Pont du Gard, a 1st century AD Roman bridge crossing the Gard river, off the A9 between Nimes and Avignon, is one of the most famous sites in the region. A UNESCO World Heritage Site with more than a million visitors a year. As with all over-touristed spots, the question remains “is it worth it?” Well, there is a reason so many people visit these places. They are most often awesome despite the hoards.
If you are in the area you have to see them at least once in your lifetime. You can decide later, in the decades to follow, if you need to go back. Case in point, the Pont du Gard is one of the best preserved and most impressive Roman bridges in the world. How could you not see it?
Since my last visit more than a decade ago they’ve expanded the visitor center and upped the admission price to an all inclusive €15 per car. Not a bad price, but if you just want to see the bridge – free if you don’t have a car – there are other options for hiking and biking to the bridge. See the Pont du Gard site for more information.
Remoulins Friday Morning Market
While it may be fine for picking up a few veggies, a roasted chicken or some great cheese or sausage it is not one of your better “gourmet” type markets. Interesting dry goods to poke through if that’s your thing, but if you’re looking for a destination market, go to the Saturday morning market in Uzès.
Nîmes Les Halles
Not satisfied with the choices at the Remoulins market we headed into Nîmes to check out Les Halles, a large indoor market near the center of town. Bright, clean and filled with just about everything you might want at a French market. Open daily 6AM to 1:30PM. We picked up a couple of more quail and some figs for our last dinner in Provence. Best dinner of the trip, so far. Click here for recipe.
For links to all the posts in this series see the Calvisson page.