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Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (; or , ; commonly shortened to PACA; en, Provence-Alps-French Riviera, italic=yes; also branded as Région Sud) is one of the eighteen administrative regions of
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, the far southeastern on the
mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or dem ...
. Its prefecture and largest city is
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
. The region is roughly coterminous with the former French province of
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
, with the addition of the following adjacent areas: the former papal territory of Avignon, known as
Comtat Venaissin The Comtat Venaissin (; Provençal: , Mistralian norm: , classical norm: ; 'County of Venaissin'), often called the for short, was a part of the Papal States (1274‒1791) in what is now the region of France. The entire region was an enclav ...
; the former Sardinian-Piedmontese
County of Nice The County of Nice (french: Comté de Nice / Pays Niçois, it, Contea di Nizza/Paese Nizzardo, Niçard oc, Contèa de Niça/País Niçard) is a historical region of France located around the southeastern city of Nice and roughly equivalent t ...
annexed in 1860, whose coastline is known in English as the French Riviera and in French as the ''Côte d'Azur''; and the southeastern part of the former French province of
Dauphiné The Dauphiné (, ) is a former province in Southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné was originally the Dauphiné of Viennois. In the 12th centu ...
, in the
French Alps The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such as ...
. Previously known by the acronym PACA, the region adopted the name ''Région Sud'' as a commercial name or nickname in December 2017. 5,007,977 people live in the region according to the 2015 census. It encompasses six departments in Southeastern France: Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Alpes-Maritimes,
Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and ...
,
Hautes-Alpes Hautes-Alpes (; oc, Auts Aups; en, Upper Alps) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population of 141,220 ...
,
Var Var or VAR may refer to: Places * Var (department), a department of France * Var (river), France * Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran * Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
and
Vaucluse Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.France–Italy border The France–Italy border is 515 km (320 mi) long. It runs from the Alps in the north, a region in which it passes over Mont Blanc, down to the Mediterranean coast in the south. Three national parks are located along the border: Vanoise National ...
, to the south by the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
and by the
Principality of Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Liguria ...
, to the north by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and to the west by
Occitanie Occitanie may refer to: *Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French *Occitania (administrative region) Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occitània ; ca, Occitània ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...
, with the
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
marking its westernmost border. The region logotype displays the coat of arms created in the 1990s and which combines the coats of arms of the old provinces making up Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. The region's economy is the third largest in France, just behind
Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...
and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Its GDP in 2015 was €168.2 billion (US$190.5 billion) while its per capita GDP was €30,863 (US$34,950).


Demographics


Population

As of 2018, the population of the region was 5,052,832;
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
and its metropolitan area is the most populous in the region with a city population of 868,277, an
urban population An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...
of 1,607,292 and a metropolitan population of 1,863,762. Marseille is the second largest city in France after
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, and has the third largest metropolitan population, behind those of Paris and
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
respectively.
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
is host to the second-largest population concentration in the region, with a city population of 344,875 and an urban population of 1,005,230, making it the fifth-most populous city in France.


Languages

The absolute majority of the population speaks French but many regional and foreign languages are present in the region. The 1999 Census, which included a complementary survey asking for the mother tongue of the respondents, gave results on the most spoken mother tongues in Provence after French: * Provençal 5.2% *
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
4.4% *
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
3.0% *
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
2.8% * Corsican 1.1%


Immigration

According to a 2009 study, nearly 40% of all newborns in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in 2007 had at least one parent of an immigrant background, mostly Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Maghrebi. This is the second-highest rate after Île-de-France (Greater Paris), where the figure was around 56%. Since the 1960s, the region has been a major immigration centre from France and into
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, mostly due to Northern French and to Mediterranean immigration from countries such as
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
,
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
and
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
.


