Marseille is France's oldest city and its great Mediterranean port, and it ends in wild country: the Calanques National Park starts inside the city limits, a chain of white limestone inlets running east to Cassis. That pairing is the reason to come. You can spend the morning in the MuCEM or Le Panier and the afternoon swimming in a calanque reached by city bus and a walk.
Bouillabaisse by the Old Port and the boat trip from Cassis are on the France page. The rule that shapes a summer visit here is fire: from June to September the prefecture decides each evening whether the massifs open the next day, and on red days nobody may enter the Calanques on foot.
Take bus 60 up to Notre-Dame de la Garde for the 360° view
Garde hill
1 to 1 hour 30 at the topFree
The Bonne Mère's walls are covered with ex-votos from sailors and survivors, and its terraces take in the whole city.
What it is
The basilica on the 154-metre Garde hill is Marseille's most visited monument, and the Marseillais call it la Bonne Mère, the Good Mother. It was consecrated in 1864 in a Romano-Byzantine style, and an 11.20-metre gilded Virgin on the bell tower looks out to sea. Inside, under gilded domes, the walls are covered with ex-votos left by sailors, fishermen and survivors: model boats, painted shipwrecks, plaques from pilots who crashed and lived.
How to do it
From the Old Port it is a 45-minute walk with a real climb; bus 60 from the Quai du Port, the Quai des Belges or the MuCEM stops at the foot of the steps.
Good to know
Entry is free, but the basilica and its crypt close to visitors during Mass. From the terraces you see the whole city, the Frioul islands and the Château d'If.
Cross the footbridge from the MuCEM to Fort Saint-Jean
J4 and Fort Saint-Jean
Half a dayNo booking needed
A high footbridge joins a glass cube wrapped in concrete lattice to the harbour's old fortress, whose ramparts are free to walk.
What it is
The MuCEM, the national museum of the civilisations of Europe and the Mediterranean, opened in 2013 at the mouth of the Old Port in two parts joined by a high footbridge: the J4, a glass cube wrapped in a lattice of dark concrete, and Fort Saint-Jean, the old fortress guarding the harbour, whose ramparts and gardens you walk through. The outdoor spaces of both are free.
How to do it
One ticket, €11 in 2026 (€7.50 reduced), covers every permanent and temporary exhibition that day; from 28 October 2026 to 12 April 2027 the main show is Manger les images.
Good to know
It opens every day except Tuesday, 10:00 to 19:00 in autumn 2026, and the whole museum is free on the first Sunday of the month. In October 2026 the fort's lift between the Old Port and Panier entrances was out of service, so expect stairs.
Time needed
Half a day
Best time
Any day except Tuesday; the first Sunday of the month is free
Climb through Le Panier to the courtyard of the Vieille Charité
Le Panier
Half a dayFree
Climb Marseille's oldest quarter, founded by Greek settlers around 600 BC, to the arcaded courtyard of a 17th-century poorhouse.
What it is
Le Panier is the oldest part of Marseille, on the hill just north of the Old Port where Greek settlers from Phocaea founded Massalia around 600 BC. Near the top stands the Vieille Charité, a 17th-century poorhouse whose three storeys of arcaded galleries look onto a courtyard around a chapel with an oval dome by Pierre Puget. It houses the Mediterranean archaeology museum and the museum of African, Oceanian and Amerindian arts, whose permanent collections are free, plus paid temporary shows.
How to do it
Climb from the Quai du Port by the Montée des Accoules stairs and wander the lanes of washing lines, small squares and painted shopfronts toward Place de Lenche and rue du Panier. Walk back down by the cathedral of La Major to reach the MuCEM.
Good to know
The Vieille Charité opens Tuesday to Sunday, 09:00 to 18:00.
Sail to the Château d'If, then swim off the Frioul islands
Frioul archipelago
Half a day, a full day with the FrioulNo booking needed
Visit the island prison where Dumas locked up Edmond Dantès, then swim from the coves of two bare limestone islands.
