Van Gogh Itinerary in Arles
From the vanished Yellow House to the banks of the Rhône, from the café on the Place du Forum to the bridges of Trinquetaille and Langlois: a precise route to compare today’s city with the paintings created between February 1888 and May 1889.
Starting point: Place Lamartine, where the Yellow House no longer exists.Can we still see Van Gogh's Arles?
Yes, but you need to visit viewpoints rather than intact settings. The Rhône, Place du Forum, the Alyscamps, and the courtyard of the former Hôtel-Dieu remain recognizable. The Yellow House and the actual Langlois Bridge have disappeared.
Arles has marked about ten locations where signs bring the current landscape closer to the painted composition. The walk becomes fascinating as soon as you accept the transformations: rebuilt bridges, remodeled façades, relocated railway lines, redesigned gardens, and profoundly altered neighborhoods.
Eight stages to traverse the Arles of 1888
This loop starts from the station, follows the Yellow House district, reaches the Rhône, crosses the historic center and ends at the Alyscamps. The Van Gogh bridge forms an independent extension to the south.
Place Lamartine
Site of the Yellow House and former railway district.
Station → 6 minQuai du Rhône
Viewpoint of The Starry Night on the Rhône.
8 min walkTrinquetaille
Bridge, staircase and contrast between iron, water and city.
10 min walkPlace du Forum
Viewpoint of Café Terrace at Night.
7 min walkVan Gogh Foundation
Exhibitions and dialogue between Vincent and contemporary art.
4 min walkEspace Van Gogh
Former Hôtel-Dieu and courtyard painted in 1889.
7 min walkPublic garden
The "Garden of the Poet", near the ancient theatre.
5 min walkThe Alyscamps
Necropolis, autumn lane, and parallel work with Gauguin.
15-minute walkThe bridge is located more than 3 km south of the center, on the Pont-de-Langlois road. In 2026, the city is developing a greenway from the Alyscamps, but the full connection is announced for 2027: still prefer biking, taxi, or car and check access before leaving.
The Yellow House: living, painting, hosting
Van Gogh first rented the right wing of the small house at 2 Place Lamartine, then set up his studio and bedrooms there. In September 1888, he spent his first night there. The place was to become the "Studio of the South", an artists' community of which Paul Gauguin would be the only long-term guest.
The neighborhood was then dominated by the station, the tracks, the public gardens and the cafés. The Café de la Gare, where Van Gogh painted the interior of the Night Café, was at 30 Place Lamartine. The Yellow House was severely damaged during the Allied bombing on June 25, 1944, and then demolished.
Place du Forum: a terrace still recognizable
Van Gogh painted two famous cafés in Arles, but they do not represent the same establishment. Café Terrace at Night looks at a terrace of the Place du Forum; The Night Café shows the interior of the Café de la Gare, Place Lamartine.
The Café Van Gogh is not a static scene from 1888
The terrace and the corner of the street help you find the composition, but the façade was remodeled and colored in the 20th century to recall the painting. Look especially at the perspective of the Rue du Palais, the projecting terrace, and the contrast between the lit square and the night sky.
Open the Place du Forum on the map
Café Terrace at Night
Artificial yellow does not suppress the night: it makes it bluer. Van Gogh paints outdoors, without using black as a dominant principle.
See reproductionFinding a blue night and the reflections of gaslight
In September 1888, Van Gogh set up his easel on the eastern bank of the Rhône. The painting combines the lights of the Trinquetaille bank, their long streaks in the water, and a couple in the foreground. The exact spot is still subject to topographical adjustments: the official sign gives the best visiting landmark.
Don't just come to "recreate the photo". Look at how Van Gogh builds a night with three depths: the stars, the city lamps and their vertical reflections.On-site viewing tip
Two bridges, two stories of authenticity
Van Gogh loves bridges because they bring together old and modern: wood, iron, water, traffic, silhouettes and depth. In Arles, the current Trinquetaille Bridge replaces the 19th-century one; the "Van Gogh Bridge" is a similar bridge moved and installed to evoke the Réginelle bridge known as Langlois.
Trinquetaille Bridge
The bridge visible today dates from the post-war period. The viewpoint nevertheless allows one to read the relationship between quay, rise, deck and opposite bank.