Departments

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur is divided into 6 departments. These are Alpes-de-Haute-Provence,
Hautes-Alpes Hautes-Alpes (; oc, Auts Aups; en, Upper Alps) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population of 141,220 ...
, Alpes-Maritimes,
Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and ...
,
Var Var or VAR may refer to: Places * Var (department), a department of France * Var (river), France * Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran * Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
and
Vaucluse Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019. The largest cities in the region are
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
(regional prefecture),
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
,
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
and
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...
, each with a population exceeding 100,000 inhabitants at the 1999 census. After Marseille, Nice is the second most populous city in the region, with a city proper population of about 350,000 and an urban population exceeding 1 million. Marseille has an urban area of 2 million inhabitants and is the largest and capital city of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It is also the second-most populated city in France, just behind
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, and the city with the third-largest metropolitan population in France, behind Paris and
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
, respectively. Along with Nice and Marseille, the region is also made internationally popular with
Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...
, a city that, despite its comparatively small size (population of 73,603 in 2012), hosts the annual
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
, which has highly popularized the region. In addition,
Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...
has become renowned as the city where
Vincent van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inc ...
lived and painted 300 paintings. Toulon is a large military harbour on the Mediterranean coast and is home to a French naval base. It is the capital of the Var department in the region. Also, Aix-en-Provence has long been a university town and, to this day, remains the most important educational centre in the region. Below is a list of the most populated cities in the region along with their population (city proper) according to the most recent census: *
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...
– 142,743 * Antibes (includes Juan-les-Pins) – 76,994 *
Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...
– 52,729 *
Aubagne Aubagne (, ''Aubanha'' in Occitan according to the classic norm or ''Aubagno'' according to the Mistralian norm) is a commune in the southern French department of Bouches-du-Rhône. In 2018, it had a population of 47,208. Its inhabitants are k ...
– 46,423 * Avignon – 90,194 *
Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...
– 73,603 *
Draguignan Draguignan (; oc, Draguinhan) is a commune in the Var department in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (formerly Provence), southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of ...
– 38,258 * Fréjus – 52,389 *
Grasse Grasse (; Provençal oc, Grassa in classical norm or in Mistralian norm ; traditional it, Grassa) is the only subprefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region on the French Riviera. In 2017, the c ...
– 51,580 *
Hyères Hyères (), Provençal Occitan: ''Ieras'' in classical norm, or ''Iero'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. The old town lies from the sea clustered arou ...
– 56,275 *
La Seyne-sur-Mer La Seyne-sur-Mer (; "La Seyne on Sea"; oc, La Sanha), or simply La Seyne, is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2018, it had a population of 62,888. La Seyne-sur-Mer, which is ...
– 64,903 *
Le Cannet Le Cannet (; oc, Lo Canet; older it, Canneto) is a commune of the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. Administration Le Cannet was part of Cannes until 1778, when it was made a separate commune. Location Le Cannet is locat ...
– 40,940 *
Mandelieu-la-Napoule Mandelieu-la-Napoule (; oc, Mandaluec la Napola; locally spelled Mandelieu-La Napoule) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera, just to the ...
– 22,714 *
Manosque Manosque (; Provençal Occitan: ''Manòsca'' in classical norm or ''Manosco'' in Mistralian norm) is the largest town and commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. However, it is not the ''préfecture'' (capital ...
– 22,333 *
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
– 861,636 *
Martigues Martigues ( in classical norm, ''Lou Martegue'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune northwest of Marseille. It is part of the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the eastern end of the Canal de Caronte. A di ...
– 76,471 *
Mougins Mougins (; oc, Mogins ; la, Muginum ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes département in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 19,982. It is located on the heights of Cannes, in the a ...
– 19,703 *
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
– 343,875 * Salon-de-Provence – 45,400 *
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
– 167,729 *
Villeneuve-Loubet Villeneuve-Loubet (; oc, Vilanuòva e Lo Lobet; it, Villanova Lobetto) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It lies between Cagnes-sur-Mer and Antibes, at the mou ...
– 14,427


Geography

This region has a total area of . It has a wide variety of landscapes, from the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
mountains to plains and coastal areas like
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
and
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, which form the majority of the land area. The region has a
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...
coastline on the south, on which the majority of its population lives. It borders
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
(
Liguria it, Ligure , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
and
Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
) to the east,
Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
( Fontvieille, La Colle, La Rousse,
Larvotto Larvotto (french: Le Larvotto; also known as Larvotto/Bas Moulins; lij, Larvotu ) is the easternmost ward in the Principality of Monaco. It is part of the quarter of Monte Carlo. It has an estimated surface area of and access to the Mediterr ...
,
Les Moneghetti Les Moneghetti ( lij, Muneghëti ) is the northcentral Ward in the Principality of Monaco. Moneghetti was incorporated in La Condamine. Overview Situated in an area where the Alps drop into the Mediterranean Sea; Les Moneghetti has steep inclines ...
,
Les Révoires Les Révoires () is a northwestern area in the Principality of Monaco. It is a residential and tourist area, part of the traditional quarter of La Condamine. In 2008, it had a population of 2,545. Les Révoires was a ward of Monaco until 2013, whe ...
, Saint Michel) in the south-east, and the French regions of Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes to the north and
Occitanie Occitanie may refer to: *Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French *Occitania (administrative region) Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occitània ; ca, Occitània ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...
to the west. The
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
, Durance,
Var Var or VAR may refer to: Places * Var (department), a department of France * Var (river), France * Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran * Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
and Arc rivers run through the region. The borders were unaffected by the 2016 French regional reforms. This region is famous for the Côte d'Azur ( French Riviera), which spans the coastal cities of
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
,
Saint-Laurent-du-Var Saint-Laurent-du-Var (; Occitan: ''Sant Laurenç de Var'', Italian: ''San Lorenzo del Varo'') is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera. History The town was founded in the ...
, Antibes, Juan-les-Pins,
Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...
,
Mandelieu-la-Napoule Mandelieu-la-Napoule (; oc, Mandaluec la Napola; locally spelled Mandelieu-La Napoule) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera, just to the ...
, Fréjus, Saint-Raphaël,
Sainte-Maxime Sainte-Maxime (; Occitan and Provençal: ''Santa Maxima'') is a commune in the Var department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera (''Côte d'Azur''), west from Nice and east from M ...
and Saint-Tropez; and on the
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
river, the city of Avignon which is surrounded by medieval stone walls.


