and enjoy a meal or drink at one of its cafes and restaurants.

Arles is also one of the most beautiful cities in the south of France, its colourful houses and window shutters giving it a brighter feel than the more austere medieval stone city of Avignon. It makes a wonderful base for exploring the region.

In this article, I’ll suggest an itinerary for one day in Arles, with additional options if you have more time available there. I’ll also suggest:

several day trips from Arles

explain how to get there and around the region

places to stay in Arles

the best time to visit the city tours in and from Arles

I hope you find it helpful.

A day in Arles is enough to see most of the sights. I’ve visited the city three times on my travels, each as a day tripper, and because the city is so small, you can cover the main Roman sights and the van Gogh locations around the city quite comfortably in a day.

Arles is a small city, so you should be able to get around the main sights on foot.

Anyone with an interest in Vincent van Gogh should be aware that none of his original paintings are on display in Arles. But there are plenty of places to see that he either painted, frequented or lived in.

Bear in mind that Arles can be HOT. So I’ve structured this itinerary around a long lunch, with two museum visits afterwards to avoid the worst of the heat of the day.

You can see all of the Roman monuments and most of the museums in Arles (except LUMA Arles) for just €19 with the Arles Advantage Pass – exceptional value.

Arles also makes a good base for day trips in Provence. Avignon is more convenient if you’re relying on public transport, but staying in Arles means you’re closer to the Mediterranean coast, the Camargue and Marseille, opening a whole new set of doors.

The key to seeing Arles – especially if you’re visiting in the warmer months (April to September) – is to do most of your walking early in the day, before it gets too hot.

So I suggest beginning your day by walking down the hill to the River Rhône, to the site of some of van Gogh’s most renowned paintings of Arles. The Old Town of Arles is on the left bank of the Rhône, and it was from around the Quai Lamartine that he painted his famous Starry Night On The Rhône (pictured) which is on display at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.   

While in the vicinity, you can also see the site of van Gogh’s The Yellow House, which used to stand at 2 Place Lamartine. The house was demolished after World War II, having been severely damaged during an Allied bombing raid.

The early morning is also a good time to explore Arles Old Town.  Arles is one of the most beautiful cities in France, and one of the most beautiful small cities in Europe for that matter. Many of its houses are 300 to 400 years old, with classic pastel facades and typical Provençal wooden window shutters. Just wander. It’s an absolute delight.

Arles’ Roman Amphitheatre (Les Arènes d’Arles) is one of the great Roman monuments in Europe, and is in worthy company with other great Roman sights nearby including the Pont du Gard, the amphitheatre and Maison Carrée in Nîmes, and the Triumphal Arch and Ancient Theatre in Orange, north of Avignon.

It’s one of the greatest Roman arenas, and is still in use today as a venue for concerts and non-lethal bullfights. It was built in 90 AD for gladiatorial battles and chariot races, and still holds around 20,000 spectators.

It’s hard to imagine now, but after the fall of the Roman Empire in Western Europe in the 5^th century AD up to 200 houses were built within the arena, where locals sought shelter from possible attacks.

The Provençal bullfights don’t involve fighting as such – rather the raseteurs attempt to pick a rosette from the horns of the bull.

Late Morning – 11.00 am to 12.00 pm – Roman Theatre and St Trophime Church

The Roman Theatre is a very short walk from the Amphitheatre. It’s where plays and dramas were – and still are – performed. Over the centuries, much of the building has been used as a quarry by locals  – it originally had the same capacity (8,000) as the stunning Théâtre Antique in Orange, but it’s nowhere near as impressive a spectacle as there’s so little of it left. Just two of its original pillars, the stage and a section of the seating area survive.

From the Theatre you can see the next place I recommend that you visit, the Church of St Trophime, a short walk away on Place du Forum. It’s one of the best-preserved Romanesque churches in France, with some amazing sculptures around the west portal and in the cloister (entry via the church). The church was built in the 11^th and 12^th centuries on the site of an earlier basilica, and held Cathedral status until 1801 when the bishop’s seat was moved to Aix-en-Provence.

The simple, bare interior of the church is wonderful, and while there, don’t miss the Late Roman (3^rd-5^th centuries) stone sarcophagi, carved with some beautiful reliefs. One of them is believed to hold the relics of St Honoratius, an early Archbishop of Arles who died around 429 AD.

And the cloister, on the south side of the church, is magnificent, with even more sculpture – though this is around a century later than the carvings on the portal, dating from the 13^th century.

Your next port of call is the former Hotel-Dieu in Arles, which in van Gogh’s time was a hospital. Van Gogh stayed there for some weeks in December 1888 following the incident when he cut off part of his ear.

From those closest to him, he was distraught at the decision of his friend Paul Gauguin to leave the Yellow House where they both lived. He was a deeply troubled soul, and may well have self-harmed because he blamed himself in some way for Gauguin’s departure.

