Coming from Barcelona and will be arriving via train. Will only have time for one these three cities. Will be renting a car as well for the drive to Nice for the next five days. Suggestions on which to train into and spend the night and first part of the next day? Three males in early 20's.
Thanks!
i haven't been there yet, but hope to go. My "research" shows most people favor Arles,.. RS picks Arles as a home base, for example.
Whereas Avignon is on the large side, and Marseille is on the seedy and or risky side.
If you choose Arles, you'll change trains at Nimes and could spend a couple of hours there to see the two big Roman sites. Arles is the town that I've visited most among these, and was happy that I did, both on my own and with our tours, and it has the best museums. Both Arles and Aix have great markets on Saturday and at least one other day per week.
Avignon, Aix, and Marseille are all served by one direct TGV train in the afternoon. I did not find Marseille too seedy during a brief day trip last year, but Rick's book indicates that it's not the best place for finding good-value hotel rooms (but you can look around), so I went with a better-value (single) room in Aix.
Car rental offices are easy enough to reach in any of these cities, though in Avignon most are by the TGV station instead of the central station.
Choose Nimes.
Take the early train from Barcelona, arriving at 10:56am. Spend the afternoon in nearby Avignon (30mins by train). Visit Arles the following morning (also 30mins by train) before heading on to Nice after lunch.
I find Rick to be too negative about Marseille and that only feeds the bad reputation to Americans. The city has turned around and its tourism is alive and well. I spent 5 days there (and took day trips to Arles and Avignon). There is definitely more to DO in Marseille, but you need to figure out which sites appeal to you the most. I got an excellent deal in a 4-star hotel on the port and found hotel prices to be agreeable. All three of the cities are like comparing apples, pears, and oranges and each offer something incredibly unique. I'd be glad to answer any of your questions.
And the major museums in Marseille have been updated lately, so they compare well with the one in Arles.
But I agree with the Nimes recommendation! The outdoor dining and bar-hopping scene in Nimes at night is more laid-back and less multinational than in Arles or Marseille..
