Aix-en-Provence, Marseille

About Aix-en-Provence

Aix-en-Provence lies 30 kilometres north of Marseille, on a plain by the River Arc with a view of the white Mont Sainte-Victoire. The Romans founded it by hot springs in 123 BC. In the Middle Ages Aix was the capital of Provence, a centre of art and learning; its university dates from 1409, and from 1501 it was the seat of the Parliament of Provence.

Today it's one of the loveliest and calmest cities in southern France: honey-coloured mansions, shady boulevards, squares with fountains, markets and cafés full of students. Paul Cézanne was born here, and the city treasures his memory.

What to see

• Cours Mirabeau — a plane-shaded boulevard of fountains and cafés.
• The old town — mansions, Place d'Albertas and Place des Trois-Ormeaux.
• Saint-Sauveur Cathedral — styles from the 5th to the 17th century.
• Quartier Mazarin — the Fountain of the Four Dolphins.
• Cézanne's studio — the painter's last workshop.
• Musée Granet — European painting and sculpture.

The Cours Mirabeau and fountains

Aix's main street is the Cours Mirabeau, a broad boulevard with double rows of plane trees following the line of the old city wall. Mansions and banks line one side, cafés the other. The most famous is Les Deux Garçons, from 1792, frequented by Cézanne, Zola and Hemingway.

Aix is called the 'city of a thousand fountains'. The Cours Mirabeau has three: at the top, a fountain of 'good King' René holding Muscat grapes; halfway down, a moss-covered warm fountain (34 °C) flowing since Roman times; and at the bottom, on La Rotonde, a monumental fountain of 1860. In the Quartier Mazarin stands the graceful 17th-century Fountain of the Four Dolphins.

The old town and cathedral

North of the Cours Mirabeau begins the old town, with narrow winding streets and mansions from the 16th to 18th centuries. Look in on Place d'Albertas with its fountain and Place des Trois-Ormeaux, and walk on to the town hall and its clock tower.

Saint-Sauveur Cathedral stands on the site of the Roman forum: it mixes styles from the 5th to the 17th century, and its Gothic portal has finely carved walnut doors. In the Quartier Mazarin are the 13th-century church of Saint-Jean-de-Malte and the Musée Granet, with European painting including works by Cézanne.

In Cézanne's footsteps

Paul Cézanne was born in Aix and worked here all his life. A Cézanne trail of brass markers in the pavement leads to places linked to him: his childhood home Jas de Bouffan, cafés, his school and his last studio on the Lauves hill.

The studio has been kept much as he left it: the easel, the objects from his still lifes, his coat and hat. Beyond the city rises the white limestone Mont Sainte-Victoire, which Cézanne painted more than eighty times; its silhouette is instantly recognisable from the canvases.

Tips for your visit

Give Aix a whole day: the market and old town in the morning, the Cours Mirabeau and cathedral at midday, then Cézanne's studio or the Musée Granet in the afternoon. Book the studio ahead, as visits are in small groups.

Aix is an easy day trip from Marseille, with buses from Saint-Charles every 10–15 minutes. Afterwards, head back to Marseille for sunset at Notre-Dame de la Garde.

The centre is flat and pedestrianised, good with a pushchair. Summer afternoons are hot, but the plane trees shade the boulevards.

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How to do it right

• Market in the morning.
• Book the studio ahead.
• Take calissons home.
• Buses every 15 minutes.

Questions