When considering the villages in the vicinity of Nîmes you are going to want to start with these: Caissargues, Manduel, Rodhilan, Calvisson, Caveirac, Marguerittes, which all have better value per square meter on average than Nîmes. Just a short drive straight from the French Rome on a widened 4-lane road that makes for a smooth ride on the modernized Via Domitia, now known as the route de Beaucaire.

Like in Nîmes, these villages will likely have ferias, with a lot less draw of a crowd. They often happen at the change of the season or during bank holidays. For those who aren’t familiar, you’re in for a treat. It’s your chance to meet and get a feel for the community and its locals in a festival atmosphere which normally involves a bull. My favorite part of this is the abrivado. You have to experience it at least once.

A passage is made about 15 to 20-feet wide (5 metres) and 3 football fields long and at each end is a horse trailer. One is filled with bulls and the other one empty. Here is where it gets sketchy. An audience accumulates along this passage. Each side is shielded by ‘gates’ but not your typical gate. These are designed to let you pass safely through and just wide enough to make a fat man squeeze. Introducing your contestants (drum roll) who has also the moniker as the crowd who are feeling brave and whimsical to pass through the barrier the day of.

Like I heard growing up in Kentucky/Tennessee – mess with the bull, and get the horns.

However, if you look closely enough you’ll see that the bull’s horns are shielded with cases to guard the gardian. He or she is the leader of the manade that raised the bull. His horse and band of farmhands escort the bull in a V-shape from one side to the other as youthful contestants sprint alongside trying their hand at manhandling the beast and if they’re lucky can have a moment to spar/wrestle the horns. The team on horseback are fitted in traditional flowery dress shirts and vests as they gallop sometimes at full speed down the street. Finally if all is done soundly the bulls are ushered into the trailer and tied down tight by their colleague positioned atop the trailer.

As they dazzle on the streets on their trusty steed, you might be asking yourself, isn’t this France? Yes, but not the France you learned about in High School. I’m no way a historian but geographically speaking Spain is not that far away, and I’ve met a fair share of Nîmois who have Spanish heritage. Next door to the Camargue which is where you will find the majority of manades, also largely contributes to the craze.

This is all part of the experience! Like the southern French accent you might not love it at first, should you stay however, you will become accustomed to it and learn to live with it. For newcomers who don’t see themselves getting into such events, beware mainly of the corrida. This is where you WILL certainly witness animals being harmed. Also, locals you meet will want to know where you stand on the issue, (i.e whether there is a place for it in today’s crazy world for bullfighting) and this might make for a dreadful, minefield of a convo. Most people I’ve met are generally against it and prefer events like the one below, the course camarguaise or like I mentioned above the abrivado.

On to a lighter topic – the climate. I referenced Wikipedia for a comparison to Nîmes. Redessan receives less rainfall than Nîmes and there is less risk of flooding. Which could be one of the reasons property tax is lower. The downside like with most villages surrounding Nîmes, the capital of the department, they tend to be windier. With that in mind, the average temperatures remain lower which won’t add up to much after all as the summers are boiling!

Other fun facts : There is a changing of the guards for the mayor of Redessan. The sole candidate, as of writing this blogpost, for 2026 is a middle-aged, taxi driver who when asked about his project for change, he answered to install solar panels on public buildings. UPDATE March 2026, Jules Fernandez, the local chauffeur/taxi driver was elected. And if any of you are thinking about making the move with children, for middle school, your closest one is in Manduel.

The local economy lives by the vine, agricultural based : wine, abricots, olives, and peaches. The go-to eatery is Le relais de Canard from what I’m told it’s a cheap, great place to dine. Interestingly enough at Cureboussot, caddy-corner to the restaurant, there is a strip of land where an ancient Roman road marker used to sit. The artifact was relocated to be admired in front of the city hall in Manduel. Finding things to do in Redessan seems tough, like I mentioned most events take place in the 500-seat arena or at one of the many local sports clubs.

What I think you will find is missing from Redessan (apart from the UNESCO listed La Maison Carré), are the wonderful cafés and restaurants that fill les places and cannot be found anywhere but in Nîmes.

Finally, Redessan is home to its very own TGV station, called Nîmes Pont du Gard station. I had the pleasure of taking a OUIGO train from there to Paris. For those unfamiliar with OUIGO, it’s the low-cost, high-speed rail option. Ticket pricing varies like on the normal TGV service. But, you’ll find way better deals can be had (as low as EUR 16 tickets in the off-season!). The catch is you have to pack a snack/brown bag and water as there is no café car and for the best deals, consider arriving outside of big cities like Marne-La-Vallee (Disney) versus Gare de Lyon when traveling to Paris.

Thanks for reading and feel free to reach out at my email address, phone number or comments below! I’d be happy to learn more about your journey and answer any questions.

Passez une belle journée,

Chandler Bell

chandler@lesterrassesimmobilier.fr

US +1 (423) 488-1063

FR +33 (0)7 89 05 64 06