Nîmes Walking Tour

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Nîmes is a compact town with several impressive Roman sights and a great museum, along with cute narrow streets in the historic centre. Explore the city on this walking tour!

Location

This walk starts from Nîmes Amphitheatre. Nîmes train station is only 500 metres away, making it very easy. Alternatively, there’s an underground parking lot nearby which is slightly expensive but very convenient. There are several other parking lots around the city centre which are almost just as expensive.

Nîmes Walking Tour Map

Get the route by downloading the .gpx or .kml file below. For navigation with Maps.me on your mobile phone, simply download the .kml file and open to add it to the Maps.me bookmarks.

Top Sights in Nîmes

On this self-guided walking tour you’ll see the main sights and attractions of Nîmes. One day is the perfect amount of time to spend in Nîmes. However, if you want to visit all the museums spend at least two days, and Nîmes could make a good base to explore the surrounding region.

Nîmes Walking Tour Route

This walking tour starts from Nîmes Amphitheatre. One of the best views of the amphitheatre is by the statue of the matador (bullfighter), from where you can see the entire expanse of the building.

Directions: The entrance to the amphitheatre is at the other side, so walk around the building to get there.

1. Nîmes Amphitheatre

Key Information: Open every day from 9 (Mar-Oct) or 9:30 (Nov-Feb) until around sunset. Tickets are €10/5 and include a fun audio guide.

Nîmes Amphitheatre (Website, TripAdvisor Reviews*), alternatively called Nîmes Arena, is one of the top sights of Nîmes. It’s one of the best-preserved Roman amphitheatres in the world and you can walk all around it, from the back corridors to the stands to the arena floor itself. The audio guide takes you back to the days of the gladiators and if you’ve watched the movie Gladiator, you’ll have some of your views about gladiators corrected.

Directions: The Musée de la Romanité is in the obvious glass-fronted building next to the amphitheatre.

2. Musée de la Romanité

Key Information: Apr-Oct: Open 10-7pm every day. Nov-Mar: Open 10-6pm, closed on Tuesdays. Tickets cost €9/3, with the audioguide an extra €3.

The Musée de la Romanité (Website, TripAdvisor Reviews*) is a great museum next to the old amphitheatre. It’s a new museum that only opened in 2018, and the exhibits reflect this as there’s lots of interaction and technology used to bring the past to life. Most of the museum is about the Romans and the Roman artefacts found in the area. However, the visit starts in pre-Roman times and continues to chart the history of Nîmes until the present.

You could spend many hours here exploring the museum fully, though you can also move quickly through in about 1 hour. If you have time, get an audio guide which really helps you to understand the history of Roman colonization and its lasting influence on life in Nîmes today.

Directions: After leaving the museum, turn left to walk a little way around the amphitheatre, and then walk along the main road to the left. Look out for the nice church on the left. In a few hundred metres you’ll come to the next stop.

3. Maison Carrée

Key Information: Open every day from 9:30 (Jul-Aug) or 10 (Sep-Jun) until around sunset. From Oct-Feb it’s closed for lunch from 1-2pm. Tickets are €6/3.

The Maison Carree (Website, Tripadvisor Reviews*) is a beautiful Roman temple built roughly 2000 years ago. It’s an extraordinary building and definitely worth viewing from the outside. Note the intricate carvings around the top and how the entire building seems to reflect the sunlight and glow orange.

The inside of the Maison Carrée is much smaller than it looks from the outside and contains a little exhibit about the temple and its restoration. Unless you have one of the tourist passes (see Tips), then it’s quite expensive for what it is.

Carré d’Art

Key Information: Open Tue-Fri 10-6pm, Sat-Sun 10-6:30pm. Tickets are €8/6, or €11/9 including a guided tour. Free on the first Sunday of the month.

The Carré d’Art is a contemporary art museum opposite the Maison Carrée. The building was designed by Norma Foster, a famous architect, to reflect both the form of the ancient Maison Carrée and a modern future. The collection contains many artworks from the1960s until the present, with a focus on artworks from southern France. It’s a good museum but if you only spend one day in Nîmes it’s something you could miss unless you have a special interest in art.

Directions: From the square with the Maison Carrée, head left along the road by the Carré d’Art, then take the first right into a little square. Walk left through the square, then head right to a canal. Walk left along the canal to the entrance of the gardens.

4. Les Jardins de la Fontaine

Key Information: Opens at 7:30am year round, closing about an hour after sunset. Free to enter.

Les Jardins de la Fontaine (TripAdvisor Reviews*), or the gardens of the fountain, is a large formal park in Nîmes. There’s a large central water feature and it’s always fairly peaceful in the park.

Temple of Diana

The Temple of Diana (TripAdvisor Reviews*) is on the left side of the main fountains. It’s a really cool little temple from Roman times, partly in ruins, and you’re free to enter and wander around by yourself.

Directions: There are many different routes within the Les Jardins de la Fontaine. To get to the Tour Magne, just keep heading upwards and you will eventually get there.

5. Tour Magne

Key Information: Open every day from 9am (Jun-Aug) or 9:30am (Sep-May) until around sunset. From Sep-Mar it’s closed for lunch from 1-2pm. Tickets are €3.50/1.50.

The Tour Magne (Website, TripAdvisor Reviews*) is at the far end of Les Jardins de la Fontaine, at the top of the hill. It was the tallest tower in the Roman wall that made up the city’s fortifications, most of which have now disappeared. There’s some information about the tower at its base, then you can climb up the many steps to the viewpoint at the top. From here you can see all over the city of Nîmes.

Directions: From the tower, work your way back down to the base of the gardens and turn left before the canal. Cross over the little square with trees and down the street opposite. Take the first right, then left at the main road. The next stop is soon on your left.

6. Les Halles

Les Halles (Website, TripAdvisor Reviews*) is an indoor marketplace, with a wide variety of produce for sale. It’s almost all fresh and local, ranging from fruit and vegetables to meats, jams, olives and spices. Most stalls are open from 7am-1:30pm.

Directions: From Les Halles, the Historic City Centre is between you and the amphitheatre. Head via the Clock Tower to the Cathedral, then make your way to the Porte d’Auguste. From here, wander back through the streets towards Nîmes Amphitheatre where you started this walking tour.

7. Historic City Centre

The Historic City Centre has a few minor sights but the main enjoyment is simply strolling along the cute, narrow pedestrian streets and window-shopping, or popping into the cafes and restaurants which line many of the squares.

Nîmes Cathedral

Nîmes Cathedral is in the centre of the historic, pedestrianised area. It’s nothing too special, but worth popping into while walking around.

Musée du Vieux Nîmes

The Musée du Vieux Nîmes is next to the cathedral, open 10am-6pm every day, tickets €5/3. It’s in a grand building with a small collection of historic pieces such as furniture and clothing from the past few hundred years. If you’re only visiting Nîmes for one day, it’s not worth it, but if you’re here for several days you could pop in for up to an hour.

Porte d’Auguste

The Porte d’Auguste is a ruined gate on what was once the Via Domitia, a Roman road linking Italy to Spain. It’s quite cool to see the old ruins right next to much more modern houses, that evidence of the Romans is still here.

The Église Saint-Baudile is a large church opposite the Porte d’August, built in the Gothic Revival style. It’s rather impressive from the outside, and lovely and peaceful within.

Directions: From here, wind your way back through the city centre towards the Amphitheatre. Don’t be afraid to get lost for a little while, or wander around in circles. This is the end of the Nîmes Walking Tour.

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For more walking tours and hikes, see our France Hiking Page.