Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
PAYS D'AIX
Picturesque Pays d'Aix (Aix Country), within which oh-so-elegant Aix-en-Provence is en-
sconced, sits 25km or so north of Marseille.
AIX-CELLENT
The
Aix City Pass
(€15)
, valid five days, includes a guided walking tour, admission to the Atelier Paul Cézanne, Jas
de Bouffan and Musée Granet and a trip on the mini-tram. The
Cézanne Pass
(€12)
covers his three main sights. Buy
the passes at the tourist office, or the two Cézanne sights.
Aix-en-Provence
POP 141,895
A pocket of left-bank Parisian chic deep in Provence, Aix (pronounced like the letter X) is
all class: its leafy boulevards and public squares are lined with 17th- and 18th-century man-
sions, punctuated by gurgling moss-covered fountains. Haughty stone lions guard its grand-
est avenue, cafe-laced cours Mirabeau, where fashionable Aixois pose on polished pave-
ment terraces sipping overpriced espresso.
Aix marks the spot where Roman forces enslaved the inhabitants of the Ligurian Celtic
stronghold of Entremont, 3km north. In 123 BC the military camp was named Aquae Sexti-
ae (Waters of Sextius) for the thermal springs that still flow today. In the 12th century the
counts of Provence proclaimed Aix their capital, which it remained until the Revolution
when it was supplanted by Marseille. The city became a centre of culture under arts patron
King René (1409-80): painter Paul Cézanne and novelist Émile Zola are its most famous
sons.
Aix is a prestigious student hub and is pricier than other Provençal towns.