Van Gogh Bridge
The current structure is a drawbridge of the same type, moved near the canal. It restores a silhouette and a mechanism, not the exact intact site.
The Langlois Bridge
The drawbridge, the washerwomen, the canal and the clear sky bring Provence closer to the Japanese prints admired by Van Gogh.
See reproductionHospital, garden and autumn walk
The route would be incomplete without the former Hôtel-Dieu, where Van Gogh was treated after the crisis of December 1888, and the Alyscamps, painted in parallel with Gauguin in autumn.
The Real Courtyard
The former Hôtel-Dieu now houses the media library, among other things. Its flower-filled courtyard has been laid out to recall Van Gogh's composition; it is very photogenic but should not be mistaken for a garden that has remained unchanged since 1889.
The Hospital Garden
The galleries form a stable frame while the central garden spins like a living space. The painted view makes it possible to gauge the choices of simplification, perspective, and colour.
An ancient alley turned modern experience
Van Gogh does not paint an archaeological record: he transforms the alley, the sarcophagi, and the falling leaves into coloured bands. Access to the monument is ticketed; allow at least forty-five minutes.
The Alyscamps
The trunks cut through the depth, the passers-by are almost signs, and the orange of the leaves advances toward the viewer. Van Gogh and Gauguin work side by side at this time, though without painting in the same way.
See reproductionArenas and Gardens: Van Gogh Prefers Life to Monument
Van Gogh did not come to Arles to catalogue the Roman remains. Even when he enters the Arenas or walks alongside the ancient theatre, he is above all looking for the crowd, the trees, the couples, and the framing effects. These stops complete the tour of the cafés and bridges, showing how he transforms a historic city into a contemporary experience.
A monument Van Gogh watches from the crowd
The amphitheatre still dominates the neighbourhood, but the painting does not seek either the façade or Roman grandeur. Enter if opening hours allow: the comparison becomes clearer from the stands, where bodies, rows and the oval of the arena organise the view.
Locate the Arènes
The Arènes of Arles
The track is almost pushed out of the painting. The real subject is the human density of the stands: abbreviated faces, superimposed silhouettes, colourful shawls and compressed space as in certain Japanese prints.
See reproduction
The current garden and the ancient theatre
The Jardin d'été (Summer Garden) today provides a green transition between Boulevard des Lices and the ancient theatre. The official tour places Van Gogh's studies of the public garden here; look for the trunks, the diagonal paths and the small figures rather than an exact botanical match.
Locate the garden
A path in the public garden of Arles
The path is not just a perspective: it becomes a colorful scene where trees frame the strollers. Van Gogh set aside several paintings of the 'Garden of the Poet' to decorate Gauguin's room in the Yellow House.
See reproduction
The Trinquetaille Bridge
Blue iron, lilac quay, greenish water, and small black figures: the bridge becomes an experience of contrasts, far from a documentary view.
See reproduction
Couple in the Park of Arles
The figures give scale to the garden, while the trunks create an architecture stronger than the buildings visible in the distance.
See reproduction
The Lovers
Van Gogh imagines the garden as a sentimental and decorative place: fiery foliage, curving path, and a couple almost absorbed by color.
See reproductionSuggested route, hours, and addresses
Yellow House
From the station, start at Place Lamartine before traffic dominates the viewpoint.
Rhône and Forum
Quays, Trinquetaille Bridge, Place du Forum, then Fondation Vincent van Gogh.
Hospital and Alyscamps
Van Gogh Space, public garden and ancient alley with visiting time.
Bridge or Rhône
Extension to the Van Gogh bridge, or return to the quay to wait for the evening blue.
| Yellow House | Place Lamartine, near the train station. Building disappeared; circuit sign on site. Map |
|---|---|
| Starry Night Over the Rhône | Quai du Rhône, east bank, north of the old center. Spot the official sign before nightfall. Map |
| Place du Forum | Northeast corner of the square, facing the current yellow terrace. Free access to the square; optional consumption. Map |
| Van Gogh Foundation | 35 ter rue du Docteur-Fanton. Exhibitions change and Vincent's works are loans, not a guaranteed permanent collection. Official website |
| Espace Van Gogh | Place Félix-Rey. Courtyard generally accessible according to site usage; check during event periods. City of Arles |
| The Alyscamps | Avenue des Alyscamps. Paying municipal monument; seasonal hours to check with the tourist office. |
| Van Gogh Bridge | Route du Pont-de-Langlois, more than 3 km from the center. Recommended extension by bike, taxi, or car. Map |
| Tourist office | 9 boulevard des Lices. Ask for the Van Gogh circuit map or download the official walking route before your visit. |
Times are indicative and do not include waiting lines, meals, or a long exhibition at the Foundation. Monuments and events in Arles have seasonal hours: check official websites on the day of departure.