He went to the Hotel-Dieu for treatment and subsequently recuperated there.  He enjoyed sitting in the hospital garden (pictured above), and was inspired to paint ‘The Garden Of The Hospital in Arles’ while recovering there.

The building is now a cultural centre, hosting a variety of exhibitions, concerts, performances and events.

The Espace van Gogh can be found at Place du Docteur Felix Rey.  

LUMA Arles is an arts centre on land previously owned by the SNCF (French Railways) a short distance from the centre of Arles. Several former railway workshops now comprise the Parc des Ateliers, which have been converted into artists’ spaces. They also house temporary installations and exhibitions.

LUMA Arles (the organization was founded in Zurich by Maja Hoffmann) has attracted a lot of international attention over the last few years because of its tower, which is partly the work of Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry.

Gehry is one of those architects whose work you can identify a mile off. We used to pass one of them – the Dancing House Prague – every day on the tram when we lived in the Czech capital. Most famously he is responsible for the stunning Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, one of the most famous landmarks in Spain.

Some of Gehry’s more recent works – including the Chau Chak Wing Building down the road from us in Sydney, Australia – have more of a crumpled look. Whereas his Sydney building rather resembles a crumpled brown paper bag (albeit with windows) his LUMA Arles Tower isn’t too dissimilar to a scrunched-up piece of silver foil. I love it.

Les Alyscamps is one of the most intriguing things to see in Arles, It’s part of the Arles UNESCO World Heritage Site, a Roman-era necropolis where wealthy citizens were buried, often in elaborate stone tombs.

The cemetery was later used by Christians, and it acquired great prestige because the first bishop of Arles, St Trophimus, was interred there. Les Alyscamps (its name is a corruption of les Champs- Élysées, the Elysian Fields) was renowned across Europe, and even mentioned by Dante Alighieri in hisInferno.

Many of the tombs were ransacked in the Middle Ages and afterwards, and it was only restored in the 19^th century. It’s one of the most atmospheric places to visit in Arles, especially in the late afternoon light near the end of a hot, sunny Provençal day.

8.00 – 10.00 am – Riverside and Old Town Walk

10.00 – 11.00 am – Amphitheatre

11.00 am – 12.00 pm – Roman Theatre and St Trophime Church and Cloister

12.00 pm – 1.00 pm – Lunch

1.00 – 2.00 pm – Espace van Gogh (Hotel Dieu)

2.00 pm – 4.00 pm – LUMA Arles

4.00 pm – 5.30 pm – Les Alyscamps

5.30 pm onwards – Dinner or Depart

Once you’ve seen the main Arles sight, you could easily spend another day exploring the city’s museums and galleries. There are also more Roman sights to explore.

These include the Baths of Constantine, close to the river on Rue du Grand Prieuré, and the Cryptoportiques d’Arles,  just behind the Town Hall on Place de la République. The latter are underground tunnels which would normally be for storage of goods. But as the site is prone to damp, nobody is sure what they were used for. One suggestion is that they were used for slaves’ accommodation.  

If you’ve come to see Arles’ Roman monuments, you should also spend a couple of hours at the Musée de l’Arles Antique, which houses many of the artefacts discovered in the city and around. One of the most famous exhibits is the Arles Bust, an outstanding bust of Julius Caesar that would either date from his lifetime, or in the years after his death. It also houses the remains of an ancient Roman ship discovered in the Rhône in 2004.

The Fondation Vincent van Gogh is well worth a visit. It promotes the work and legacy of van Gogh,  and focuses on art inspired by the Dutch painter to the present day.  Another of its aims is to encourage discussion about van Gogh, so you can expect a mixture of temporary exhibitions of other artists and more presentations on van Gogh and his enduring influence.

Before the arrival of van Gogh, Arles’ best-known artist was Jacques Réattu, who spent much of his career in Rome and later Naples. He bequeathed some of his work to his hometown, and this is housed in the Musée Réattu, in what was previously the Grand Priory of the Order of Malta. The Museum also has a collection of Picasso drawings.

My favourite museum in Arles is the recently re-opened Museon Arlaten (Provençal for Museum of Arles).  It’s worth visiting just to see the interior of the building, a 15^th-century mansion. The main exhibition is a collection of daily objects from everyday Provençal life through the centuries. The Museum was founded by poet Frédéric Mistral, whose intention was to create a ‘Pantheon of Provence’.

Avignon is perhaps the best city to visit near Arles. The World Heritage medieval city was home to the Papacy for 67years during the 14^th century, and one of its main sights is the Popes’ Palace (Palais des Papes), which is one of the great medieval buildings of France. Also don’t miss the truncated Pont d’Avignon, its four surviving arches among the most famous bridges in France.

See Also: One Day In Avignon – 24 Hours in The City Of Popes

Arles is the gateway to the Camargue, one of the most fascinating places to visit in Provence. It’s where the Rhône divides in two, forming a large delta which also includes some large étangs (lagoons). These wetlands are one of the few places in Europe where greater flamingos live, and the famous Camarguais white horses also live in the region.