Regional government and politics

The
Regional Council of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur The Regional Council of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur ( French: ''Conseil régional de Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur'') is the deliberative assembly of the French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. The regional council is made up of 123 regional c ...
is the legislative body (''assemblée délibérante'') of the region. The
President of the Regional Council The following is a list of current presidents of the regional councils of France and the Corsican Assembly. List Since 2011, the Departmental Council of Mayotte has simultaneously exercised the competencies of a regional council. Since 2015, t ...
has been Renaud Muselier formerly of The Republicans (LR) since 2017.


Political tendencies

In the recent years, The Republicans have gained strong support in the region. Following the 2015 regional election, the party took control of the regional executive, which had been previously controlled by the
Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of t ...
(PS).
Christian Estrosi Christian Paul Gilbert Estrosi (born 1 July 1955) is a French sportsman and politician who has served as Mayor of Nice since 2017, previously holding the office from 2008 to 2016. A former professional motorcyclist, he served as a government m ...
succeeded
Michel Vauzelle Michel Vauzelle (born 15 August 1944) is a French politician who served as Keeper of the Seals of France, Minister of Justice under Prime Minister Pierre Bérégovoy from 1992 to 1993. A member of the Socialist Party (PS), he also served as Ma ...
as President of the Regional Council. The 2015 election was also a show of force for the National Front (FN), led by Marion Maréchal-Le Pen, which garnered over 45% of the vote in the second round. The Socialist Party lost all representation at the regional level. The
French Communist Party The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European Un ...
(PCF) historically had several strongholds in the region from the 1920s onward, including
Aubagne Aubagne (, ''Aubanha'' in Occitan according to the classic norm or ''Aubagno'' according to the Mistralian norm) is a commune in the southern French department of Bouches-du-Rhône. In 2018, it had a population of 47,208. Its inhabitants are k ...
,
Draguignan Draguignan (; oc, Draguinhan) is a commune in the Var department in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (formerly Provence), southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of ...
,
La Ciotat La Ciotat (; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, La Ciutat ; in Mistralian spelling ''La Ciéutat''; 'the City') is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. It is the southeasternmost ...
,
Beausoleil BeauSoleil (French, ''beautiful sun'') is a Cajun band from Louisiana, United States. Band history Founded in 1975, BeauSoleil (often billed as "BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet") released its first album in 1977 and became one of the most well ...
,
Martigues Martigues ( in classical norm, ''Lou Martegue'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune northwest of Marseille. It is part of the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the eastern end of the Canal de Caronte. A di ...
,
Gardanne Gardanne (; oc, Gardana) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France. Its inhabitants are called Gardannais. Geography It is close to Aix-en-Provence and Marseille and on the rail link connecting the two cities. It ...
,
Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...
as well as some suburbs of
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, although not enough to win regional elections; the party usually received about 10% of the vote. In the 2002 presidential election, this declined to 4%. In 2007, it dropped below 2%. Nowadays the main competition in regional politics is between the right-wing The Republicans and the far-right National Rally (formerly National Front). In the second round of the 2021 regional election, The Republicans received 57.3% of the vote against the National Rally's 42.7% with a list led by Thierry Mariani. The Socialist Party, present in the first round on a joint list led by
Europe Ecology – The Greens Europe Ecology – The Greens (french: Europe Écologie Les Verts , EELV ) is a centre-left to left-wing green political party in France. The party is a member of the European Green Party. The party was formed on 13 November 2010 from the merge ...
, failed again to win any seats. The 2022 presidential election marked the first time a far-right candidate won a majority of the vote in the second round in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Marine Le Pen won a majority of the vote in three of the six departments (55.1% in Var, 52% in Vaucluse and 51.5% in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence); her respective scores in the remaining three (49.9% in Alpes-Maritimes, 47.9% in Bouches-du-Rhône and 44.9% in Hautes-Alpes) were superior to her national total (41.5%).


