AT A GLANCE

Why go?

Set in the heart of the fishing-and-pilgrimage town of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, the Arenas of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer are a working open-air arena and the liveliest stage for the traditions of the Camargue. Built in the early 1930s in a landscape already steeped in bull culture, this ring of sand and stone has spent nearly a century hosting the games, riders and processions that define southern France's wild delta. It is a place families and curious travellers visit not to look at a monument, but to feel a living culture at full volume.↗↗

The signature experience is the course camarguaise, a bloodless bull game unique to this corner of Provence. Instead of a matador's sword, agile athletes called raseteurs dart across the sand to snatch, bare-handed, the ribbons, cockade and tassels fixed to the horns of a prized local bull. The animal is a respected hero rather than a victim, and the suspense of the chase, the roar of the crowd and the golden Mediterranean light make it one of the most memorable evenings you can spend in the region.↗↗