Van Gogh collections linked to Arles
Explore every Arles location in depth
Visiting Arles in the Footsteps of Van Gogh
How long does the Van Gogh circuit in Arles take?
Allow 2.5 to 3 hours for a central loop of 4.5 km including reading the signs, and half a day if you go into the Foundation, the Espace Van Gogh, and the Alyscamps. Add about 1.5 hours for the round trip to the Van Gogh Bridge.
Does the Yellow House still exist?
No. The house on Place Lamartine was severely damaged during the Allied bombing of June 25, 1944, and subsequently demolished. The site is now marked by the circuit.
Is the yellow café on the Place du Forum authentic?
The location and urban angle are associated with the painting, but the visible facade has been remodeled and colored to evoke the artwork. It should be considered a tourist landmark, not a setting preserved intact since 1888.
Where did Van Gogh paint Starry Night Over the Rhône?
On the east bank of the Rhône, near the Arles quays, looking toward Trinquetaille. A sign on the official trail helps find the viewpoint; the quays and lights have naturally changed.
Is the Van Gogh Bridge the one painted by Van Gogh?
No. The Réginelle bridge, called the Langlois Bridge, has disappeared. The structure presented today is a drawbridge of the same type moved south of Arles to evoke the subject.
Can you do the entire route on foot?
The central loop, yes. For the Van Gogh Bridge, located more than 3 km to the south, biking, taxi, or car are more comfortable. The greenway under construction in 2026 should improve the complete connection by 2027.
Are there any original paintings by Van Gogh in Arles?
The Vincent van Gogh Foundation may present original works through loans in certain exhibitions, but it does not have a permanent collection guaranteed of the Arles masterpieces. Check the current program.
What is the best time to see the Rhône?
Arrive about thirty minutes before sunset, locate the daytime sign, then wait for the blue hour. You can compare sky, urban lighting, and reflections without moving around in the dark.
Did Van Gogh paint the Roman monuments of Arles?
Very few. He was mainly interested in ordinary and modern places: cafés, bridges, gardens, quays, train station and countryside. The Alyscamps are an exception, while the Arena appears mainly as a place of crowds and spectacle.
A verified itinerary, not a tourist legend
- Arles Tourist Office — In the footsteps of Van Gogh : list of signs, places and about 300 works created in the Pays d’Arles.
- Arles Tourist Office — pedestrian circuits : map of the route and location of landmarks.
- Vincent van Gogh Arles Foundation — A Life in Arles : stay, landscapes, bridges, Yellow House and Hôtel-Dieu.
- Van Gogh Letters, letter 691 : place Lamartine, Yellow House, Café de la Gare and neighborhood.
- Van Gogh Letters, letter 682 : first night in the Maison jaune and address of the Café de la Gare.
- City of Arles — Espace Van Gogh : address and current facilities.
- City of Arles — greenway Alyscamps–Van Gogh bridge : construction work 2026 and announced schedule.
- Van Gogh Museum — place Lamartine and Yellow House : artwork, date and location.
Site of the Yellow House — Vestemocoso, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Café de la place du Forum — Isiwal, CC BY-SA.
Rhône at Night — Jakob Hagedorn, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Trinquetaille Bridge — Mbzt, CC BY 3.0.
Espace Van Gogh — photograph licensed under the terms indicated on Wikimedia Commons.
Van Gogh Bridge — Sébastien HOSY, license indicated on Wikimedia Commons.
The Alyscamps — Hawobo, CC BY-SA 2.0 DE.
The Arènes of Arles — Peter Broster, CC0.
Summer Garden and Ancient Theatre — Elliott Brown, CC BY 2.0.
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Reproductions of Van Gogh's works: public domain; photographs and files according to the credits of institutions and Wikimedia Commons.
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