Presidential election results

In the second round of the last four presidential elections, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur voted as follows, with the winner of the election indicated in italics:


Economy

The regional income per capita is close to the French national average. Income inequality however is higher than in other regions: it is ranked the 2nd region most marked by inequalities after Île-de-France. The region is ranked fifth by GDP (as of 2016). Between 2007 and 2011, the region registered an average annual growth rate of 1.6% of GDP (Eurostat), close to the national average annual growth rate of 1.5%. Representing 7.2% of the national GDP over the period, the region is an important economic powerhouse. In 2013, the region was responsible for 7.4% of national employment, with an employment rate of 60.9%. The region's employment success has a main characteristic: a higher concentration of elderly people than in the rest of France (respectively 27.1% and 24.1% in 2013). With more than 80% of regional employment in the service sector in 2016, the regional economy is mostly oriented towards service activities, above the national average of 75.8%. The sector grew between 2000 and 2010 (3.1% on annual average versus 2.1% in France). The region concentrates more on commercial activities than financial ones than the rest of France does; principally because of tourism. 34% of the labour force is employed in retail and trade, against 32% at the national level. Moreover, the sector strongly contributes to growth of added value (81.5% vs. 77.3% at the national level). The industrial sector (existing mainly through the
Marseille-Fos Port Marseille-Fos Port () is the main trade seaport of France. In 2011, the port had an overall traffic of 88 million tons. It was also one of the 15 world's largest cruise ports and the fifth-largest in the Mediterranean. It has two main sites: in n ...
), including construction, consists of 17.1% of regional employment (vs. 20.6% in the rest of France), and contributes to 9.3% of gross added value, 3.2 points below the French level. Employment in the agricultural sector is lower than the national level (2.4% against 3.1%). However, it grew at a rate of 4.1% annually on average between 2000 and 2008, while the rest of the country saw its agricultural employment decline by 2.4%. According to the INSEE, the region is characterised by a strong presence of SMEs of less than 500 employees, which represent 91.2% of local businesses (higher than the national average of 90.9%). Retail activities and tourism explain these figures. The region's economy is dependent on tourism like most coastal places but also a majority of its economy is dependent on coastal activities. PACA is the 3rd richest French region and ranks 19th on the European scale. Its prosperity is mainly thanks to its attractiveness in terms of tourism; it is indeed one of the world's favourite tourist destinations, welcoming about 34 million tourists every year. The service sector predominates and provides many good jobs. In 2009, the region was admittedly affected by the global economic crisis, albeit to a small extent. It is (after the Paris area) the 2nd French region with regards to business startups. If tourism is the driving force of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, the region is also a leader when it comes to innovative sectors, such as high technology, biotechnology, and microelectronics. Education, for its part, is well developed with the region's various universities, international schools, preparatory classes for specialist university courses, and engineering and business schools. All these institutions of higher learning help contribute to the human capital needed by the region to meet current technological challenges. The region has a total GDP (2018) of €166.4 billion (US$188.7 bn), the sixth highest in France. It has a per capita GDP of €30,864 (US$34,994), slightly higher than the French average. According to a recent survey, a person living in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has an average annual income of about €37,489 (US$45,755). The region has been part of the Alps–Mediterranean Euroregion since 10 July 2007.


Culture

The region is one of the most visited of France, and has therefore many well-known museums, mostly in Marseille: the
Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations The Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations (Mucem; French: ''Musée des Civilisations de l'Europe et de la Méditerranée'') is a national museum located in Marseille, France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), i ...
, the Musée Cantini, the Musée Grobet-Labadié, the Marseille History Museum, the
Musée des beaux-arts de Marseille The Musée des beaux-arts de Marseille is one of the main museums in the city of Marseille, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It occupies a wing of the Palais Longchamp, and displays a collection of paintings, sculptures and drawings fro ...
, the
Musée de la Faïence de Marseille The Musée de la Faïence de Marseille was a museum in southern Marseille, France, dedicated to faience, a type of pottery. It opened to the public in June 1995 in Château Pastré at 157, Avenue de Montredon 13008 Marseille. It closed on 31 Decem ...
and the Muséum d'histoire naturelle de Marseille are some of the tourist spots of the city. However, other museums are internationally recognised, like the Musée Matisse, the Musée d'art moderne et d'art contemporain, the Musée Marc Chagall, the Musée international d'Art naïf Anatole Jakovsky, the
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nice The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nice in Nice, France at 33 av. des Baumettes was built in the former private mansion built in 1878 by the Russian Princess, . Named for the artist Jules Chéret who lived and worked in Nice during his final years, the ...
, the Musée National du Sport and the Muséum d'histoire naturelle de Nice.


