In most European cities with a trove of well-preserved Roman ruins, you’d be elbowing crowds of tourists out of the way to see them. Somehow, Nîmes never got the memo.
Located in the South of France, between the Cévennes Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea, with Avignon to the east and Montpelier to the southwest, the city has a spectacular concentration of the best preserved ancient Roman monuments to be found anywhere in Europe outside of Italy—yet its busy café terraces on the tree-shaded boulevards encircling the original Roman city are filled with locals, not out-of-towners.
Chief among the ruins are the Arènes de Nîmes, a magnificent coliseum that accommodates 12,000 spectators and still hosts concerts, and the UNESCO-listed Maison Carrée, an elegantly preserved, Corinthian-style limestone temple from the first century C.E. that inspired Thomas Jefferson’s design for the Virginia State Capitol building in 1785.
The Arènes de Nîmes was an arena where gladiators fought each other and wild animals in Roman times.
Photo by EQRoy/Shutterstock
For all of Nîmes’ ancient glory, the visual dialogue between the Roman ruins and the city’s striking modern architecture—exemplified by the Musée de la Romanité, which is located directly across from the Arènes and has a white glass façade meant to evoke a flowing Roman toga, and the Richard Rogers-designed municipal library—show off a taste for the avant garde, too.
“In Nîmes, there’s always the sound of fountains spattering, the smell of good food cooking, and a profound sense of history,” says Nicolas Fontaine, a homegrown culinary talent who worked under renowned chef Pierre Gagnaire in Paris for several years before returning to southern France.
After a stint as executive chef at Nîmes’ Hotel L’Imperator, he now runs Poésie, tucked inside the city’s covered market.
“There’s a softness to life here,” he adds. “When you run into a friend, you take time for a coffee or a glass of wine, because for the Nîmois, having a good time is as important as work.”
Here’s a guide to how to take in the best of Nîmes.
The ancient sites you can’t miss
The Jardins de la Fontaine was restored in the 18th century after falling into ruin at the end of the Roman Empire.
Courtesy of Nîmes Tourisme
The Arènes de Nîmes and the Maison Carrée are must-sees, but be sure to stop at the Musée De La Romanité for additional context. Aside from the eye-catching design by architect Elizabeth de Portzamparc, the museum houses jewelry, weapons, cooking ware, sculptures, and other Ancient Roman objects, showing how a village inhabited by the ancient Gauls was transformed into one of the most prosperous provincial cities of the Roman Empire.
Next, head for the moody Temple of Diana, a 1st-century C.E. Gallo-Roman ruin in Nîmes’ prettiest park, the Jardins de la Fontaine. Continue your stroll through the park up to the Tour Magne, a Roman watchtower with great views over the city. Not far away, on Rue de la Lampèze, is the Castellum Divisorium, a stone cistern that served as the terminus for water that was transported 31 miles by aqueduct, then distributed to the city’s fountains via a system of lead pipes.
Day trips beyond the city walls
The Pont du Gard is one of the world’s best-preserved Roman aqueducts.
Photo by ecstk22/Shutterstock
The historical sights don’t end at the city’s edges. The magnificent Pont du Gard, a three-tiered, 160-foot-tall stone aqueduct bridge built over the Gardon River around 50 C.E. to transport water to Nîmes from springs near the town of Uzès is a triumph of Roman engineering. Catch the 121 liO bus from Nîmes’ Gare Routiere to the dedicated Pont du Gard bus stop, and pack a picnic to make a full day of it.
For a day of simple seaside relaxation, meanwhile, the beach at Le Grau-du-Roi, a fishing port an hour south of Nîmes by train, is a five-minute walk from the station. Most of the beach clubs here rent umbrellas and sunbeds. When hunger strikes, head to Le Vivier for a catch-of-the-day menu sourced from schooners working out of the port.
Where to stay in Nîmes
The brand-new Le Grand Hôtel Dieu offers great value in a handsome converted former hospital on the edge of the old city. Nîmes’ classic address, meanwhile, is the Hotel L’Imperator a 1929 grande dame where Frank Sinatra romanced Ava Gardner and Ernest Hemingway propped up the bar between bullfights at the Roman arena. It has a pool, a spa, and three bars and restaurants. Dining al fresco under the plane trees in the garden courtyard is one of Nîmes’ great summer pleasures, so be sure to book online at Brasserie L’Impe or Bar Hemingway, the hotel’s more casual indoor-outdoor venues, to snag a table.
Where to eat in Nîmes
The inviting interiors of the 36-seat Poésie were designed by Nîmes interiors guru Giulia Plantier.
Courtesy of Poésie
At Les Halles de Nîmes, the city’s covered market, La Pie Qui Couette serves lunch from an open kitchen to guests perched on bar stools. Don’t miss the brandade de morue, a puree of salt cod, potatoes, milk, olive oil, garlic and pickled lemon. The city’s hottest new restaurant, Fontaine’s Poesie, is also at Les Halles. The chalkboard menu, which changes daily, offers modern Southern French bistro dishes made with seasonal market produce; if the roasted pork belly with baby vegetables is on, order it.Outside the market, but still in the city center, dining options include Voisin et Fils for an evening feast of freshly shucked local oysters and other fruits de mers, and La Locanda for the best pizza in town.