What it is
The Château d'If, built from 1524 to 1531 for Francis I and later a state prison, is where Alexandre Dumas imprisoned Edmond Dantès and the Abbé Faria in The Count of Monte Cristo, and a rough cell is kept in Dantès' honour.
How to do it
The island boats leave from the corner of the Quai des Belges and the Quai de Rive Neuve on the Old Port all year: in 2026 a return trip to one island cost €17.70, and €26 to both If and the Frioul. Entry to the château is a separate €7 ticket. Then go on to the Frioul, Pomègues and Ratonneau, two bare limestone islands joined by a dyke built in 1822, with coves to swim from.
Good to know
The château opens 10:00 to 18:00 from April to late September and to 17:15 in winter, closes on Mondays and stays shut in bad weather.
A shaded yellow-marked track climbs from a city bus stop to the Col de Sugiton, then drops to a calanque inlet.
What it is
Sugiton is the calanque you can reach from the city by bus and on foot.
How to do it
Take bus B1 from the start of avenue du Prado, just past Place Castellane, to the Luminy PN des Calanques stop on the university campus. A shaded track marked in yellow climbs to the Col de Sugiton; the belvedere over the inlet is about 30 minutes from Luminy and the water about 45, and the national park warns that the climb back takes at least an hour in summer. In 2026, every day from 27 June to 30 August plus a few weekends in June and September, the shore at Sugiton and the Pierres Tombées needed a free online reservation, open from three days ahead at 09:00 to 18:00 the day before.
Good to know
On red fire-risk days the massif closes and reservations are cancelled. Carry plenty of water.
Paddle from Pointe Rouge or Cassis into the calanques' inlets and see their cliffs from below, no hike needed.
What it is
From the water the calanques show their cliffs from below, and a sea kayak or paddleboard reaches the inlets without the hike.
How to do it
Since May 2023 only operators approved by the national park may rent craft inside it, and for En-Vau and Port-Pin, east of Cassis, just three are allowed: CSLN, Lo Kayak and Corton Beach. The rule covers rentals only, not outings with a qualified guide. The park suggests the classic routes. From the Pointe Rouge harbour in south Marseille, paddle to Cap Croisette and back in half a day, or to the Calanque de Marseilleveyre in a full day. From Cassis, En-Vau and back is a half day and the Devenson cliffs a full one.
Good to know
Unregistered beach craft must stay within 300 metres of the shore. If you are new to the sea, take the guided option and check the wind forecast first.
Follow the Corniche to the fishing harbour of the Vallon des Auffes
Corniche Kennedy
2 to 3 hoursFree
A little fishing harbour hides under the Corniche road, with painted sheds, pointu boats and a three-arched bridge 17 metres up.
What it is
About 2.5 km from the Old Port, between the Catalans beach and the coves of Malmousque, this little fishing harbour hides under the road, with painted fishermen's sheds, traditional pointu boats and a 19th-century bridge whose three arches rise 17 metres above the water. Its name comes from the auffe, a grass once twisted into ropes and fishing nets.
How to do it
Walk, or take bus 83 from the Old Port, along the Corniche Kennedy, the road built above the rocks toward the Prado beaches. The bus reaches the Vallon des Auffes in about 15 minutes. Chez Jeannot, a family pizzeria dating from 1949, is the easy table here.
Good to know
There is no beach: locals swim under the arches, at the spot they call the piscine du Vallon, which is unsupervised and best early in the morning.
Ride through the replica of the drowned Cosquer cave
J4 esplanade
About 1 hour 30Timed entry
Ride small cars through a replica of a cave whose only entrance lies 37 metres under the sea.
What it is
In 1985 the diver Henri Cosquer found a cave near Cap Morgiou whose only entrance lies 37 metres under the sea. Inside were about 500 paintings and engravings made between roughly 33,000 and 19,000 years ago, when the shore was kilometres away: 65 stencilled hands, horses, ibex and bison, and rarer sea creatures, nine seals and three great auks. Rising water is slowly destroying them. Cosquer Méditerranée, opened in 2022 in the Villa Méditerranée next to the MuCEM, is its restitution: you ride through the replica cave in small cars, then see a gallery on the Mediterranean and a film about the discovery.
