WHAT TO SEE & DO
Overview Table
| Name | Appeal | Type | Visit | Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amphiteater | ✦✦✦✦✧ | Roman Arena + Panorama | Self | Paid € |
| 2 | Antique Theater | ✦✦✦✧✧ | Roman Theater Ruin | Self | Paid € |
| 3 | Town Center | ✦✦✦✧✧ | Town Center | Self | Free |
| 4 | Food Market | ✦✦✦✧✧ | Food Market | Self | Free |
| 5 | Arles Antique Museum | ✦✦✦✧✧ | Museum - Roman | Self | Paid € |
| 6 | LUMA Tower Museum | ✦✦✦✧✧ | Museum - Contemporary Art | Self | Either |
| 7 | Van Gogh Footsteps | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Walking + Paintings | Self | Free |
| 8 | Van Gogh Arles Foundation | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Museum - Modern Art | Self | Paid € |
| 9 | Van Gogh Space | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Cloister/Garden | Self | Free |
| 10 | St. Trophime Church | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Church | Self | Free |
| 11 | St. Trophime Cloister | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Cloister | Self | Paid € |
| 12 | Hortus Garden | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Garden | Self | Free |
| 13 | Réattu Museum | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Museum - Fine Arts | Self | Paid € |
| 14 | Arlaten Museum | ✦✦✧✧✧ | Museum - Ethnographic | Self | Paid € |
| 15 | Alyscamps | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Roman Path | Self | Paid € |
| 16 | Constantin Thermae Ruins | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Roman Thermae Ruin | Self | Paid € |
| 17 | Notre Dame Church | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Church | Self | Free |
| 18 | Viewpoint | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Panorama | Self | Free |
| 19 | Jardin d'Eté Park | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Park | Self | Free |
| 20 | River Banks | ✦✧✧✧✧ | River Banks | Self | Free |
| 21 | Cryptoporticus | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Cryptoporticus | Self | Paid € |
| 22 | Lee Ufan Museum | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Museum - Contemporary Art | Self | Paid € |
| 23 | Santon Provençal Museum | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Museum - Figurine | Self | Paid € |
| 24 | Art Galleries | ✦✧✧✧✧ | Art Galleries | Self | Free |
1. Amphiteater
Appeal ✦✦✦✦✧
Type Roman Arena + Panorama
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Names
Arènes d’Arles
Amphithéâtre d’Arles
The Amphitheater in Arles is a remarkably well-preserved Roman arena that stands as a symbol of the city’s ancient heritage. It is one of the 20 largest in the Roman world.
Built in the 1st century AD, it could once hold over 20,000 spectators (12,500 today) who gathered to watch gladiatorial combat, chariot races, and other public spectacles. It continued to be used for various purposes throughout the centuries, including as a fortress in the Middle Ages.
The site also includes underground passages that once housed the gladiators, along with explanations of the organization of these Roman games.
Also, the panoramic view from the top of the arena offers a unique perspective of Arles.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Exterior
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
⚙️ Hours & Prices (Tourism Office Website – Fr)
2. Antique Theater
Appeal ✦✦✦✧✧
Type Roman Theater Ruin
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Théâtre Antique d’Arles
The Ancient Theater of Arles is a significant Roman structure built in the 1st century BC. Once a grand venue for theatrical performances, it could seat over 12,000 spectators, hosting plays, poetry readings, and musical performances.
3. Town Center
Appeal ✦✦✦✧✧
Type Town Center
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
The Town Center of Arles is a charming area filled with narrow, winding streets that reveal the city’s blend of Roman and medieval architecture. This area serves as the heart of Arles, where visitors can experience the atmosphere of a Provencal town.
4. Food Market
Appeal ✦✦✦✧✧
Type Outdoor Food Market
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Names
Marché d’Arles
Marché du Centre-Ville
The main food market in Arles is one of the most important in the region. It takes place twice a week: on Wednesday mornings on Boulevard Emile Combe, and on Saturday mornings, when it is even larger, extending to Boulevards des Lices & Georges Clemenceau.
5. Arles Antique Museum
Appeal ✦✦✦✧✧
Type Roman Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Musée départemental Arles Antique
The Arles Antique Museum houses an impressive collection of Roman artifacts, including mosaics, sculptures, everyday objects, and a big Roman barge, discovered in the Rhône River.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
6. LUMA Tower Museum
Appeal ✦✦✦✧✧
Type Contemporary Art Museum + Park + Panorama
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free or Paid
French Name
LUMA
The LUMA Museum is a contemporary art center housed in a striking, futuristic building designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry and initiated by Swiss art collector Maja Hoffmann.
Inside, the museum features rotating exhibitions of contemporary art, photography, and multimedia installations.
The summit of the 56-meter-high tower offers the highest panoramic view in the city.
Surrounding the tower, within the site, there is a park with cafés.
Entry to the site is free, with only the exhibition rooms requiring a fee.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Exterior
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
7. Van Gogh Footsteps
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Walking + Paintings
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Names
Sur les Pas de Van Gogh
Sur les Traces de Van Gogh
Circuit Van Gogh
Walking in the footsteps of Van Gogh in Arles consists of 9 marked spots around the town where Van Gogh set up his easel. These spots are indicated by plaques featuring the paintings created there during his stay from 1888 to 1889.
