12 Best Bars in Provence, France

At AJMI, in La Manutention arts center, you can hear live jazz acts of some renown.

Very late to the craft cocktail scene, Aix finally has a bar that stands up to its sophisticated cousins in Marseille or even Paris. While there are 10 refreshing and original choices on the cocktail menu, the bartender is happy to customize a drink to your taste, offering helpful tips on rare or unusual spirits (there is no beer or wine served here). The cozy room, complete with comfy chairs and sofas, has a friendly vibe and the outdoor tables are lovely on hot Provence nights.

The music is live, and the crowd is lively at this fashionable cabaret-bar that's a Marseille institution.

Enjoy drinks in this dark, intimate space just outside the Utopia movie theater in La Manutention arts center.

At this vast venue, host to the Fiesta des Suds each autumn, you'll find world and Latin music year-round.

For rap and techno, try L'Affranchi.

Restaurant by day, club and tapas bar by night, La Caravelle harks back to prewar jazz clubs, but without the smoke. There are great views over the port and live music two nights a week.

An übercool hangout for live music, performance, and entertainment during the Avignon Festival and on weekends, Le Delirium covers its walls with ongoing exhibits to create a truly artsy atmosphere.

This venue for cabaret-style dinner shows also hosts jazz, blues, and rock concerts and theater performances.

Although Arles seems like one big sidewalk café in warm weather, the best place to drink is at the hip bar-restaurant Patio de Camargue, with its great location on the banks of the Rhône. It serves terrific tapas, and you can hear guitar music and watch traditional dance from Chico and Los Gypsies, led by a founding member of the Gypsy Kings. Reservations are a good idea in high season.

Atop the Terrasses shopping center, Le Réctoire and its terrace, Le Rooftop—together called R2—are a popular restaurant by day and a chic cocktail bar and club by night. Dance on the rooftop to live music and DJ beats, or sip a drink on the sprawling terrace while taking in spectacular views of the J4 Pier (home of MuCEM) and Marseille's big-ship port. Both establishments are open until 2 am six days a week (they close at 7 pm on Monday), a rarity in Marseille.

This bar is a mecca for English speakers, who pour onto the sidewalk, beer in hand, pub style. There's live music, DJs on the weekend, and a lounge for the die-hard rugby and soccer fans who can't go without watching a game.