Why Cruisers and Travelers Should Linger a Day or Two in France’s Second-Largest City

As France’s second-largest city, Marseille combines the best of an energetic urban center and a laid-back Mediterranean beach town. Michelin-level restaurants are never far from pizza trucks. You can get your espresso fix at corner bakeries, or lounge during a sunset apéro on oceanfront rooftops. And the skyline is topped by a luminous neo-Byzantine basilica that sparkles nearly as much as the Mediterranean in sunshine.

“Every street holds a different story and culture,” says tour guide Christophe El Khazen, who’s lived in the city for almost three years. “I can be walking on Rue de la République, admiring the Haussmann-style architecture, then go to the Noailles neighborhood and feel like I’ve been teleported to a Maghrebian souk.”

Marseille Provence Cruise Terminal is about 15 minutes by cab to the city center, or there’s a free shuttle (scheduled every 20 minutes) that runs from the cruise port to the Joliette neighborhood in about 25 minutes. From here, it’s easy to walk around the city, or you can tap a credit card to take the metro or bus. If you’re arriving by train to St. Charles station, you can take metro line one to the Vieux Port.

Courtesy of Marseille Tourism Board

If you have one day in Marseille

Start your day in Marseille’s oldest neighborhood, Le Panier, just south of La Joliette. The narrow, cobblestone roads here form a veritable open-air gallery, lined with pastel houses and street art, including stencil drawings and graffiti. If your ship docked so early that you’re after a second breakfast, head to Dutch Café for proper iced coffee and solid pains au chocolat or Coffee and Bakery for hot hojicha drinks and pear cake. Beyond its colorful murals, Le Panier’s maze-like streets hide boutiques such as Trois Fenêtres (selling posters, accessories, ceramics, and jewelry) and 72% Pétanque, whose shelves are piled with Marseille soap, made with olive oil since the late 14th century and sometimes sold in fun sardine shapes.

For lunch, try Marseille’s iconic moitié-moitié: a pizza with one half covered in mozzarella and/or Emmental, and the other side doused in red sauce, anchovies, and black olives. Tour guide Pierre Muglia likes to get his pie from L’Eau à la Bouche to eat by the sea after a swim at the rocky Malmousque cove. Personally, I’m partial to the moitié-moitié at Coquille, a seafood spot a block south of the Old Port.

Marseille’s identity is deeply entwined with the Mediterranean, so you’d be remiss not to at least put your feet in the water. The closest beach is Catalans, about a 25-minute walk from Old Port or a 10-minute ride on bus 83, passing gently bobbing sailboats. As an urban beach, one side is flanked by high-rises and it can be crowded, but its wide, sandy stretch is easily reachable via a gradual flight of stairs. If you have enough time, Prophet’s Beach is farther south along the coast, which feels more removed from the city hum, with rock walls that create a calm bay.

After some sun and saltwater, head to Le Glacier de la Corniche near Prophet’s Beach for a scoop of yuzu sorbet. Just be sure to leave at least 35 minutes to take an Uber back to the cruise terminal.

Courtesy of Tuba Club

If you have two days…

Marseille denizens love to hike and swim, and the city is hugged on either side by gorgeous places to do both. Just be sure to have walking shoes, a hat, and water, as there are very few places to fill up. Start your morning with stunning treks in Calanques National Park, about a 45-minute drive south of Old Port. The park’s shores are lined by several calanques, rocky inlets formed by steep limestone cliffs surrounding aquamarine waters. Hikers can reward their efforts with a swim in any of the ultra-clear bays they choose. The park is free to access and has no formal entrance, nor any rangers, so visitors should check hiking apps to find the trails.

If you prefer a low-key scenic walk, meander around Les Goudes, a fishing village within the park. An easy stroll down the village’s main street and across a gravel lookout area will bring you to the Anse de la Maronaise, a placid cove with azure waters.

For a chic seaside lunch in Les Goudes, be sure to snag a reservation at Tuba Club, a see-and-be-seen hotel restaurant where the tables and white-tassled umbrellas sit directly on the rocks. Or at their summer rooftop bar, Bikini, munch on smaller seafood snacks, such as tiny clams in a citrus broth, with a side of focaccia to mop up every last drop.

The city’s biggest draw is its coastline, but Marseille also has cultural offerings. Head back to the city center for the waterfront Mucem (Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations), located inside a cube building covered in black latticework through which you can see the glittering sea. Both ancient and modern pieces are curated into exhibits about sorcery, motherhood, or high-fashion gowns. A narrow bridge connects the museum to a 17th-century fort called St-Jean.

End your evening in Marseille in the popular nightlife neighborhood of Cours Julien/La Plaine. There are dozens of bars and restaurants here, most with outdoor seating. Popular spots include Verre a Cruise (Lebanese dishes to share and party cocktails using ingredients like strawberry vinegar or rhubarb), La Cantinetta (Italian staples with a sunny back patio), and cocktail bar Labo n heure (no food, but plenty of drinks topped with foam or petals).

Courtesy of Maisons du Monde Hôtel & Suites

Stay longer

If you’re dreaming of another afternoon floating in the Mediterranean, head to the tranquil calanques of Côte Bleue, about 40 minutes by train or cab ride northwest of Marseille. The Calanque de Niolon sits directly next to the train station, so its bay is busy but not too crowded. If you’re looking for a quieter swim, continue on foot three-fourths of a mile to the Calanque du Jonquier. Nearby, La Pergola serves just-caught seafood and local rosé from Domaine du Paternel alongside panoramic sea views. Or reserve a table at Auberge du Mérou for salt-crusted fish and lobster pastas.

If you have time for a further trip out of the city, take the bus or train from St. Charles station to Aix-en-Provence, a leafy Roman-era university town filled with winding backstreets. Roam boutiques like Les Épicurieuses, which sells all manner of Provençal crackers, spreads, and spirits. Saint Sauveur is a sweet boulangerie selling chocolate-almond croissants. Or head to the mansion-like museum Hôtel de Caumont, known for its modern and contemporary exhibitions, with works by photographer Steve McCurry, painter Yves Klein, or sculptor Niki de Saint Phalle.

Extra days also give visitors time to eat through more of Marseille’s many trendy restaurants. Clio Chaffardon, an art professor and director living in the city, recommends the seasonal Mediterranean lunch at Placette. In addition to dishes like grilled asparagus with bottarga (cured, salted fish roe) or red lentil “meatballs” atop sweet potato puree, she says it has a “really nice terrace that’s calm and shaded.” If that restaurant is full, try Le Plongeon, which has a similar lunch menu and outdoor tables prime for people watching.

Before dinner, enjoy the French tradition of apéro starting around 6 p.m. Café de L’Abbaye in the Endoume neighborhood is a favorite for sunsets. It’s a no-frills bar with two dozen patio chairs, where you can munch on panisse (chickpea fries) and sip pastis. If you don’t want to give up your coveted table come dinnertime, send one of your party to get a pizza next door at La Ronde de L’Abbaye. Overlooking Catalans beach, Les Bords de Mer’s seasonal rooftop bar offers a more elevated sunset drink, including a few no- and low-alcohol cocktails.

If you want to stay right next to Marseille’s Old Port, book a room at Maisons du Monde Hôtel & Suites, decorated with furnishings from the home-goods store of the same name. Five minutes from trendy nightlife area Cours Julien is Maison Juste, an Airbnb-meets-hotel with 18 minimalist rooms, self check-in, co-living common areas, and a digital reception that can deliver breakfast. On the coast is Les Bords de Mer, where all 19 rooms have sea views and balconies or terraces.