Arles is in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in Provence (the region known as PACA). The ancient Roman capital and later an important religious center in the Middle Ages, Arles has splendid Gallo-Roman antiquities, known throughout the world. It is a beautiful city on the banks of the Rhone River with a lively market on Wednesdays and Saturdays and is one of the main Mediterranean cities in this part of southern France. The star attraction is Les Arenes, an extraordinary Roman amphitheater that today sees bullfights and cultural events instead of the gladiators and chariot races that once filled it.
For chariot races and those famous gladiatorial contests, you must visit Nimes.
Paris to Arles by train
TGV trains to Arles depart from Paris Gare de Lyon (20 Diderot boulevards, Paris 12) throughout the day.
Metro lines to and from Gare de Lyon
- Line 1 – La Defense to Chateau de Vincennes
- Line 14 – Saint Lazare to Bibliotheque Francois Mitterand
TGV trains to Arles train station
- Paris to Arles direct non-stop lasts 4 hours 04 minutes.
- Paris to Arles with a stop in Avignon lasts 4 hours 20 minutes
- Lille (connecting with Eurostar) to Arles involves 1 change in Avignon and lasts 5 hr 33 min.
- Charles de Gaulle airport to Arles station with 1 change in Avignon takes 4 hours 32 minutes.
Other connections to Arles by TGV or TER
- Popular direct connections include Avignon, Marseille, Bordeaux, and Lyon.
Arles bus station is next to the train station.
Train travel booking with Rail Europe in France
- From the USA, Book on Rail Europe
- From the UK, book at voyages-sncf
Getting to Arles by plane
Avignon Caumont Airport is 8 km southeast of Avignon and north of Arles. There are no direct buses to Arles from the airport; You will have to take a taxi. See Arles Taxi Service.
- Flights from Southampton , UK with Flybe, with connecting flights to Ireland and the Channel Islands
- Flights from Exeter with Flybe
- Flights from Birmingham with Flybe
Other nearby airports
The closest international airport is in Marseille; the smaller airports Nimes-Alès-Camargue Airport and Montpellier-Mediterrane Airport serve Europe and North Africa, but not the United States
- Marseille-Provence Airport is located 20 km (12 miles) northwest of Marseille. It is a major airport with domestic and international flights, including New York and London. There is a bus service between Arles and Marseille-Provence Airport.
- MP2 is the connected airport for cheap flights. Take the shuttle bus from Marseille-Provence main airport for a five-minute ride to MP2.
- Nimes-Alès-Camargue Airport is north-west of Arles, between Nimes and Arles. Flights from London and Liverpool with Ryanair and Brussels, Rome and Palma in Mallorca. There are no direct buses to Arles from the airport; You will have to take a taxi. See Arles Taxi Service.
- Montpellier-Mediterranee Airport is located 8 km (5 miles) southeast of Montpellier and southwest of Arles.
Destinations include Paris, Lyon, Nantes, and Strasbourg; Brussels; London, Birmingham, Leeds and Bradford; Morocco; Algeria Madeira; Munich and Rotterdam.
Paris to Arles by car
The distance from Paris to Nimes is around 740 km (459 miles), and the journey takes around six hours and 30 minutes, depending on your speed. There are tolls on the Autoroutes.
Car rental
For information on how to rent a car under the return lease scheme, which is the cheapest way to rent a car if you are in France for more than 17 days, try Renault Eurodrive’s buyback lease.
Getting from London to Paris
- By train (Eurostar)
Eurostar between London, Paris and Lille - By bus / coach Eurolines offers a cheap service from London, Gillingham, Canterbury, Folkestone and Dover to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Paris Gallieni. Six coaches a day; 2 all night; Travel time is 7 hours. The Eurolines stop is located at the Paris Gallieni bus station, 28 ave du General de Gaulle, right next to the Gallieni metro station, near Porte de Bagnolet (metro line 3, final stop).
The Eurolines website for French travel
OUIBus also operates between London and Lille and London and Paris. IDBus also runs from Lille to Amsterdam and Brussels.
OUIBus website