How to do it
Tickets are for a time slot, and booking ahead is the way to get one; adults paid €18 in October 2026. It opens every day, with the last slot 90 minutes before closing.
Behind the Canebière, Noailles sells the produce of the whole Mediterranean and North Africa, from spices and olives to fish.
What it is
Just behind the Canebière, a few minutes' walk from the Old Port, Noailles is the market quarter where Marseille buys the produce of the whole Mediterranean and North Africa. The narrow streets around the market are lined with grocers selling spices, olives, dried fruit and exotic produce, and with pastry counters, and Maison Empereur, an old hardware and household store in the same streets, sells Marseille soap among its pots and tools.
How to do it
The Marché des Capucins, on the square of the same name by the Noailles metro station (line 2), sells fruit, vegetables, herbs and fish from Monday to Saturday, 08:00 to 19:00, and is closed on Sundays.
Good to know
Come early, when the stalls are fullest. Buy your picnic here before a day in the Calanques, and keep an eye on your bag in the crowd.
Drive or walk the Route des Crêtes over Cap Canaille
Cassis
A full day from MarseilleNo booking needed
Cap Canaille, the highest sea cliff in France, rises 394 metres from the sea, and a road runs along its top.
What it is
Cassis is the harbour town on the eastern edge of the national park, and above it Cap Canaille rises 394 metres straight from the sea, the highest sea cliff in France, its rock turning ochre, gold or red with the light.
How to do it
The Route des Crêtes runs about 15 km along the clifftops from Cassis to La Ciotat, with car parks at the viewpoints over the bay, the Calanques and the vineyards; walkers can follow sections of it, keeping well back from the edge. A shuttle bus runs from Cassis up to the Crêtes. Trains from Marseille stop at Cassis station, outside the town, and shuttle bus 371 takes 10 to 15 minutes to the centre.
Good to know
The road closes in strong wind, which here means the mistral, and in summer on red fire-risk days. The boat trip into the calanques is on the France page.
Time needed
A full day from Marseille
Best time
A clear, windless day; late afternoon for the colours
Spend an evening among the street art of the Cours Julien
Cours Julien
An afternoon and eveningNo booking needed
The city's old wholesale market is now its street art quarter, with painted shopfronts, terraces and a pétanque ground after dark.
What it is
From around 1860 until the market moved out in 1972, this long square was the city's wholesale fruit and vegetable market; today it is Marseille's street art quarter, where shops, bars and restaurants have had their fronts painted by artists, and the tourist office runs guided street art walks on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
How to do it
For an evening the Marseille way, go up to the Cours Julien, about ten minutes uphill on foot from the Old Port or one stop on metro line 2 to Notre-Dame du Mont.
Good to know
By day come for the designer boutiques, the second-hand clothes shops and the Wednesday morning farmers' market of about thirty local producers. After dark, the terraces and bars around Place Notre-Dame-du-Mont and the concert venues fill up, and the Boulodrome Carli by the Palais des Arts is there for a game of pétanque.
Real bouillabaisse is a whole meal built on rockfish; eat it in Marseille at a house that follows the charter, not on the cheap quays.
What it is
The safe choices are the houses that follow the Charte de la Bouillabaisse, written in 1980: Le Miramar on the Vieux-Port itself, whose chef is vice-president of the charter, Chez Fonfon in the tiny fishing cove of the Vallon des Auffes, and Chez Michel by the Catalans beach. Under the charter the fish and the broth come in two separate dishes, with croutons and rouille on the side.
How to do it
Book, and say you want bouillabaisse when you do: it is cooked to order, and some places only make it for two or more. Gault&Millau puts the meal at about €65 a head at Fonfon and €80 at the other two.
Good to know
Be wary of cheap menus along the Vieux-Port quays.
