Cultural trip · Provence · 3 days
Van Gogh route in Provence: Arles, Saint-Rémy and Saintes-Maries
Connect the missing Yellow House, the quays of the Rhône, the Café du Forum, Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, the olive groves, the cypresses, the white streets and the Mediterranean boats.
This guide distinguishes authentic places, disappeared buildings, reconstructions and landscapes that are still readable. It offers a realistic itinerary by car or public transport, without making people believe that each painting corresponds to an exact photographic point.
Quick response
How many days does it take to follow Van Gogh to Provence?
Three days give the best balance: a busy day in Arles, a day around Saint-Paul-de-Mausole and the Alpilles, then a day in Saintes-Maries. Two days are possible by eliminating long visits; four days allow you to add Montmajour, Glanum, the Camargue and the contemporary art foundations.
Quick version
Arles full on the first day; Saint-Rémy in the morning and Saintes-Maries in the afternoon on the second. Lots of road, little margin.
Ideal version
One territory per day, with visits, walking and comparison in front of the signs.
Rich version
Add Montmajour, Van Gogh Foundation, LUMA, Glanum and a real loop in the Camargue.
Possible, to plan
Arles serves as a base. Line 704 to Saint-Rémy and A50 to Saintes-Maries; times to check before departure.
Mind map
Three landscapes, three ways of painting
The road is not a simple list of masterpieces. Each territory modifies Van Gogh's vocabulary: city and artificial light in Arles, nature enclosed then traveled in Saint-Rémy, line and marine horizon in Saintes-Maries.
City, sociability and workshop project
Intense yellows, blue nights, portraits of the Roulins, gardens, bridges and places to live.
Pregnant, care and monumental nature
The field seen from the asylum, irises, olive trees, cypresses and Alpilles.
Sea, wind and expressive drawing
Boats pulled on the beach, low streets, church and changing Mediterranean.
Day 1 · 6 -9 km on foot
Arles
The city of yellow, nocturnal blue and the Atelier du Midi project. The center connects the arrival, the disappeared Yellow House, the Rhône, the café, the hospital and the Alyscamps.
Station and Place Lamartine
The real starting point. Van Gogh arrived by train in February 1888. The Yellow House was to the north of the square, but it was destroyed during a bombing in 1944.
Board to linkThe Yellow House →
Yellow House website
The building no longer exists. A sign and the urban layout allow you to understand the proximity of the station, the Gare café and the workshop accommodation.
Board to linkVan Gogh's Room in Arles →
Quays of the Rhône
Come at the end of the day: the reflections of the lights on the river explain the structure of the Arlesian night, without guaranteeing an identical sky.
Board to linkStarry Night on the Rhône →
Forum Square
The current café has been redeveloped with reference to the painting. Compare the deep perspective, artificial yellow and starry blue sky.
Board to linkCafé terrace in the evening →
Vincent van Gogh Arles Foundation
The Foundation organizes dialogues between Van Gogh and contemporary art. Don't assume that a Van Gogh original is on permanent display: check the current exhibition.
Board to linkThe Arlesienne →
Van Gogh space, former hospital
The garden cloister was redeveloped inspired by painting. This is the place where Vincent was treated after the crisis of December 1888.
Board to linkThe Arles Hospital Court →
Public garden, boulevard des Lices
A reason for walks, trees and benches. The garden reminds us that the Arlesian period is not limited to nights or the crisis.
Board to linkThe Arles Public Park →
Arles Arena
Van Gogh paints the spectacle as much as the monument: dense crowds, curved stands and colorful silhouettes seen from a high position.
Board to linkThe Arles Arena →
The Alyscamps
Van Gogh and Gauguin work together in this necropolis. The actual path allows us to compare trunks, sarcophagi and the acceleration of perspective.
Board to linkAllée des Alyscamps →
Van Gogh Bridge
The construction visible today is a bridge moved and then rebuilt, installed a few kilometers from the original pattern. It's a bike or car tour.
Board to linkThe Langlois Bridge in Arles →
Day 2 · 4 -7 km
Saint-Rémy-de-Provence
A route concentrated around Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, the enclosed field, olive groves, cypresses and Alpilles. Here, painting alternates confinement, observation and controlled outings.
Center of Saint-Rémy
Start in the village to understand the distance between city life and the old asylum, located south of the center.
Board to linkRoad with a cypress and a star →
Path to Saint-Paul-de-Mausole
The walking route is punctuated with reproductions. It gradually moves from the streets to the landscapes of the Alpilles.
Board to linkMountains in Saint-Rémy →
Saint-paul-de-mausole cloister
The place brings together a Romanesque cloister, the history of the asylum, an evoked workshop and a reconstructed room. It is not a room that has remained intact with authentic furniture.
