Marseille: Guide, Hotels, Map & Photos
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EUR 76 - 170 Mercure Marseille Centre
 This Mercure Hotel is located next to the Jardin des Vestiges in the heart of Marseille, and just a 5-minute walk from the Vieux-Port. It offers air-c… MoreEUR 72 - 132 Mariette Pacha
 Mariette Pacha offers air-conditioned guest rooms a 5-minute walk from Catalans Beach. Set in central Marseille, each room also has free Wi-Fi and a f… MoreEUR 55 - 88 Lutetia
 Located in central Marseilles, the Lutetia is just a 5-minute walk from Saint Charles SNCF Train Station and La Canebière. The air-conditioned rooms … MoreEUR 77 - 216 Mercure Marseille Prado
 Located in Marseille, this Mercure hotel is just 400 metres from the Stade Velodrome, Palais des Congres and 1.5 km from the beach. It offers air-cond… MoreEUR 55 - 115 New Hotel Select - Gare Saint Charles
 This New Hotel Select is located in the centre of Marseille, a 10-minute walk from the Old Port. It offers soundproofed accommodation, an interior gar… MoreEUR 110 - 360 Newhotel of Marseille - Le Pharo
 Le Pharo is located opposite Pharo Congress Centre and a 10-minute walk from the Vieux Port. It offers 4-star accommodation, a swimming pool and resta… MoreEUR 75 - 180 Newhotel Bompard La Corniche
 Bompard La Corniche is located in a residential area in southern Marseille, 700 metres from the coast. It has an outdoor swimming pool, a sunbathing t… MoreEUR 23 - 25 London Connection Hostel
 This hostel is in the centre of Marseilles, just a 5-minute walk from Saint-Charles SNCF Train Station. Guests have access to a kitchen with fridge, m… MoreEUR 60 - 115 Logis Edmond Rostand
 This Logis is located in Marseille, a 5-minute walk from Estrangin Préfecture Metro. It offers modern air-conditioned guest rooms, with soundproofing… MoreEUR 150 - 290 La Residence Du Vieux Port
 La Résidence Du Vieux Port is set right on the banks of the Old Port in central Marseille. It offers contemporary rooms with panoramic views of the … MoreEUR 49 - 74 L´Eau Des Collines
 This air-conditioned hotel is a 10-minute drive from central Marseilles and a 10-minute walk from La Treille. It has a flower-filled terrace and rooms… MoreEUR 55 - 132 Kyriad Marseille Centre Rabatau
 This Kyriad has air-conditioned rooms with free Wi-Fi, Canal+ and satellite TV. It is located in south Marsaille, 100 metres from junction 2 of the A … MoreEUR 40 - 90 Le Huitième
 Located in the business district of Marseille, Le Huitième is just a 5-minute walk from the Parc des Expositions and the Stade Velodrome. It offers s… MoreEUR 65 - 145 Le Rhul
 Directly overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, Le Rhul is located on the Corniche in Marseilles. It features a panoramic terrace, and spacious and air-co… MoreEUR 51 - 65 Les Gens De Mer - Marseille
 Les Gens De Mer sits 200 metres from Metro Joliette and the tramway Euroméditerranée in Marseille. It offers air-conditioned rooms with satellite TV… MoreEUR 80 - 140 Le Ryad
 Le Ryad is located in the heart of Marseille, near La Canebiere and the Old Port. It offers Moroccan-style accommodation with free Wi-Fi internet acc… MoreEUR 85 - 194 Newhotel Vieux-Port
 The Newhotel Vieux-Port is located in central Marseille, between the Old Port and La Canebiere district. This design hotel offers soundproofed accommo… MoreEUR 85 - 151 Novotel Marseille Est
 The Novotel Marseille Est is located 11 km east of central Marseille, within easy access of the A50 motorway. It offers free Wi-Fi and has an outdoor… MoreEUR 75 - 180 Suite Novotel Marseille Centre Euromed
 This Suitehotel is a 10-minute walk from the Vieux Port and opposite a tram stop. Each spacious suite has a balcony, fridge and microwave, as well as … MoreEUR 60 - 140 Suite Affaire Marseille Vieux-Port
 This Suite Affaire is located next to the City Hall in Marseille’s Old Port. It offers air-conditioned guest rooms with a private bathroom, flat-scr… MoreEUR 144 - 550 Sofitel Marseille Vieux-Port
 Overlooking Marseille’s old port, this hotel offers a gourmet restaurant with panoramic harbour views and an outdoor heated pool. It is just a 5-min… MoreEUR 20 - 94 Vertigo Centre
 This hotel is located in the heart of Marseille, only a 5-minute walk from St Charles TGV train station, and a 10-minute walk from the Old-Port. This … MoreEUR 24 - 94 Vertigo Vieux-Port
 Located in central Marseille, the Vertigo Hotel is just 200 metres from the Vieux Port. It offers air-conditioned dormitories with work desk and priva… MoreEUR 100 - 100 Villa Monticelli
 Villa Monticelli is a charming bed and breakfast, located in a quiet residential area of Marseille. It offers spacious and elegant guest rooms with fr… MoreEUR 81 - 270 Villa Massalia Concorde
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Marseille: Guide
Marseille (Latin: Massilia) is the third largest city of France and the economic center of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region.
