Arles tours compared: six ways through the Arènes, and which one to book
First: can you get in on the day you are coming?
I live ten minutes’ walk from the arena, in the Roquette quarter, and the question I get asked most is not which tour to take but whether the gates will be open. The monument keeps two calendars. For most of the year it is a Roman amphitheatre you visit with a ticket from the Office de Tourisme. On spectacle days it goes back to being a working bullring and closes to visitors, sometimes for four days straight: Friday 3 to Monday 6 April 2026 for the Feria de Pâques, Monday 6 July for the Cocarde d’Or, and 11 to 13 September for the Feria du Riz. The ticket page explains what to buy and where; the feria calendar lists every closed date. A day trip that reaches Arles on a corrida afternoon will show you the outside of the walls and nothing more.
The six tours
These are the six GetYourGuide products that pass through Arles and that I would put in front of a friend. Ratings and review counts are the live figures.
Most bookedFrom Aix-en-Provence: Arles, Les Baux & Saint-Rémy Full-Day
From MarseilleFrom Marseille: Arles, Les Baux & Saint-Rémy Full-Day Tour
Van GoghFrom Avignon: In the Footsteps of Van Gogh in Provence
With picnicFrom Avignon: Arles, Les Baux de Provence & St Rémy
Quick & localArles: Express Walk with a Local
PrivateArles: Private Guide Tour – Explore History & Culture
The express walk with a local
Sixty minutes, sometimes closer to two, with an independent local host and at most eight people. It meets at 37 boulevard Émile Combes, two minutes from the amphitheatre, and takes in the arena from outside, Saint-Trophime, the stairway of the Trinquetaille bridge and my own quarter, the Roquette, where it ends with a list of bars and restaurants. Rated 4.7 from 18 reviews; Larry from the United States called it “perfect pace”. It does not go inside any monument.
The private two-hour guide
A licensed guide for your own party, in English, French, German, Italian or Spanish, from 9 boulevard des Lices past the amphitheatre, the Théâtre antique, place de la République and the Espace Van Gogh, all from outside. The guide sub-score is 5.0 and the value sub-score 3.8, and the gap is the whole story: you book a guide for a group, so a couple pays for the capacity of six. Right for four or more, or for a third language. Not for under-10s.
From Aix-en-Provence: the full day
The most-booked tour on this site, 4.8 from 111 reviews. Eight and a half hours in a minibus of eight: Saint-Rémy for an hour and a half, Les Baux for two, Arles for an hour and a half, the driver-guide briefing you at each stop and then letting you go. Danielle from the United States put it plainly: “the tour is self guided once you get to each location.” Lunch and every entrance are on you.
From Marseille: the same three towns, a longer day
Ten and a half hours from the Vieux-Port, same order, with a photo stop at Les Antiques outside Saint-Rémy and Saint-Paul-de-Mausole as an option. 4.8 from 46 reviews. Ines from Germany found July heat “very challenging”, which applies to all three day trips.
From Avignon: in the footsteps of Van Gogh
A five-hour half day, the only tour here with a guided walk through Arles, past the Yellow House site, the café on place du Forum and the hospital garden, and the only one that includes an entry: Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, the asylum at Saint-Rémy where Van Gogh spent a year. 4.6 from 118 reviews. Written up on the Van Gogh tour page.
From Avignon: Arles, Les Baux, an olive mill and a picnic
Six and a half to seven and a half hours with Arnaud, who runs it: hotel pickup, a 75-minute guided walk through Arles, the Moulin Castelas olive mill with a tasting, a picnic under fig trees, the Carrières de Lumières with entry included, and an hour in Saint-Rémy. Mill and picnic run April to October only. 4.8 from 16 reviews, with guide and transport both at 5.0.
Which one, in plain terms
I decide by where you are sleeping and how much time you have.
- Staying in Arles, or passing through with an hour to spare: the express walk. Buy your own monument ticket afterwards.
- A party of four or more, or anyone who wants the town explained in German, Italian or Spanish: the private guide.
- Based in Aix: the Aix day trip. Based in Marseille: the Marseille one. Both give you Les Baux and Saint-Rémy in the same day and treat Arles as free time.
- Van Gogh is the reason you are coming: the half day from Avignon, because it is the only one that walks you round his Arles with a guide and puts you inside Saint-Paul-de-Mausole.
- Olive oil, a picnic and the Carrières de Lumières: Arnaud’s day from Avignon, April to October.
If none of those describes you, you probably do not need a tour. The station is ten minutes’ walk from the arena; the how to get there page has the timings.
What the tours include, and what they never do
Usually included
- Transport and a driver-guide on the three day trips
- A licensed or local guide on the two walks
- Saint-Paul-de-Mausole entry on the Van Gogh half day
- Carrières de Lumières entry, the olive-mill tasting and the picnic on Arnaud’s tour (April to October)
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on all six
Not included
- Entry to the Arènes d’Arles, on any of the six
- Entry to the Théâtre antique or any other Arles monument
- Lunch on the day trips
- Tips
- Corrida or course camarguaise seats, sold by the box office at arenes-arles.com
Pair whichever tour you pick with the Saturday market if you can. The Aix and Marseille day trips and the Van Gogh half day all reach Arles while the stalls are still up on boulevard des Lices, and a monument ticket bought at the arena entrance afterwards gets you in before the midday crowd.
The full day most people book
From Aix to Saint-Rémy, Les Baux and Arles in a minibus of eight, with a driver-guide who briefs you and then leaves you to it. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Read the reviews before you book
Every tour has a review page with the route in order and the recurring complaints: start with the Aix day trip or the express walk, or go to all reviews. The day trips are compared on the day tours page, the two walks on the walking tours page.
Can’t make these dates?
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Frequently asked questions
Do I need a tour to visit the Arènes d’Arles?
No. A monument ticket or an Arles pass, bought at the entrance, at the tourist office on boulevard des Lices or online, gets you in on any day the arena is open to visitors. A tour adds a guide for the town or a minibus to the villages, never the ticket itself; the ticket page explains the passes.
Which Arles tour includes the amphitheatre ticket?
None of the six. The only entry any of them includes is Saint-Paul-de-Mausole on the Van Gogh half day and the Carrières de Lumières on Arnaud’s tour from Avignon. Everything else is bought at the door.
Which is the best day trip to Arles?
It depends on where you sleep. From Aix, the eight-and-a-half-hour loop is the most-booked; from Marseille the same loop takes ten and a half hours; from Avignon, Arnaud’s day is shorter and guided throughout, with a picnic. The three are compared on the day tours page.
What happens if my tour date falls on a feria day?
The tours still run, but the amphitheatre is closed to sightseers from Friday 3 to Monday 6 April 2026, on Monday 6 July and from 11 to 13 September, plus concert dates. You would see it from outside only. The full calendar is on the feria page; the best time to visit page covers the quieter weeks.