Marseille

The Old Port

Vieux-Port

Vieux-Port

A natural harbour where the Greeks landed two and a half thousand years ago, still packed with a thousand boats and a fish market every morning on the quay. Cafés and restaurants line the waterfront, and on the Ombrière side stands Norman Foster's mirrored canopy, reflecting the whole square.

Tip: The fish market on Quai des Belges runs every morning until noon, with fishermen selling straight from their boats — arrive before nine. Under the mirrored canopy, people photograph their own reflection overhead. A short ferry, the Ferry Boat, crosses the harbour for a couple of euros, one of the shortest ferry crossings in the world. Boats to Château d'If and the Calanques leave from Quai de la Fraternité.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1-2 h

Notre-Dame de la Garde

Notre-Dame du Mont

A neo-Byzantine basilica from 1864 at the city's highest point, topped with a gilded statue of the Virgin and Child on its bell tower. Inside are mosaics and hundreds of ex-votos — model ships, paintings, and thank-you plaques from sailors who survived storms at sea. Locals call her Bonne Mère, the Good Mother.

Tip: The terrace looks out over the whole city, the harbour, the Frioul Islands, Château d'If, and the surrounding hills. On foot it's a steep thirty-minute climb from the Old Port; bus 60 runs all the way up from the harbour. Best at sunset. The stones around the basilica still bear bullet marks from the August 1944 liberation.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1 h

MuCEM

J4

The Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations, opened in 2013 in a cube wrapped in concrete lattice designed by Rudy Ricciotti, linked by a footbridge to the seventeenth-century Fort Saint-Jean at the harbour entrance. Exhibitions cover Mediterranean history and cultures.

Tip: The walkways, rooftop terrace, and Fort Saint-Jean are all free to enter and are the best part — views over the harbour and the sea. Two hours is enough for the exhibitions, and the temporary ones tend to outshine the permanent collection. The rooftop restaurant and café have good views. The lace-like façade looks best in the late afternoon light.

Admission:

free, exhibitions around 11 €

Time needed:

2 h

Le Panier

Le Panier

Marseille's oldest district, on the site of Greek Massalia, on a hill above the harbour. Narrow climbing lanes, staircases, small squares, colourful houses, street art, and craft workshops selling soap and ceramics. Its heart is La Vieille Charité, a former poorhouse with a seventeenth-century chapel.

Tip: Get lost without a map between Place de Lenche and Vieille Charité. Workshops sell genuine Marseille soap, stamped cubes made from olive oil. La Vieille Charité houses an archaeology museum and a courtyard that's free to enter. Mornings are quiet, afternoons bring the tourists.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1.5 h

Calanques National Park

Parc national des Calanques

South

Twenty kilometres of limestone coastline between Marseille and Cassis, with white cliffs, turquoise coves, pine trees, and birdlife. The best-known coves are Sormiou, Morgiou, Sugiton, and En-Vau. The park was established in 2012.

Tip: Sugiton is an hour's walk from Luminy university, or take bus 21 from the centre. In summer, access to Sugiton requires a free online booking for protection reasons, and the park closes entirely during high fire-risk periods — check conditions the day before. Bring plenty of water and sturdy shoes, as the paths are rocky. A boat from the Old Port lets you see the coves from the sea without walking.

Admission:

free, boat from 30 €

Time needed:

half a day

Château d'If

Île d'If

A fortress from 1529 on a small island off Marseille, later used as a prison and made famous by Alexandre Dumas's novel The Count of Monte Cristo. The prisoners' cells are open to visitors, and the ramparts offer a view over the city.

Tip: The boat leaves from the Old Port and takes twenty minutes. A combined ticket also covers the Frioul Islands, which have small beaches for swimming. Boats don't run when the mistral is blowing. The 'Count of Monte Cristo' cell is fictional, but they show it anyway. An hour is enough for a visit.

Admission:

around 7 € plus the boat

Time needed:

2-3 h

Vallon des Auffes

Corniche

A small fishing harbour tucked beneath a bridge on the Corniche coastal road, with colourful boats and fishermen's cabanons. It feels like a village hidden inside the city, and holds one of Marseille's most celebrated bouillabaisse restaurants.

Tip: Best at sunset with a pastis on a terrace. Chez Fonfon has served bouillabaisse here since 1952, and booking is essential. From Vallon des Auffes, continue along the Corniche to Catalans beach or south to Malmousque, where locals swim off the rocks. Bus 83 runs along the Corniche.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1 h

Marseille Cathedral (La Major)

Cathédrale de la Major

Joliette

A giant neo-Byzantine cathedral in banded stone from the late nineteenth century by the Joliette harbour, one of the largest in France. Beside it stands the small old cathedral, dating from the twelfth century.

Tip: Inside are mosaics and marble in alternating colours. The cathedral is a ten-minute walk from MuCEM and Le Panier. On the waterfront below is Les Voûtes shopping arcade, set into former vaulted cellars. The best photo is from the MuCEM footbridge.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

30 min

Palais Longchamp

Longchamp

A monumental palace from 1869, built to celebrate the arrival of water from the Durance river in Marseille via canal. A cascading fountain with statues and colonnaded wings conceals the fine arts museum and the natural history museum. A park lies behind the palace.

Tip: The fountain and park are free and prettiest in the morning. The fine arts museum holds a good collection of Provençal painters. The palace sits at the end of Boulevard Longchamp — take tram T2. Locals come here to picnic. Less touristy than the harbour.

Admission:

park free, museum around 6 €

Time needed:

1 h