Board to linkCypress trees →
Garden and enclosed field
Van Gogh paints from the enclosure and from his window: wheat field, shed, rain and reaper change with the seasons.
Board to linkWheat field with cypresses →
Iris and gardens
Irises are born from observation very close to the ground. The composition cuts certain flowers and transforms the massif into a rhythmic surface.
Board to linkThe Iris →
Olive groves and Alpilles cypresses
When outings become possible, Mediterranean trees become major subjects. Don't look for a single olive tree: look for the rhythm of the terrain and trunks.
Board to linkOlive grove, Saint-Rémy →
The night sky of Saint-Rémy
Starry Night combines memory, observation and invention. The village under the sky is not a faithful documentary view of Saint-Rémy.
Board to linkStarry Night →
Day 3 · 3 -5 km
Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer
Only five days, but a decisive shock: changing sea, beach, boats, white streets and line drawing. This stage belongs chronologically to Arles' stay, but deserves a separate day.
Fortress church and heart of the village
Climb if access to the roof is open: the view helps to understand the compact ancient village, the sea and the Camargue horizon.
Board to linkRue des Saintes-Maries →
Van Gogh route of the seafront
Inaugurated in 2022, it exhibits reproductions linked to the stay and places the works facing the maritime landscape.
Board to linkSeascape in Saintes-Maries →
Beach and location of boats
Current boats no longer exactly reproduce the fishing boats pulled on the sand in 1888. Instead, compare silhouettes, masts, colors and shoreline.
Board to linkBoats in Saintes-Maries →
Streets and low houses
Van Gogh brings the small houses of the village closer to the simple huts he had known in the Netherlands. White becomes a surface for blue, green and ocher.
Board to linkRue des Saintes-Maries →
Dunes, wind and light of Camargue
The wind explains the role of drawing: Van Gogh wants to work with a more voluntary line, then reuses certain drawings in paintings made in Arles.
Board to linkThe changing Mediterranean →
Current photos
The real places before hitting the road
They avoid fragile external calls and make it possible to distinguish preserved monuments, reconstructions and current landscapes.
Journeys 2026
Car, bus and base in Arles
Arles is the only one of the three stages served directly by train. For the other two, the car gives the most flexibility; buses exist but require you to build the day around their schedules.
| Journey | Car | Public transport | Counseling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrival in Arles | Parking outside the old center recommended. | SNCF station north of the center, convenient for the Maison jaune and the Rhône. | Sleeping in Arles for 2 or 3 nights simplifies logistics. |
| Arles → Saint-Rémy | About 25 -30 km, usually 35 to 45 min. | ZOU 704 line all year round; reinforcements and summer connections possible via the 707. | Get off at the center then walk or take a taxi to Saint-Paul if necessary. |
| Arles → Saintes-Maries | About 38 -40 km, usually 40 to 50 min. | Envia A50 line from Arles bus station. | Check the last return: the frequency is limited outside high season. |
| Arles → Van Gogh Bridge | A few kilometers south of the center. | Easier access by bike, taxi or car. | Don't add it to a central pedestrian loop without predicting the weather. |
Useful times 2026
Visits that require real preparation
The landscapes and signs are free to access, but Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, the Alyscamps, the Foundation and certain monuments operate with timetables and sometimes temporary closures.
| Location | What we visit | Information known in 2026 | To check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Paul-de-Mausole | Cloister, reconstruction of the asylum, reconstructed room, gardens and 33 large format reproductions. | From April 5, 2026: open 7 days a week, 9:30 a.m. - 7 p.m., last entry 6:15 p.m.; individual rate announced €10. | Winter times, groups and possible restrictions. |
| Van Gogh Arles Foundation | Temporary exhibitions putting Van Gogh in dialogue with modern and contemporary art. | Variable programming; no promise of an original permanently exhibited. | Exhibition, closure between clashes and ticketing. |
| Alyscamps | Ancient necropolis and alley painted by Van Gogh and Gauguin. | Paid heritage site, included in certain Arles monument packages. | Seasonal hours and monument passes. |
| Saintes-Maries route | Reproductions on the seafront and reading of the stay of June 1888. | Route inaugurated in 2022; Van Gogh Day announced on June 7, 2026. | Entertainment, weather and access to the roof of the church. |
20 works
Van Gogh's Provence in pictures
All works are displayed in full with object-fit: container and refer to active products in the store.
