Arles is one of those places steeped in history. It didn’t just leave a trace; it left a full-blown stone amphitheatre right in the middle of town. Built in 90 AD, the Arles Amphitheatre once hosted gladiators and roaring crowds. Today, it still stages events, just with fewer swords and slightly better seating.

But Arles isn’t stuck in the past. Enter Frank Gehry’s shimmering tower at the Luma Foundation. Locals jokingly call it the “crushed can” or “sci-fi fortress,” depending on how generous they feel. Love it or hate it, it’s impossible to ignore — Gehry clearly wanted to shake up the Roman calm with a futuristic wink.

And then, of course, there’s Van Gogh. He painted more than 300 works during his short stay here, giving the town its eternal claim to artistic fame. Walking through Arles feels like moving through his canvases — the light, the streets, even the café terraces have that painterly glow.

But here are some fun and unusual facts you might not know:

The amphitheatre was once turned into a medieval fortress with more than 200 houses inside it. Talk about prime real estate with a view. Arles is also home to France’s largest wetlands, the Camargue, famous for white horses, black bulls, and pink flamingos — like nature decided to go wild with a paintbox. The town still has an annual photography festival, Les Rencontres d’Arles, where the whole city becomes an open-air gallery. Forget Instagram – Arles has been curating visuals since forever.

Arles is a city of contrasts: Roman arches and modern shards, painterly light and gritty bullfights, sleepy alleys and buzzing festivals. It’s messy, magnificent, and never boring.