Transportation


Airports

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has two of the busiest airports in France:
Nice Côte d'Azur Airport Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport Nice Côte d'Azur) is an international airport located southwest of Nice, in the Alpes-Maritimes ''départment'' of France. It is the third busiest airport in France and serves as a foc ...
(ranking third nationally after
Charles de Gaulle Airport Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (french: Aéroport de Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle, ), also known as Roissy Airport or simply Paris CDG, is the principal airport serving the French capital, Paris ( and its metropolitan area), and the largest intern ...
and
Orly Airport Paris Orly Airport (french: Aéroport de Paris-Orly), commonly referred to as Orly , is one of two international airports serving the French capital, Paris, the other one being Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG). It is located partially in Orly ...
) and
Marseille Provence Airport Marseille Provence Airport () is an international airport located 27 km (17 miles) northwest of Marseille, on the territory of Marignane, both ''communes'' of the Bouches-du-Rhône ''département'' in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur '' r ...
(ranking fifth nationally after
Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport de Lyon-Saint Exupéry), formerly known as ''Lyon Satolas Airport'' , is the international airport of Lyon, the third-biggest city in France and an important transport facility for the e ...
). Nice saw 14,485,423 people travelling through its airport in 2019, while 10,151,743 used Marseille to fly. As of 2019, the third-busiest airport in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur is Toulon–Hyères Airport (507,199 passengers), ranking 27th nationally.