Understand
Marseille has a complicated history. Founded by the Phoenicians in 600 B.C. it is one of the oldest cities in Europe. The town is a far cry from the Cézanne paintings and Provençal clichés of sleepy villages, "pétanque" players and Marcel Pagnol novels. With around one million inhabitants, Marseille is the third largest city in France in terms of population and the largest in terms of area. Its population is a real melting pot of different cultures. A famous saying states that Marseille is the first Arabic city in the Paris-Dakar race, because it has a very large population of North African immigrants. It is also said that there are more Comorian people in Marseille than in Comoros! Indeed, the people of Marseille have varying ethnic backgrounds, with a lot of Italians and Spanish having immigrated to the area after the second world war.
Marseille is perhaps not the kind of city you will fall in love with your first day there. It is not Paris; there are few obvious "things to do" along the lines of the Louvre museum or the Champs-Elysees. However, for people not afraid to discover a real place with real people (and not a tourist park like Paris), Marseille is the place. From colourful markets (like Noailles market) that will make you feel like you are in Africa, to the Calanques (a natural area of big cliffs falling into the sea - Calanque means fjord), from the Panier area (the oldest place of the town and historically the place where newcomers installed) to the Vieux-Port (old harbor) and the Corniche (a road along the sea) Marseille has definitley a lot to offer.
Forget the Canebière, forget the "savon de Marseille" (Marseille soap), forget the clichés, and just have a ride from l'Estaque to Les Goudes. You will not forget it.
Get in
By plane
Marignane airport has flights to many French and European cities.
By train
Marseille has a TGV line to Paris (3 hours) and Nice (2 hours), that replaces the 9 hours-long train trip before the TGV line was built.
By car
Marseille is very well connected to most French cities through numerous highways. As always in France those highways are expensive but practical, comfortable and fast. Marseille is around 8 hours from Paris by car, 2 hours from Nice, 1h30 from Montpellier, 4 hours from Toulouse and 3 hours from Lyon.
By bus
By boat
Marseille has a big harbour. There are boats to Corsica, Algiers etc.
Get around
By bus, tramway, subway
There are 2 subway lines and 79 lines of bus and tramway.
No public transport on May 1st - Workers Day.
By boat
A Ferry Boat allows to cross the Old Harbour (Vieux Port). It is a tourist attraction in itself known as the shortest commercial boat ride in Europe.
By car
People are notorious for crazy driving. Avoid taking your car if you can.
See
le Vieux Port (old harbour): watching fishermen selling their stock by auction is a must. Arriving to Marseille in the Vieux-Port on a summer evening is something you will never forget... You can watch this show by going to Frioul islands or Chateau d'If and going back late in the afternoon. there is also a nice view on the harbor from the Palais du Pharo (Pharo casttle). The famous Canebière avenue go straight down the harbor. However the Canebière is not that intersting despite its reputation.
Notre Dame de la Garde: the big church which overlooks the city. Old fishermen were used to make their boats blessed in this church. You can still see many boat models hanging around in the church. Up there it is one of the nicest view of the city.
Musée des Docks romains (Archéologie-Graffiti-Lapidaire) (the old harbour from Phoenician and Roman times), Place Vivaux, 13002 Marseille. Tel: 04 91 91 24 62
Musée d'Archéologie méditerranéenne (Archéologie-Graffiti-Lapidaire), Centre de la Vieille Charité, 2 Rue de la Charité, 13002 Marseille. Tel: 04 91 14 58 59, Fax : 04 91 14 58 76
le Cours Julien and la plaine: a hangout area with bookstores, cafés, fountains, and a playground for the small ones (metro stop Cours Julien/Notre Dame du Mont). It is THE trendy area of Marseille. La Plaine is the local name for Place Jean Jaurès close to Cours Julien. Every Thursday and Saturday morning the Plaine market is the place to shop. If you are there early enough you can make very good deals, even if what you'll find there is sometimes "tombe du camion" (fallen off the truck) as one says in Marseille.
la Corniche: a walkway and a road by the sea that provides lovely views of the sea, the Chateau d'If to the south, and les Calanques to the east.
la Place Castellane: a roundabout with a grand fountain/column/sculpture in the center, with excellent cinemas and cafés surrounding. There is another place called La Castellane : it is a poor suburb of Marseille where Zinedine Zidane the famous soccer player was born. Be careful not to confuse the two places.
Boulevard Longchamp and Palais Longchamp (Longchamp casttle and avenue). From the Réformé church (up the Canebière) you can follow the Boulevard Longchamp where you can see nice example of old upper-class buildings to arrive to Palais Longchamp.The palais is worth visiting though it wont take you long. You can visit the "musee des beaux arts" as well as the natural history museum.
