Pond Du Garre

Pont du Gard: The Roman Aqueduct That Has Stood for Two Thousand Years

The Pont du Gard spans the Gardon river in the Gard department of southern France, roughly 25km northeast of Nimes. It was built around 50 CE as part of a 50km aqueduct that carried water from springs near Uzes to the Roman city of Nemausus (modern Nimes). The aqueduct itself was an extraordinary engineering project - it maintained a gradient of 1 in 3,000 over its entire length, requiring surveying precision that no modern instrumentation-free engineer would attempt. The Pont du Gard section crosses the Gardon gorge at a height of 49 metres in three tiers of arches: 6 arches at the bottom, 11 in the middle, 35 narrow arches at the top.

The bridge was constructed without mortar. The massive limestone blocks, some weighing up to 6 tonnes, were cut to fit precisely. The structure has been inhabited, used as a road bridge, and partially dismantled for building material over the centuries. It remains structurally sound. UNESCO added it to the World Heritage List in 1985.

The visit

Entry to the Pont du Gard site costs EUR 19 per car (all occupants included), or EUR 10 per adult on foot or by bike (2024 pricing). The price includes the museum and a canoe or kayak hire option. The visitor centre and museum opened in 2000 and cover Roman water engineering, daily life in Nimes, and the aqueduct’s construction history with good detail.

You can walk across the bridge on the second tier (the same level as the Roman road that was added in the 18th century) and look directly into the water channel at the top through a glass panel. The scale of the top tier arches, viewed from the first tier, is difficult to convey in photographs.

Swimming in the Gardon river below the bridge is permitted and popular in summer. The water is clear and the view of the bridge from the river surface gives the most complete impression of the structure’s scale.

Canoe and kayak hire

Canoe hire is available through the visitor centre and independent operators near the site. The standard route from Collias to Pont du Gard is 8km and takes 2-3 hours with the current. This is the most recommended way to approach the bridge - arriving by water under the first-tier arches, with the structure visible for several kilometres of river, gives an experience the road approach does not match.

The surrounding area

Nimes (25km southwest) has the best-preserved Roman amphitheatre in the world - the Arena of Nimes, built around 70 CE, still in regular use for concerts and bullfights (entry EUR 10). The Maison Carree, a temple from around 4-7 CE, stands intact in the city centre. Uzes, the nearest small town to Pont du Gard (12km north), has a medieval ducal palace and a Saturday market considered among the best in Languedoc.

Accommodation near the site

Les Gorges du Gardon campsite is immediately adjacent to the bridge site and is the most practical option for those wanting a full day at the water. Hotels in Uzes (Hotel Entraigues, around EUR 100-150 per night) or Nimes (several chain hotels, EUR 80-120) provide more comfortable bases.

High season (July-August) is hot - temperatures regularly exceed 35 degrees Celsius in the Gard gorge. The site is busy but the scale of the gorge and the surrounding garrigue countryside means it never feels entirely overwhelmed. May, June, and September are significantly quieter and more comfortable for walking.