Alès

Also known as Alais

Alès () is a commune and subprefecture in the Gard department in the Occitania region in Southern France. Until 1926, it was officially known as Alais.

OverviewAI-generated

Alès is a commune in the Gard department of France, situated within the Occitanie region. It serves as the capital of the arrondissement of Alès and the cantons of Alès-Nord-Est, Alès-Ouest, and Alès-Sud-Est. The town has a population of 46,125, comprising 18,393 males and 21,826 females. Its area is 23.16 square kilometers, and it shares borders with Cendras, Saint-Christol-lez-Alès, Saint-Hilaire-de-Brethmas, and Saint-Jean-du-Pin.

The official name of the commune is Alès, with Alais listed as an alternative. It is located at an elevation of 356 meters above sea level. Alès is twinned with Kilmarnock, Herstal, Bílina, and Santa Coloma de Gramenet. The postal code for the area is 30100.

Synthesized by Vinony from 50 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Open Meteo, Openweathermap, OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Vinony graph, Geo. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Weather now

cached 6h ago

21°few clouds

54% 2.3 m/s OpenWeatherMap

7-day forecast

via Open-Meteo

Place details

Locality: Alès
Region: Occitanie
Country: France
Population: 42,410

via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames

Air quality

49US AQIGood

PM2.5: 9.5 µg/m³
PM10: 13.4 µg/m³

As of 2026-08-11 02:00 · Open-Meteo

Key facts

French commune.name: Alès
French commune.commune status: Subprefecture and commune
French commune.image: Cathédrale d'alès.JPG
French commune.caption: Alès Cathedral
French commune.image coat of arms: Blason ville fr Ales (Gard).svg
French commune.arrondissement: Alès
French commune.canton: Alès-1 Alès-2 Alès-3
French commune.INSEE: 30007
French commune.postal code: 30100
French commune.mayor: Max Roustan
French commune.term: 2020–2026
French commune.intercommunality: Alès Agglomération
French commune.elevation m: 150
French commune.elevation min m: 116
French commune.elevation max m: 356
French commune.area km2: 23.16

via Wikipedia infobox

Travel guide

Get in

Local trains run from Avignon via Nîmes. A change is sometimes required. Local buses also stop in Ales at the train station. By car is probably the most convenient way to reach Ales and to see the surrounding countryside. From the A7, exit Bollène. From the A9 exit at Nîmes-Ouest. The nearest airport is in Nîmes.

Get around

The town is small enough to see on foot. A few taxis are available, either at the train station or by phone.

See

Cathédrale Saint Jean Fort Vauban / Le Bosquet -- Historic fort, gardens and summer outdoor theatre. La Tour Vieille -- Botanical Garden and playground. La colline de l'Ermitage -- Small hill with a chapel on the top with great views over Alès. It's a lovely place to walk up to and take a picnic. Mine Témoin -- Museum about Alès' mining history.

Buy

Alès has a number of small shops and boutiques. There is a central covered food market every weekday morning, and a larger general market on a Monday which sells traditional items.

Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)

~5 min read

Encyclopedic overview

12 sections

Contents

Geography
History
Demographics
Economy
Sports
Sights
Notable people
Twin towns – sister cities
Climate
See also
References
External links

Alès () is a commune and subprefecture in the Gard department in the Occitania region in Southern France. Until 1926, it was officially known as Alais.

==Geography== Alès lies north-northwest of Nîmes, on the left bank of the river Gardon d'Alès, which half surrounds it. It is located at the foot of the Cévennes, near the Cévennes National Park. Alès station has rail connections to Nîmes, Mende and Clermont-Ferrand.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Alès” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (11)

On the map

3 mapped locations

Alès