Things to Do in Nîmes: The Roman City, on Foot

Roman to the bone, elegant and good with food, Nîmes is a city you explore on foot — which is exactly why staying right in the centre matters. From Denim, Garance or Oslo, you're minutes from the Arena, the market halls and the Fountain Gardens, without ever picking up the car.

Here's our guide to missing nothing, from the Roman must-sees to the corners we love, with the order of visit and the kind of tips a local would give.

The Roman must-sees

Nîmes holds one of the finest ancient ensembles in Europe, packed into a few walkable blocks. Nemausus, the Roman colony founded under Augustus, was a prosperous city on the Via Domitia — and two thousand years on, you still move between its monuments on foot.

The Arena

The Roman amphitheatre, built in the late 1st century, is one of the best preserved in the world: two tiers of arcades, sixty bays, and a layout designed to clear twenty thousand spectators in minutes. You visit it with an audio guide, and it still hosts concerts, big shows and the Feria. Allow a good hour.

The Maison Carrée

This almost-intact Roman temple — one of the very few left in such condition — has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2023. Directly opposite, the Carré d'Art by Norman Foster answers it in glass and steel: twenty centuries facing each other across one street. Nearby, the Musée de la Romanité unfolds 25 centuries of history and offers, from its terrace, a plunging view over the amphitheatre.

The Tour Magne & Fountain Gardens

The Jardins de la Fontaine, laid out in the 18th century around the ancient spring, are among the oldest public gardens in Europe — balustrades, pools and statues, perfect for a shady pause. Climb up to the Tour Magne, a remnant of the Augustan ramparts, for the finest view over the tiled rooftops. Nearby, the discreet round castellum is where the water carried from the Pont du Gard arrived before being distributed across the city.

Wandering the Écusson

The Écusson is old Nîmes: lanes, shaded squares, Renaissance mansions and shops. It's a pleasure to get lost between the Maison Carrée and the cathedral.

It's also the terrace quarter: the Place du Marché with its crocodile fountain — the city's emblem — or the Place aux Herbes at the foot of the cathedral. You'll see that crocodile chained to a palm tree everywhere: it's the symbol struck by Augustus for the veterans of the Egyptian campaign, settled here in Nîmes. A city that wears a crocodile on its paving stones has a certain something.

Did you know? Nîmes, birthplace of denim

The jeans you're wearing owe their name to this city. Since the Middle Ages, Nîmes produced a tough cotton twill — serge de Nîmes — which became de Nîmes, then denim, once it crossed the Atlantic and a certain Levi Strauss cut it into trousers for the gold-rush miners. The cloth of Nîmes and its indigo dressed the world. It's also why one of our apartments is called Denim: a nod to the city's most universal gift.

Markets & flavours

The Halles de Nîmes, open every morning, are an institution: brandade (a creamy salt-cod and olive-oil specialty), pélardon (the small AOP goat's cheese from the Cévennes), Picholine olives, Villaret biscuits and Costières wines. The ideal spot to build a picnic or carry home something to cook in the apartment — and in the morning, locals take their coffee at the counter.

For food and vineyards in more depth, see our Food & Terroir guide.

A day in Nîmes from our apartments

Staying right in the Écusson is the game-changer: no car, no parking, everything on foot. Our typical day from Denim, Garance or Oslo. Morning: the Arena at opening (before the heat and the groups), then the Maison Carrée and a coffee on a small square. Midday: the Halles for a quick lunch or to fill the basket. Afternoon: an easy climb to the Fountain Gardens and Tour Magne for the view, back through the lanes, with the Musée de la Romanité as a cool indoor option if it's too hot. Evening: aperitivo on the apartment terrace with whatever you picked up at the market. The next day, branch out: Pont du Gard and a swim (25 min), or Uzès and its market square — see our heritage guide.

When to come & practical info

Nîmes is a year-round city. Spring and autumn are ideal; summer is hot (35 °C is possible) but lively.

The Feria

Twice a year — the Whitsun Feria (May–June) and the Harvest Feria (September) — the city erupts: bodegas, music into the night, Camargue bull games in the Arena. Guaranteed atmosphere, but book your stay very early: these are the busiest weekends of the year.

Getting around

The centre is entirely walkable: from our apartments, everything is 5–10 minutes away. The station (TGV to Paris in 3 hrs) is in town, and Nîmes airport is twenty minutes out.