Motorways

The region is at the centre of a complex and dense motorway network, in the heart of Mediterranean coast. Motorways are operated by ASF, ESCOTA, SMTC, MPM (Marseille Metropolis) and DIR Med (State). In PACA, motorways have the particularity to serve the city centres of large cities, unlike other large cities of France. This is due to their comparatively early construction in relation to the motorways of France's other regions. * A7 - Autoroute du Soleil "Motorway of the Sun" links the region to Lyon and on to the North of France. This motorway starts in central
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
at the
Porte d'Aix Porte d'Aix (also known as the Porte Royale) is a triumphal arch in Marseille, in the south of France, marking the old entry point to the city on the road from Aix-en-Provence. The classical design by Michel-Robert Penchaud was inspired by the tr ...
. The road widens at Septèmes Valleys and meets the A51. After a junction with the A55 and connecting highways A517, A551 and A552, the motorway crosses Vitrolles in 2x2x2 lanes. It serves
Marseille Provence Airport Marseille Provence Airport () is an international airport located 27 km (17 miles) northwest of Marseille, on the territory of Marignane, both ''communes'' of the Bouches-du-Rhône ''département'' in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur '' r ...
and
Aix-en-Provence TGV railway station Aix-en-Provence TGV is a high-speed railway station located in Cabriès, Bouches-du-Rhône, southern France. The station was opened in 2001 and is located on the LGV Méditerranée. The train services are operated by SNCF. It serves the city of ...
. After 10 kilometres, the A7 passes the
Berre-l'Étang Berre-l'Étang (; oc, Bèrra) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France. Population See also * Étang de Berre * Communes of the Bouches-du-Rhône department The followi ...
petrochimical complex at a junction with the D8 highway. After this it meets the A8 Provençal motorway at
La Fare-les-Oliviers La Fare-les-Oliviers (; oc, La Fara deis Oliviers) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. Located in the Aix-Marseille-Provence Metropolis, it had a population of 8,666 in ...
. After the toll station at Lançon-de-Provence, the road meets the A54 motorway at Salon-de-Provence. The motorway continues along the Rhône and Durance to Avignon and Orange until Lyon. * A8 - La Provençale, crosses the region from west to east to Italy. This motorway starts from the A7 at La Fare-les-Oliviers. The first part of free-road starts and cross Aix-en-Provence to be linked with A51 and N296 motorways. After the Palette Valley, the motorway arrives to the La Barque tool and the junction with the A52 to Aubagne, Marseille-Est and Toulon. Crossing the Var department with the A8/A57 junction at Le Luc, the A8 gets a mountain profile to cross the French Riviera: Cannes, Antibes, Nice. A connection is made with A500 motorway at La Turbie to serves the Principauty of Monaco. After Menton, the motorway cross the Italian border until Genoa. * A50 - This motorway connects the east of Marseilles after the Prado-Carénage tooltunnel to Toulon. After crossing the Huveaune Valley and the South of Aubagne, the motorway goes near the coast to Toulon city center. The motorway crosses the city with a tunnel until A57. It is a suburban motorway. * A51 - Autoroute du Val de Durance "Motorway of the Durance Valley". The motorway starts with the A7/A51/A517 junction in the north of Marseille between Plan-de-Campagne and Septèmes Valleys. 20 kilometres after, the motorway stops at the A8/A516/A51/N296 junction in the southern part of
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...
. At Aix-Nord, the motorway restarts and goes to rural South Alps after
Manosque Manosque (; Provençal Occitan: ''Manòsca'' in classical norm or ''Manosco'' in Mistralian norm) is the largest town and commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. However, it is not the ''préfecture'' (capital ...
. It ends near Tallard, at south from Gap. * A52 - Grand Contournement de Marseille "Marseille Bypass". The motorway starts at the A8/A52 junction in Aix-Est (La Barque). It is a mountain 2x2 motorway built at around Marseille. After the A52/A520 junction and Pont de l'Étoile, it ends at Aubagne, connected with A501 and A50. * A54 - Autoroute de la Crau "Crau Motorway". This motorway starts at the A7/A54 junction at Salon-Est and the crossing of Salon-de-Provence with four exits, the motorway arrives at the Crau Plain. It ends at the N569/A54 junction in Saint-Martin de Crau. It re-begins at Arles-Ouest to Nîmes, Montpellier and
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
. * A55 - Autoroute du Littoral "Coastal Motorway". This motorway starts at
Port-de-Bouc Port-de-Bouc (; oc, Lo Pòrt de Boc) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Bouches-du-Rhône department The following is a list of the 119 communes of the Bouches-du- ...
. After the Martigues bridge, the motorway passes at the south of the Berre pond in the Estaque Mountains After the A7/A55/A551/A552 junction at
Les Pennes-Mirabeau Les Pennes-Mirabeau (; oc, Lei Penas de Mirabèu) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France, located 13.5 km (8.4 mi) from Marseille. In May every year, a medieval festival attracts tens of thousands people ...
, it crosses the mountains and arrives at Marseille (Estaque district). After the junction of Grand Littoral, the way crosses the new
Euroméditerranée Euroméditerranée () is an urban renewal project underway in Marseille to create an ecodistrict in the neighbourhood of La Joliette. The project was launched in 1995 with the initiative of Mayor Robert Vigouroux Robert Vigouroux (21 March ...
Central Business District with a long bridge of . Cars enter in the Joliette tunnel, continued by the Vieux-Port tunnel under the sea and the Prado-Carénage tooltunnel. These three tunnels crosses the Marseille city centre. A55 is connected with A50. * A57 - Autoroute des Maures "Maures motorway". This motorways starts at A50/A57 junction after the Toulon tunnel. After the A57/1570 junction at
La Valette-du-Var La Valette-du-Var ( Provençal Occitan: ''La Valeta'') is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Population Notable people The village cemetery contains the grave of Joseph Pujol, ...
, the motorway continues along the plain of Maures to Cuers and Le Luc to be link with the A8. * A500 - Tunnel de Monaco "Monaco Tunnel". This motorway starts at La Turbie (A8) at the west of Monaco. The A8 goes over Monaco but A500 goes in Monaco with a tunnel to the principality. * A501 - Aubagne bypass, connects A50 to A52. * A502 - Garlaban motorway. This little motorway connects the A50 from Aubagne to Aubagne-Est to the Garlaban mountains. * A515 - Junction from A51 to Gardanne. * A516 - L'Aixoise. This motorway connects the A51 southern East Junction to Aix city centre. * A517 - Convergent de Septèmes-les-Vallons "Convergent of Septemes Valleys". Link between A7 and 51. * A520 - Autoroute de la Sainte Baume "Ste. Baume motorway". This motorway starts from A52 at Pont de l'Étoile and ends at Auriol East to be connected with N560 to the Sambuc pass and Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume. * A570 - Autoroute de la Côte "Motorway of the Coast". Link between A57 and
Hyères Hyères (), Provençal Occitan: ''Ieras'' in classical norm, or ''Iero'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. The old town lies from the sea clustered arou ...
. The national road N97 continues after to Saint-Tropez * N113 - Highway in Vitrolles along the A7. Highway of the Crau Plain between Saint-Martin-de-Crau (A54) to Arles-Ouest (A54). * N296 - Aix-en-Provence bypass. * N569 - Port of Fos-Marseille. * D6 - Highway of Arc Valley from A515 to Rousset-Peynier Technologies centre. * D8 - Petrochimical area of Berre. * D9 - Link between Marseille Provence Airport, Aix TGV high speed train station, the Arbois desert, Europolis and Aix-en-Provence.