The spots are free, except for the Alyscamps site.
In parentheses, the number corresponds to the site on this page.
- The Yellow House
- Starry Night over the Rhône
- Trinquetaille Bridge Staircase
- Van Gogh Space (09)
- Café Terrace, Place du Forum
- Amphiteater (to the right of the entrance) (01)
- Entrance to the Public Park (19)
- Alyscamps (15)
- Langlois Bridge (2,5km – 1.5mi from town center)
8. Van Gogh Arles Foundation
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Modern Art Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Fondation Vincent Van Gogh
The Van Gogh Arles Foundation hosts annual temporary exhibitions of modern or contemporary art, featuring at least one Van Gogh painting, and often several, depending on the agreement with the Van Gogh Foundation in Amsterdam.
The building’s rooftop terrace offers a view of the town’s rooftops.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
9. Van Gogh Space
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Cloister/Garden + Exhibitions
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Name
Espace Van Gogh
The Van Gogh Space, also called Jardin de la Maison de Santé, is located in the former hospital, now restored, where Van Gogh stayed after cutting off his ear.
The cloister is landscaped as it was in his time and also includes exhibition rooms.
10. St. Trophime Church
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Church
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Names
Église Saint-Trophime
Basilique Saint-Trophime
Cathédrale Saint-Trophime
Primatiale Saint-Trophime
Formerly a cathedral, St. Trophime Church is a Romanesque and Gothic-style church from the 12th century, known for its stunning portal and detailed carvings.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Exterior
11. St. Trophime Cloister
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Cloister
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Cloître Saint-Trophime
The St. Trophime Cloister is a serene and beautifully preserved Romanesque and Gothic cloister from the 12th century.
The arcades that surround the courtyard are supported by elegant columns, each with unique carvings that depict various Biblical stories.
The site also occasionally hosts temporary exhibitions.
Entry is through the building to the right of St. Trophime Church.
12. Hortus Garden
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Garden
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Name
Jardin Hortus
The Hortus Garden, located next to the Arles Antique Museum, is uniquely designed as a reconstruction of a Roman hippodrome.
13. Réattu Museum
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Fine Arts Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Names
Musée Réattu
Musée des Beaux Arts
The Réattu Museum is a fine arts museum housed in a former Gothic-style priory that became, in the 19th century, the home and studio of Jacques Réattu, a painter from Arles whose works form the core of the collection.
The museum also features works by other artists, including a collection of Picasso pieces and photographs.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
14. Arlaten Museum
Appeal ✦✦✧✧✧
Type Ethnographic Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Museon Arlaten
The Arlaten Museum is an ethnographic museum that explores the cultural history of Provence from the 18th century to the present day, focusing on the traditions, costumes, and daily life of the region’s inhabitants through a collection of artworks and ethnographic objects.
The building itself is a historic 15th-century mansion, adding to the museum’s charm.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
15. Alyscamps
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Roman Path
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Les Alyscamps
Alyscamps is a historical necropolis that was once a major Roman burial ground. The site is lined with sarcophagi.
⚙️ Hours & Prices (Tourism Office Website – Fr)
The path leads to the 12th-century Romanesque Church of Saint-Honorat.
16. Constantin Thermae Ruins
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Roman Thermae Ruin
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Thermes de Constantin
The Constantin Thermae Ruins are the remains of a once-grand Roman bath complex in Arles, dating back to the 4th century AD.
17. Notre Dame Church
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Church
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Name
Église Notre-Dame-la-Major
Notre-Dame-la-Major Church is located next to the Arles Amphitheater. Dating back to the 12th century, it primarily features Romanesque architecture with some Gothic elements.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Exterior
18. Viewpoint
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Panorama
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
To the left of the Notre-Dame-la-Major Church, there is an orientation table that describes the panoramic view.
19. Jardin d'Eté Park
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Park
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
French Name
Jardin d’Été
Jardin d’Été is a public park located behind the Arles Amphitheater.
20. River Banks
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type River Banks
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
The town of Arles is crossed by the Rhône River. The banks on both sides are landscaped for pedestrians.
21. Cryptoporticus
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Cryptoporticus
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Names
Cryptoportiques
Cryptoportiques du Forum
The Cryptoporticus of Arles is an underground Roman structure from the 1st century BC that once supported a public forum.
22. Lee Ufan Museum
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Contemporary Art Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Name
Lee Ufan Arles
The Lee Ufan Museum is dedicated to the works of the Korean artist Lee Ufan, known for his minimalist contemporary art.
The museum is located in an historic mansion built between the 16th and 18th centuries.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
23. Santon Provençal Museum
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Figurine Museum
Visit Self-guided
Cost Paid
French Names
Conservatoire du Santon Provençal
Musée du Santon Provençal
This small museum showcases the traditional Santons of Provence, handcrafted figurines depicting nativity scenes and local life.
🏞️ Google Images Overview – Interior
24. Art Galleries
Appeal ✦✧✧✧✧
Type Art Galleries
Visit Self-guided
Cost Free
Globally renowned as an art town, Arles is also home to several dozen small art galleries scattered throughout the town, showcasing a variety of works.
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