Arènes de Nîmes

First-century Roman amphitheatre, still in active use for concerts and bullfights

The Arènes de Nîmes, built around 100 AD, is among the most intact Roman amphitheatres anywhere. The complete outer ring of two-tier arcades — 60 each — still stands, the seating tiers inside hold 24,000 spectators, and the building is still used for concerts, opera, and the city's twice-yearly bullfighting feria.

Visit during a quiet morning if you want to see the structure; the audio guide does a careful job explaining how Roman crowd management worked. Better still, get a ticket for an evening event — opera under the stars in May, the Feria in September, a Sting concert in July. Standing in the same stones the Romans cut, watching a performance the way the Romans did, is the single best thing to do in Nîmes.

things to do sight roman
A story
The Arènes survived because they were never abandoned. In the early Middle Ages locals built a fortified village inside it; later, houses filled the arcades. When the buildings were cleared in 1809, the amphitheatre underneath was still intact, complete with its drainage system.