What to do in Marseille?

[BaseballMomof4]

Open to any suggestions - thanks!

[cberge]

Open to any suggestions - thanks!

Have you looked throught his board...there is a ton of info on this port and what to do for trips from it as well.You can scan the pages or just do a search with Marseilles as topic.So much to do.

[Hlitner]

Agree with my online friend Cberge. There are lots of posts on this topic (many from me) if you simply scroll through older posts. You can also use the excellent "Search" option (there is one right at the top of the first post on the right side) to search for Marseille and you might also want to look at posts for Provence.

 

If you do a little research here and have any specific questions please post them here and you will find a few of us will probably have some answers and/or suggestions.

 

Hank

[hubofhockey]

Since this is is your first trip to the Med and may not have used the search function or Europe boards before, I will try to help you out.

 

Marseille, itself, is not much of a city for tourists. Many do just go into the city and may enjoy it. As our driver guide from this port told me last year, the only people who tell you that Marseille is a nice city to visit are all from Marseille and they all lie. Now this may be some hyperbole. But her greater point is that Provence is where you want to go from this port. You can see some great cities and towns and this is a very underrated port as a result.

 

We saw Arles, Les Baux, and the Pont du Gard in our day from this port and we were amazed. We drove back through Aix and wouldn't have minded spending more time there. Others love Avignon.

 

As others have said, you will need to do your own research on what you want to see. I got some great advice here last year about NOT seeing the Calanques and opting for Provence instead. You may need to rent a car or do a tour to see multiple cities, town, and attractions. As others have advised, you should do your own research on trains, tours, car rentals, and the region. More and more ships are porting in Marseille (unfortunately some go to Toulon instead) and there are several threads on all options at this port. But it's tough for others to advise you without knowing the types of cities, towns, and attractions that you like. Have fun on your first Med cruise.

[zoncom]

I like to take the town bus up to Aix, walk around. Also, tour and buy Savon de Marseille soap on main drag of Marseille.

[cruising forever]

Our cruise in April just switched Monaco for Marseille ~ gotta start all over with the research, but not really thrilled about the change so far...... maybe we will find something..........

[cberge]

Our cruise in April just switched Monaco for Marseille ~ gotta start all over with the research, but not really thrilled about the change so far...... maybe we will find something..........

They both have their charms,but Marseilles open up a lot of different scenarios such Aix,Avignon,Les Baux...do some reading on this board and you will find some information.You will find lots!!!!

[KirkNC]

We plan to goto Avignon.

[hubofhockey]

Our cruise in April just switched Monaco for Marseille ~ gotta start all over with the research, but not really thrilled about the change so far...... maybe we will find something..........

 

I think that's a great switch. We have had a couple of stops in Monaco and one in Marseille and if we found two itineraries with everything similar but these two ports, we wouldn't even have to think about it for a minute. We'd choose the one with Marseille. Seeing Provence on a Med cruise is icing on the cake.

[Hlitner]

We plan to goto Avignon.

 

Great choice. We have spent a few nights in this city (and rented an apartment about 12 miles outside of Avignon) and love this part of France. You should be very pleased with your port day.

 

Hank

[KirkNC]

Thanks we are very much looking forward to it.