The seaside town of Les Saintes Maries de la Mer is the destination for two famous Roma pilgrimages, in May and October each year. They come to venerate the three Marys – Magdalene, Salome and Cleophas – who were the first to see Jesus after the Resurrection and who, according to tradition settled in the Camargue after sailing from Alexandria. The Roma saint Sarah is also venerated at these two feasts, which are attended by over 20,000 pilgrims.

Two of the best places to visit in Provence are on Arles’ doorstep but, surprisingly, bus services are scant. So you’ll probably need to rely on a hire car to reach them. Les Baux de Provence is one of the ‘plus beaux villages de France’ a fortress on a rocky outcrop overlooking the coastal plain.

From there, head along the D5 through the narrow gap in the Alpilles towards the lovely town of St Remy de Provence.  As you head down the hill towards the town you’ll pass olive groves painted by Vincent van Gogh when he was a patient at the nearby asylum at the Monastery of St Paul de Mausole. Before the monastery you’ll also see Les Antiques, the tower and entrance portal of the Roman site of Glanum.

Another of France’s great Roman cities, Nîmes, is only half an hour from Arles by train. Like Arles, it has a stupendous Roman amphitheatre (also called Les Arènes). It also has the astonishing Maison Carrée, a wonderfully preserved 1^st-century AD temple that’s among the finest Roman monuments in Europe.

Arles is in the province of Bouches-du-Rhône, in southern region of Provence in the south of France.

It’s also around 25 km (16 miles) north of the Mediterranean Sea, from which it is separated by the Camargue wetlands.

Here are some sample distances from Arles to other major French cities:

Marseille to Arles – 88 km (54 miles)

Avignon to Arles – 40 km (25 miles)

Aix-en-Provence to Arles – 75 km (47 miles)

Montpellier to Arles – 81 km (50 miles)

Nimes to Arles – 33 km (21 miles)

Paris to Arles – 693 km (431 miles)

The nearest major airport to Arles is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS).  Direct trains to Arles run from Vitrolles Aeroport Marseille station, which is a mile (just under 2 km) from the airport itself. The easiest way to get there is on Lebus L13 shuttle bus from the airport bus station (gare routière). This 5-minute trip costs €1.20 per person. From the railway station, the journey to Arles takes an hour.

The easiest way to reach Arles by public transport is by train.  The journey from Avignon is a mere 20 minutes, and from Nimes just ten minutes more.

If you’re driving – useful if you’re visiting the Camargue, or heading over the hills to Les Baux or St Rémy de Provence – Arles is just north of the A54 autoroute (motorway) between Marseille and Nîmes.  Another useful road is the D570N which connects Arles with Avignon.

Arles is also a great stop for a night or two as part of a wider trip around Provence. Take a look at my South of France Road Trip article for more inspiration.

I’ve visited Arles three times over a 20-year period – and in three different months – May, July and August. Of these, May was the best, with warm but not stiflingly hot temperatures (28°C).

July is considerably hotter – 36°C when we visited. The one lure of visiting during July is the blooming of the lavender fields to the east of Arles and Avignon, particularly in the Lubéron. 

August was around the same – we were constantly seeking refuge wherever we could find shade. We visited the Camargue during August, and you will definitely need mosquito repellent when you’re there.  They are vicious.

Ideally I’d look to visit in one of the cooler months, such as September and October, when you can still expect temperatures around 25°C.

***** – Hôtel & Spa Jules César – 5-star luxury in a former Carmelite convent a few minutes’ walk from the main Arles sights

*** – Hotel Spa Le Calendal – beautiful hotel in 17^th-century building a few steps from Arles’ Roman amphitheatre

*** – Hôtel du Musée – characterful 16^th-17^th century hotel opposite the Musée Réattu

One Day In Arles – Final Thoughts

I hope you’ve enjoyed this article and that it has inspired you to fit Arles into your France itinerary. It’s an exceptional city, one I’ve visited three times on day trips, and it’s somewhere I’ll eventually stay for a few days to explore the coastal region in more depth.

This article is part of an ongoing series of One Day In… articles that I’m writing about Europe. Check out the aforementioned One Day In Avignon article when visiting Provence, and any of these articles from across Europe for further inspiration:

• One Day In Santorini – 24 hours on one of the best Greek islands
• One Day in Nuremberg – discover the stunning Imperial City in northern Bavaria
• One Day in Hamburg – discover Germany’s great maritime melting-pot
• One Day In Dresden – 24 hours in the stunning ‘Florence on the Elbe’
• One Day In Leipzig – a day in the city of Bach which helped bring down the Iron Curtain
• One Day In Heraklion – a day in the fascinating capital of Crete
• One Day in Bath – 24 hours in the stunning Georgian city
• 1 Day London Itinerary – how to spend the perfect 24 hours in London
• One Day In Cardiff – 24 hours in the wonderful Welsh capital (my home city!)
• One Day In Zagreb – a day in the fascinating capital of Croatia
• One Day In Brno – 24 hours in the Czech Republic’s superb second city