Trains


High speed services

The region is served by 13 high-speed trains stations and one more in the
Principality of Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Liguria ...
. Two stations are situated on the
LGV Méditerranée The LGV Méditerranée (French: ''Ligne à Grande Vitesse''; English: Mediterranean high-speed line) is a French high-speed rail line running between Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence, Drôme and Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, also featuring a connecti ...
opened in 2001: Avignon TGV and Aix-en-Provence TGV. The others stations served by high-speed services are Avignon-Centre, Arles, Miramas, Marseille-Saint-Charles, Toulon, Les Arcs-Draguignan, Saint-Raphaël-Valescure, Cannes, Antibes, Nice-Ville and Menton. * Services operated ** Paris GDL to Avignon-Centre /
Miramas Miramas (; oc, Miramàs) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, southern France. It is the second-largest commune in metropolitan Ouest-Provence and is located at the north end of the Éta ...
** Paris GDL to Marseille, Toulon, Nice,
Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
and
Ventimiglia Ventimiglia (; lij, label= Intemelio, Ventemiglia , lij, label= Genoese, Vintimiggia; french: Vintimille ; oc, label= Provençal, Ventemilha ) is a resort town in the province of Imperia, Liguria, northern Italy. It is located southwest of ...
(Italy) ** Nantes / Rennes to Marseille ** Strasbourg to Marseille **
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
to Marseille ** Nancy /
Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...
/
Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...
to Marseille / Nice **
Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
to Marseille * Services operated by SNCF Ouigo: ** Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy to Marseille ** Lyon-Perrache to Marseille * Services operated by SNCB/NMBS TGV: ** Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid (Belgium) to Marseille and Nice * Services operated by CFF Lyria: **
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
(Switzerland) to Marseille and Nice * Services operated by DB Alleo: **
Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
(Germany) to Marseille * Services operated by Renfe AVE: ** Madrid-Atocha (Spain) to
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
(Spain) to Marseille * Services operated by
Eurostar Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service connecting the United Kingdom with France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Most Eurostar trains travel through the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France, owned and operate ...
: ** London Saint Pancras Int. (UK) to Ashford (UK) and Marseille * Services operated by
Thalys Thalys (French: ) is a French-Belgian high-speed rail, high-speed train operator originally built around the LGV Nord high-speed line between Gare du Nord, Paris and Brussels-South railway station, Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar tr ...
(seasonal): **
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
(Netherlands) to
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
(Belgium) and Marseille


National services

Despite the importance of the region in the national economy and demography, the national services on conventional network are not very high due to the fact of the saturations of the tracks with high speed and regional trains. * Services operated by SNCF Intercités: ** Bordeaux-Saint-Jean to
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
, Montpellier, Marseille-Saint-Charles and Nice ** Paris-Austerlitz to Marseille-Blancarde and Nice (night train) ** Paris-Austerlitz to Gap and
Briançon Briançon (, ) is the sole subprefecture of the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. It is the highest city in France at an altitude of , based on the national definition as a community cont ...
(night train) * Services operated by Thello Eurocity: ** Marseille-Saint-Charles to Nice, Monaco, Ventimiglia,
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
and
Milano Centrale Milano Centrale ( it, Stazione Milano Centrale) is the main railway station of the city of Milan, Italy, and is the largest railway station in Europe by volume. The station is a terminus and located at the northern end of central Milan. It was o ...
(Italy)


Regional services

All regional trains services are operated by SNCF TER Provence-Alpes Côte d'Azur, except between Nice and Digne-les-Bains, operated by CP, the own-region company. The Regional Council of Provence-Alpes Côte d'Azur is the transport authority and defines the services in all region. An attractive fare permits to transport more than 100,000 passengers every day in 750 trains. Trains are leaving every 15, 20, 30, 60 or 120 minutes on each line. With only one big line, the tracks are saturated causing delays or cancellations. The region has to rent other trains from other regions to respond at the offer. In 2016, during the second Council of the Year at the Region Hall in Marseille, in front of politicians and the new President of the Regional Council of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Christian Estrosi Christian Paul Gilbert Estrosi (born 1 July 1955) is a French sportsman and politician who has served as Mayor of Nice since 2017, previously holding the office from 2008 to 2016. A former professional motorcyclist, he served as a government m ...
, the SNCF CEO,
Guillaume Pepy Guillaume Pepy (born 26 May 1958) is a high-ranking French civil servant who currently serves as president of the SNCF, the French national rail authority. He is also Chairman of Eurostar and Deputy-Chairman of the Keolis Group. President Nicolas ...
, has announced the impossibility of the company to respond to the demand. The Marseille-Saint-Charles Station, the Marseille's main railway station can't support more than 23 trains an hour and the tracks are too old and not enough to accept an average of the capacity. The project of new high-speed line called LGV PACA in 2030 could permit to increase trains on tracks with a new crossing of Marseille with a tunnel. Two new stations will be created in the territory of the city and a new line between Cannes and
Nice Côte d'Azur Airport Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport Nice Côte d'Azur) is an international airport located southwest of Nice, in the Alpes-Maritimes ''départment'' of France. It is the third busiest airport in France and serves as a foc ...
. Services operated by CP: * Nice CP to
Colomars Colomars (Nissart: Couloumas) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes ''département'' in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Inhabitants of Colomars are called ''Colomarsois''. Colomars is a part of the Pays Niçois. ...
and Plan du Var * Nice CP to Digne-les-Bains Services operated by SNCF are declined with two appellations unlike other regions : TER, normally suburban trains and Intervilles, long-distance regional trains. Services operated by SNCF Intervilles: * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Toulon, Nice and Monaco * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Gap and Briançon * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Avignon and Lyon-Part-Dieu * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Montpellier, Narbonne and Perpignan * Briançon to Gap, Valence TGV, Valence-Ville and Romans-sur-Isère * Avignon-Centre to Montpellier, Narbonne and Perpignan Services operated by SNCF TER: * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Marseille-Euroméditerranée, Port-de-Bouc and Miramas * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Vitrolles MP Airport, Miramas and Avignon-Centre * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Vitrolles MP Airport, Miramas, Nîmes and Montpellier-Saint-Roch * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Marseille-Euroméditerranée, Vitrolles MP Airport, Salon-de-Provence, Avignon-Centre and Avignon TGV * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Saint-Antoine, Aix-en-Provence and Pertuis * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Saint-Antoine, Aix-en-Provence and Sisteron * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Marseille-Blancarde and Aubagne * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Marseille-Blancarde, Aubagne, Toulon and Hyères * Marseille-Saint-Charles to Marseille-Blancarde, Aubagne, Toulon and Les Arcs-Draguignan * Avignon-Centre, Valence and Lyon-Perrache * Avignon-Centre to Nîmes, Montpellier, Narbonne and Perpignan * Avignon TGV to Avignon-Centre and Carpentras * Les Arcs-Draguignan to Cannes, Nice, Monaco and Menton * Grasse to Cannes, Nice, Monaco, Menton and Ventimiglia (Italy) * Nice-Ville to Breil-sur-Roya and Cuneo (Italy) * Briançon to Gap and Grenoble