1 hour to 2 hours 20 on the waterNo booking needed
Sail out of Cassis into the calanques, picking a loop from three calanques to nine, the longer ones under the tall Devenson cliffs.
What it is
Choose by length: the 3-calanque loop to Port-Miou, Port-Pin and En-Vau takes about an hour, the 5-calanque trip adds L'Oule and Devenson (1 h 20), the 8-calanque trip adds Sugiton and Morgiou (1 h 50), and the 9-calanque trip runs to Sormiou (2 h 20). Only the longer trips reach the tall Devenson cliffs.
How to do it
Boats leave from the harbour in Cassis all year, every day, weather permitting; the kiosk is on the boules square by the port, and tickets go on sale there half an hour before each departure.
Good to know
From 1 June to 30 September, check the fire-risk map published around 18:00 the evening before: on red days land access to the national park is banned, and boats still sail but nobody may land.
TGVs from Paris Gare de Lyon and from Lyon arrive at Marseille Saint-Charles, on a hill above the centre: metro lines M1 and M2 leave from the station basement, and the monumental staircase outside leads down to the Old Port in about 20 minutes on foot. Marseille Provence airport, at Marignane, is linked to Saint-Charles by shuttle coach. Ferries from Corsica, Sardinia and North Africa dock at the terminal on Place de la Joliette.
Getting around
Two metro lines, trams and RTM buses cover the city. The lines you will use most are bus 60 to Notre-Dame de la Garde, bus 83 along the Corniche, bus B1 to Luminy for the Sugiton trail, and the boats from the Old Port to the Château d'If and the Frioul. For Cassis, take the TER from Saint-Charles; Cassis station is outside the town, and shuttle bus 371 runs to the centre in 10 to 15 minutes.
How many days
In must30's view, three days is the right minimum: one for the Old Port, Le Panier and the MuCEM, one for Notre-Dame de la Garde, the Corniche and the boat to the Château d'If, and one for the Calanques on foot or by kayak. Add a fourth day for Cassis and the Route des Crêtes, or to keep a spare in case a fire-risk closure or the mistral cancels your Calanques day.
When to go
April to June and September to October are the best months: warm enough to swim from June, with fewer people on the trails. From 1 June to 30 September access to the massifs is set every day between 17:00 and 18:00 for the next day, and on red days the Calanques are closed on land, the Route des Crêtes is shut and boats may sail but not land. In 2026 the Sugiton shore needed a free reservation every day from 27 June to 30 August and on a few weekends either side. Strong mistral can stop boats and kayaks in any season.
Where to base yourself
The streets around the Old Port, Noailles and the Cours Julien put you on the metro and within walking distance of most sights and restaurants. Le Panier has more character and steeper streets. Staying near Saint-Charles makes sense for early trains to Cassis or Avignon. Cassis itself is the base if the Calanques and Cap Canaille are the point of the trip and Marseille is the day trip.
Questions travellers ask
Do I need to book to visit the Calanques?
Only Sugiton and the Pierres Tombées on the busiest summer dates, by free online reservation that opens three days ahead. Everywhere else you can walk in, unless the prefecture closes the massifs for fire risk, which it announces around 18:00 the evening before for 1 June to 30 September. Check the Mes Calanques app before you set out.
Can I see the Calanques without hiking?
Yes. Boats from Cassis and from Marseille's Old Port sail past the inlets, and on red fire-risk days they still run, though nobody may land. A rented sea kayak from Pointe Rouge or Cassis gets you closer, from a park-approved operator only.
How do I get to Notre-Dame de la Garde?
Take bus 60 from the Quai du Port, the Quai des Belges or the MuCEM; it stops at the foot of the basilica steps. On foot it is about 45 minutes uphill from the Old Port. Entry to the basilica is free, but it closes to visitors during Mass.
Is the Château d'If worth it?
Yes, as a half day that combines a boat ride across the harbour, a 16th-century fortress and the Count of Monte Cristo story. In 2026 the return boat cost €17.70 and entry €7, and the boat ticket for both If and the Frioul islands cost €26. The château stays closed in bad weather.
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