Aix or, to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, Aix-en-Provence (Provençal Occitan: Ais de Provença in classical norm or Ais de Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a city in southern France, some 30 km north of Marseille. It is located in the Provence region, in the Bouches-du-Rhône département, of which it is a sous-préfecture. Aix's population is approximately 137,000.

The Cours Mirabeau, a wide thoroughfare, planted with double rows of plane-trees, bordered by fine houses and decorated by fountains, divides the town into two portions. It follows the line of the old city wall. The new town extends to the south and west, the old town with its wide but irregular streets and its old mansions dating from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries lies to the north. Along this avenue you will find Les Deux Garçons, the most famous café in all of Aix. Built in 1792, it has been frequented by the likes of Cézanne and Ernest Hemingway.
The Cathedral of the Holy Saviour (Cathédrale Saint Sauveur), which mainly dates from the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries but is built on the emplacement of a Roman temple, is situated in this part of Aix. It is fronted by a richly decorated portal in Gothic style with elaborately carved doors, and is flanked on the north by an uncompleted tower. The interior contains tapestries from the 16th century, other works of art and a baptismal pool dating from the fourth century. The archbishop's palace (Palais de l'Archêveché) and a Romanesque cloister adjoin the cathedral on its south side. Just south of the Cours Mirabeau is the church of Saint-Jean-de-Malte. Dating from the 13th century, it contains some valuable pictures and the Musée Granet, which has recently undergone restoration and was host in 2006 to an important exhibition of the works of Cézanne to commemorate the 100th anniversary of his death.
The hôtel de ville, a building in the classical style of the middle of the 17th century, looks on to a picturesque square (Place de la Mairie). It contains some fine woodwork and a large library which includes many valuable manuscripts. At its side rises a handsome clock-tower erected in 1505.
Also on the Place de la Mairie is the former Corn Exchange (Halle de Grains). This 18th century building is ornately decorated and was designed by the Vallon architects.
Aix has thermal springs, remarkable for their heat as well as for containing lime and carbonic acid. The bathing establishment was built in 1705 near the site of the ancient baths of Sextius, of which vestiges still remain.
The town, which is the seat of an archbishop and court of appeal, and the centre of an académie (educational circumscription), numbers among its public institutions an Assises, tribunals of first instance and of commerce, and a chamber of arts and manufactures. As well as being the second most important Appeal Court after Paris. 
La Rotonde fountain and roundaboutAix is often referred to as the city of a thousand fountains. Among the more notable are the Fontaine des Quatre Dauphins (Fountain of the Four Dolphins), built in 1667 by Jean-Claude Rambot; Le bon Roi René's Fountain, built in the 19th century, surmounted by a statue of Roi René holding a bunch of Muscat grapes, which he introduced into Provence in the 15th century; the hot-water fountain dating back to 1734, which is covered in moss due to the 35°C (93°F) water; and the great fountain, from 1860, at La Rotonde, the large roundabout at the centre of town.