Environment

The mining company Alteo processes
bauxite Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO ...
to produce aluminium, resulting in various waste materials such as "boues rouges" (red mud) and
arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, ...
. The dumping of this waste in the marine reserve of
Calanques National Park Calanques National Park (French: ''Parc national des Calanques'') is a French national park located on the Mediterranean coast in Bouches-du-Rhône, Southern France. It was established in 2012 and extends over , of which is land, while the rema ...
for six years was authorised by the French Government in 2015. Company representatives have dismissed environmental concerns as exaggerated and uninformed. The region also includes another national park,
Port-Cros National Park Port-Cros National Park (french: Parc national de Port-Cros) is a French national park established on the Mediterranean island of Port-Cros, east of Toulon. It also administers natural areas in some surrounding locales. History The park was fo ...
near Toulon. Due to motor vehicle traffic, the urban areas are often saturated on a daily basis, but cities are investing in public transport networks such as Marseille's subway (2 lines) and tramway (3 lines), the
Aubagne tramway The Aubagne tramway ( French: ''Tramway d'Aubagne'') is a tram system in Aubagne, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. Comprising a single line called Line T serving 7 stations, it was inaugurated on 1 September 2014 and does not charge fares. ...
(1 line) and the
Nice tramway The Nice tramway (french: Tramway de Nice) is a , triple-line tramway in the city of Nice in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. It is operated by the ''Société nouvelle des transports de l'agglomération niçoise'' division of Transdev under ...
(3 lines). Other networks existed at the beginning of the 20th century in smaller cities such as
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...
, Avignon,
La Ciotat La Ciotat (; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, La Ciutat ; in Mistralian spelling ''La Ciéutat''; 'the City') is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. It is the southeasternmost ...
and
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
but are now gone.


Education

Major universities of the region include the
Aix-Marseille University Aix-Marseille University (AMU; french: Aix-Marseille Université; formally incorporated as ''Université d'Aix-Marseille'') is a public research university located in the Provence region of southern France. It was founded in 1409 when Louis II o ...
, the
University of Toulon The University of Toulon (French: ''Université de Toulon'' or UTLN) is a French university located in Toulon, France, and neighboring areas ( La Garde, Saint-Raphaël, La Valette and Draguignan). It was founded in 1968 and is organized in 6 ...
, the
University of Avignon Avignon University ( French: ''Avignon Université''; formerly known as ''Université d’Avignon et des Pays de Vaucluse'') is a public university located in Avignon, France. Avignon University is situated on two campuses: the Hannah Arendt Ca ...
and the
Côte d'Azur University Côte d'Azur University (french: Université Côte d'Azur) is a public research university located in Nice, France and neighboring areas. In 2019, it replaced the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis and the community (ComUE) that was created in 201 ...
. Other towns have higher education classes but no universities.


References


External links


Discover all the regions of France
Official French tourism website (in English) – separate entries for Côte d'Azur and Provence *
Conseil régional Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Official website of the regional council

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Guide {{DEFAULTSORT:Provence-Alpes-Cote D'azur Regions of France NUTS 2 statistical regions of the European Union