Parc Borély (Borely park). A large and great park, 300 meters from the sea. After a siesta in the park go have a drink at Escale Borely (a place with numerous restaurants and bars on the beach) to see the sunset.
Le Panier. Panier means basket in French, but in Marseille it is the name of the oldest area of the town. In the middle of this area there is the Vielle Charité, a wonderful old monument, now hosting museums and exhibitions.
Let's be honest, beaches from Marseille are not always great. Depending on the weather, they can be polluted. However the small beaches between La Pointe Rouge harbor and La Madrague harbor are cleaner, nicer and usually slightly less crowded.
La cite radieuse: "unite d'habitation" designed by Le Corbusier. The building is called "la maison du fada" (the house of the foolish) by indegenous people. The building contains a shopping street, a church, a children's school and housings. You can get to the roof and enjoy the breathtaking view of Marseille between hills and sea.
Stade Velodrome: the stadium where the local soccer team "Olympique de Marseille" plays. Soccer match are one of the highlights of Marseilles life. Whilst L'OM have fallen on rather lean times the former champions of Europe are the biggest football team in France. The atmosphere at the stadium is fantastic and whilst visitors are unlikely to get tickets for the popular Virage Nord or Sud seats in the Tribune Ganay offer an excellent view and a chance to soak up the atmosphere. Best games involve teams with some travelling support such as St Ettienne, Lens or the grand-daddy match of them all against the evil Paris St Germain. Tickers can be bought (ideally several days before the game) either on-line or from the L'OM shop at the Vieux Port.
Noailles: The area around the Noailles sub-way station is one of the citys most interesting. Lined with Arabic and Indo-Chinesse shops some of the streets could be part of a bazzaar in Algeria. A fascinating area.
The Château d'If (If Castle): this small island off the city was a penal colony. It is famous from the novel of Alexandre Dumas, the Comte de Monte-Cristo. Tourist boats leave from the Old harbour.
The Calanques. Wonderful fiords in the south of Marseille near Cassis. From Marseille these are best accessed from the University campus at Luminy which can be reached by buses departing from Rond Pont du Prado tram stop by the Stade Velodrome. The 'fiords' are amazing with wonderful blue sea and spectacular lime stone cliffs. The walk along the coast from Casis to Marseille is spectacular and ends at the Calanques de Callangue where there is an excellent if expensive fish restaurant.
Marseille is an important university center. The campus at Luminy, on the edge of the callanques is set in spectacular scenary from where the road heads along the coast to Casis.
La bouillabaisse is an excellent fish-based soup served with la rouille (a garlic-saffron sauce) and bread similar to crostini. La boulliabaisse can be enjoyed at any budgetary level.
There are lots of Kebab restaurants along the Cannebiere.
Bar de L'Hotel de Ville: on the "Vieux Port" on the left of the City Hall. A very popular spot for the long lunch break Marseille's worker are use to take. Friendly service, good food and wine at a reasonable price. No English spoken whatsoever.
Four des Navettes: next to the St Victor Fort, this bakery is famous for its "Navette" dry biscuit which recipe has been kept secret for almost a century. This is one of Marseille's culinary speciality..not to miss.
le Petit Nice: on La Plaine next to the Court Julien, nice little cafe.
les 13 coins: in "Le Panier", a nice terasse for a nice atmosphere
is calmly situated 30 minutes by public transport from the city and 30 minutes walk from the beach. The old house in the 'Village de Mazargue', a district south of Marseille, has been renovated and turned into a Backpackers Hostel. Every room has kitchen and a bathroom. Free WiFi and Internet acces are at your disposal, complimentary coffee is served in the morning (no breakfast, but bakery nearby), 6 bikes are available for loan and there is no curfew/lockout. Dormitory beds are 15 € per night, rooms from 35 €. Tel.: +33 491 400 512, Fax: +33 491 400 510, info@cigale-fourmi.com
Le Vieux Port has free wireless access, available from many of the bars and restaurants, and in some places in the street (although there are not many places to sit). The ESSID to use is "Marseille San Fils" and the network is not encrypted. When you first connect, your browser will take you to a web page about the service in French -- simply click on "Cliquez ici" ("click here") on that page to use the network freely.
Parts of Marseille reputation is true. Despite being the most beautiful city in Europe it is also one of the most dangerous for muggings and other petty theft. Large numbers of unemployed children of North African immigrants make some quartiers of the city a virtual no-go area. Tourists are likely to be targetted by muggers particularly at night and in remote areas (such as the two forts guarding the enterance to the vieux port). Don't go out at night alone and don't carry to much cash / valuables. Various ne'er do wells also frequent the buses and sub-way particularly during the evenings however these usually don't cause many problems.
This "Travel Guide" section is drawn from the Wikitravel article "Marseille". We hope you will edit and improve it. It is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 license. Outside of town
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