Taxi to Aix? Or only for full day tour?

[3travelersgo]

Hi! I originally booked a ship excursion to Aix, but we are thinking of cancelling it so that we have more freedom to do what we want.

All the train directions sound a little confusing, so we are opting to take a taxi. One thread I read stated that the taxis wouldn't take them because they wanted to be hired as basically tour guides for the day.

Any thoughts/experience with taking a taxi to Aix? Thank you!! We are sailing in July.

[Hlitner]

Taxis in the south of France (when you can find one) are quite expensive for anything other then short local fares. A taxi from the Port of Marseille to Aix en Provence would be about 22 miles (each way). At that distance you are talking hundreds of Euros. Since the taxi cannot get a return fare it means they must drive nearly 45 miles (round trip) so they will want to be hired for the round trip plus waiting time. Taking the train or local bus from Marseille to Aix is quite simple and pretty inexpensive. Not sure what confused you about using the train (you can also take the public bus) since its just a matter of getting from the ship to the St Charles Train Station and buying the train ticket (which must be validated in the small machine before you get on the train).

 

Hank

[aloisia]

We also had planned on a taxi to Aix but didn`t after reading about the high prices/finding one to take us.

 

We looked at the train option too however you still need to take a shuttle from the ship to the main hub in Marseille (some people walk - I wouldn't) ... then walk or bus to the train station, get your train to Aix.. etc. & reverse the trip coming back. Our all board time was 3:30 (earliest the entire week). You may have a longer day but we didn't wish to cut our time too close getting back.

 

We ended up taking a ship tour (only one for Mediterranean - we like private or DIY). Avigion and Aix. Great day. Aix is wonderful. We were lucky to be there when the markets were open. :D But the ship's tour is still a little rushed.

Ideally it would have been perfect if we could have shared a tour van to Aix with others - set your own itinerary - maybe you should post on your roll call?

Have fun in Aix .... one of my favorites!!

[3travelersgo]

Thank you both for your responses! Your comments were helpful!

[Jade13]

We also had planned on a taxi to Aix but didn`t after reading about the high prices/finding one to take us.

 

We looked at the train option too however you still need to take a shuttle from the ship to the main hub in Marseille (some people walk - I wouldn't) ... then walk or bus to the train station, get your train to Aix.. etc. & reverse the trip coming back. Our all board time was 3:30 (earliest the entire week). You may have a longer day but we didn't wish to cut our time too close getting back.

 

We ended up taking a ship tour (only one for Mediterranean - we like private or DIY). Avigion and Aix. Great day. Aix is wonderful. We were lucky to be there when the markets were open. :D But the ship's tour is still a little rushed.

Ideally it would have been perfect if we could have shared a tour van to Aix with others - set your own itinerary - maybe you should post on your roll call?

Have fun in Aix .... one of my favorites!!

 

Which port were you at that your ship offered a tour to Avignon (and Aix)? We are docking in Toulon and our ship does not offer a tour to Avignon, which is apparently at least 2 hours away.

[aloisia]

Which port were you at that your ship offered a tour to Avignon (and Aix)? We are docking in Toulon and our ship does not offer a tour to Avignon, which is apparently at least 2 hours away.

 

The port was Marseille. :)

[suekay]

We did a ship your (very unusual for us) to Aix, but abandoned the guide part way through as he was so boring. If we go again, we'd take the tour just for the transport and meet up for the journey back. For me, "Aix on your own" would be the ideal excursion as it's such an interesting place to wander

[dritan]

Definitely agree, Aix is great to explore on your own. we were there two days ago and the Saturday market was fantastic. It's a great place to explore. We took our ship's shuttle to Marseille port and walked up to the station (about 15 mins). Then it was a 45 min snooze train to Aix en Provence. Quite easy really.

[3travelersgo]

We did a ship your (very unusual for us) to Aix, but abandoned the guide part way through as he was so boring. If we go again, we'd take the tour just for the transport and meet up for the journey back. For me, "Aix on your own" would be the ideal excursion as it's such an interesting place to wander

 

Thanks, everyone! We are definitely hoping to ditch the tour guide! Hopefully, the guide won't mind....

[4774Papa]

We also had planned on a taxi to Aix but didn`t after reading about the high prices/finding one to take us.

 

We looked at the train option too however you still need to take a shuttle from the ship to the main hub in Marseille (some people walk - I wouldn't) ... then walk or bus to the train station, get your train to Aix.. etc. & reverse the trip coming back. Our all board time was 3:30 (earliest the entire week). You may have a longer day but we didn't wish to cut our time too close getting back.

 

We ended up taking a ship tour (only one for Mediterranean - we like private or DIY). Avigion and Aix. Great day. Aix is wonderful. We were lucky to be there when the markets were open. :D But the ship's tour is still a little rushed.

Ideally it would have been perfect if we could have shared a tour van to Aix with others - set your own itinerary - maybe you should post on your roll call?

Have fun in Aix .... one of my favorites!!

We took the Avignon and Aix ship's tour and it was good. We ate lunch at a great Lebanese restaurant in Aix. Check out my review on river cruises, Provence and Barcelona.

[aloisia]

We took the Avignon and Aix ship's tour and it was good. We ate lunch at a great Lebanese restaurant in Aix. Check out my review on river cruises, Provence and Barcelona.

 

I did read your review - thank you .... the trip sounds wonderful!! I hope you posted the review on NCL thread - I'm sure there are lots of people who would love to read it. :)

[Hlitner]

We took the Avignon and Aix ship's tour and it was good. We ate lunch at a great Lebanese restaurant in Aix. Check out my review on river cruises, Provence and Barcelona.

 

Let me put this in some perspective. You are on an excursion in France, and country that is known thooughout the world for its cuisine and wine. In fact, there is a major part of the French cuture that is tied to their cuisine and wine. So you are in Aix en Provence, and wonderful Provencial city and where do you eat? At a Lebanese restaurant? The Cours Mirabelle (and other parts of Aix) are full of wonderful French cafes and restaurants. Enough said.

 

Hank

[taxatty]

We rented a car and drove to Aix--a very easy, scenic drive, got to see and do what we wanted, and cheaper than paying for a ship excursion.

 

Les

[4774Papa]

Let me put this in some perspective. You are on an excursion in France, and country that is known thooughout the world for its cuisine and wine. In fact, there is a major part of the French cuture that is tied to their cuisine and wine. So you are in Aix en Provence, and wonderful Provencial city and where do you eat? At a Lebanese restaurant? The Cours Mirabelle (and other parts of Aix) are full of wonderful French cafes and restaurants. Enough said.

 

Hank

You darn right we ate at the Lebanese restaurant and loved it. I lived in the Middle East for five years and came to appreciate good Arabic food. We had been eating French cuisine for many days on a Rhone river cruise and the Arabic food was a nice change. Also, the prices at the restaurant was far more reasonable than the others that we checked out.

Enough said.