The Langlois bridge in Arles
See the work →Boats in Saintes-Maries
See the work →Marine landscape in Saintes-Maries
See the work →Rue des Saintes-Maries
See the work →
Portrait of the postman Joseph Roulin
See the work →Café terrace in the evening
See the work →Arles Public Park, The
See the work →The Arlesienne
See the work →Van Gogh's Room in Arles
See the work →Starry Night
See the work →Starry Night on the Rhône
See the work →The Yellow House
See the work →The Arles Arena
See the work →The courtyard of Arles hospital
See the work →The Cypress
See the work →Mountains in Saint-Rémy
See the work →A wheat field with cypresses
See the work →Olive grove, Saint-Rémy
See the work →The Iris
See the work →Road with a cypress and a star
See the work →Shop collections
Explore the route by territory and pattern
Van Gogh in Arles
Café, Yellow House, Rhône, hospital, bridge and portraits.
Van Gogh in Saint-Rémy
Starry night, fields, mountains, irises, olive trees and cypresses.
Van Gogh's Olives
Mediterranean trees as a subject of light and rhythm.
Van Gogh Cypress
Dark columns, night roads and fields of Saint-Rémy.
Provence and Mediterranean
Sea, countryside, villages, southern light and horizons.
All Van Goghs
Explore all available reproductions.
Don't be mistaken
Six nuances that make the journey fairer
The places have been restored, moved or reinterpreted. Recognizing them does not diminish emotion: it helps to distinguish history, memory and tourist staging.
Yellow house disappeared
Place Lamartine remains, but the house was destroyed in 1944.
Bridge moved
The current Van Gogh Bridge is a reconstruction installed far from the exact site of the Langlois Bridge.
Redeveloped garden
The courtyard of Espace Van Gogh is inspired by the painting; it has not remained still since 1889.
Reconstructed room
In Saint-Paul, the room presented restores an atmosphere; it is not preserved like that of the Auberge Ravoux in Auvers.
Invented night
The Starry Night of Saint-Rémy combines observation, memory and imaginary construction.
Transformed boats
Modern coastline is no longer the fishing beach of 1888; compare structures, not exact accessories.
No museum of originals
The route is mainly based on sites and reproductions. The originals are scattered throughout many museums.
Nonlinear timeline
The Saintes-Maries are placed in the middle of the stay in Arles, before Saint-Rémy.
Sources
Official guides and photo credits
Facts, routes and practical information are based on tourist offices, Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, Van Gogh Route and regional transport data.
Van Gogh circuit, panels and ten sites associated with the paintings.
Map of ArlesOfficial walking route and supposed locations of the easels.
Saint-Paul-de-MausoleVisit, opening hours and prices 2026, reconstructed room and reproductions.
Saintes-MariesRoute of the seafront and context of the stay of June 1888.
Van Gogh Route · ArlesChronology, preserved or disappeared places and works created.
Van Gogh Route · Saint-RémyAsylum, fields, olive trees, cypresses and context of the stay.
Van Gogh Mediterranean RouteFive days, nine drawings, three paintings and return to Arles.
TransportLines 704 to Saint-Rémy and A50 to Saintes-Maries.
Wikimedia CommonsFree photos used, with attribution in captions.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions about the Van Gogh Route in Provence
The essential answers for choosing the duration, base and means of transport.
What is the best starting point?
Arles is the best base: it has a train station, the most places within walking distance and buses to Saint-Rémy and Saintes-Maries.
Can you follow the road without a car?
Yes, but you have to organize each day around timetables. Line 704 connects Arles and Saint-Rémy; the A50 line connects Arles and Saintes-Maries. The Van Gogh Bridge is less practical without a bike or taxi.
How long does it take in Arles?
A full day for the center, Alyscamps and quays. Add half a day if you want to visit the Foundation, LUMA at length or reach the Van Gogh Bridge.
Does the Yellow House still exist?
No. It was destroyed in 1944. Place Lamartine and the railway context remain.
Is Van Gogh's room in Saint-Rémy authentic?
The center presents a reconstruction of the asylum and the room. It helps to understand the stay, but it is not a room that has remained intact with its original furniture.
Where did Van Gogh paint Starry Night?
In Saint-Rémy during his stay in Saint-Paul-de-Mausole. The painting should not, however, be read as an exact topographical view from a single window.
How long did Van Gogh stay in Saintes-Maries?
About five days, from May 30 or 31 to June 4 or 5, 1888. He made several drawings and three paintings there.
Can we see originals on the road?
Sometimes as part of temporary exhibitions, notably at the Van Gogh Arles Foundation, but no tour guarantees a permanent set of originals. Check the programming.
Conclusion
The Van Gogh Route connects three Souths: the city, the Alpilles and the sea.
Arles shows the ambition of a workshop and the colors of modern life; Saint-Rémy transforms constraint into cosmic rhythm; the Saintes-Maries give the line, the wind and the horizon a new intensity.
Start with the Arles collection
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