Marseille Port Shuttle Buses

[travelgirl45]

We are doing a cruise on the Royal Princess May 7th and Marseille is one of our ports. Need information on how to get to the city on our own without doing a Princess Excursion. Seem like it is close enough to the city to explore on our own.

[CruiserBruce]

Some research on the France board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=593

 

will find MANY threads on Marseille. There is shuttles available.

[pris993]

I recall this port is quiet industrial... so believe cruise lines run shuttles or the port does to the city center. I think we had to pay for it but worth it.

 

No problem going in, coming back there was quiet a line... the driver was insisting on taking a lunch break, until dh stepped he speaks French... that helped to keep the shuttle running. :D

[spiceyxi]

When I cruised via Carnival they provided (for a fee) a shuttle to the city center. It was a pretty far distance through a very industrial location.

 

We didn't care for the city much, but we loved visiting Cheateu d'iff. Was able to book the boat tour once we got into town. Very lovely ride and very nice to be out of the city and hussle.

[easyboy]

We are doing a cruise on the Royal Princess May 7th and Marseille is one of our ports. Need information on how to get to the city on our own without doing a Princess Excursion. Seem like it is close enough to the city to explore on our own.

Try this link:

http://www.tomsportguides.com/port-guides.html

just scroll down. ports are listed alphabetically.

look for Marseille, Provence, France.

[sofienummer]

When I cruised via Carnival they provided (for a fee) a shuttle to the city center. It was a pretty far distance through a very industrial location.

 

We didn't care for the city much, but we loved visiting Cheateu d'iff. Was able to book the boat tour once we got into town. Very lovely ride and very nice to be out of the city and hussle.

 

This is basically my plan as well! Seems so beautiful and relaxing :) Glad you enjoyed it, makes me even more eager to go ha!

 

So I'm curious how much time did it take from the cruise port to vieux port? Was there a lot of traffic? And how about returning to the cruise? I hear the shuttle busses get quite busy!

 

I believe the ferry from the old port to chateau d'if is around 20 minutes but I heard there is a very long line when you want to return from the island... And you might have to wait a boat or two?

How was your experience regarding the shuttle and the ferry? Eager to hear!

Really want to visit the island(s) but I don't want to miss my cruise because the ferry or shuttle was a disaster lol.

 

Thanks in advance and kind regards!

[hawkeyetlse]

The free shuttle doesn't run every day, but it does run on weekends, so May 7 is OK. You can download a PDF with maps and info about the port area here. Look for and click on "Plan de Marseille (pdf)". The map that you want is "Porte 4 - Gares maritimes croisières" and it shows where cruise ships dock (Môle Léon Gourret) and there is a red line that shows how you need to walk to get to the shuttle stop (green dot) or all the way out of the port where you can catch a public bus into town.

 

It all looks very close on the map, but it feels a lot farther when you're actually there :)

 

The shuttle supposedly comes every 20 minutes, but it might be longer than that. It holds a lot of people, though, so don't be discouraged if you see a big crowd waiting. But try to get in front of them when the bus finally shows up…

 

The shuttle drops you off at Joliette (look for the green line on the large map, ending up at the green dot in E-16). It's another 15-20 walk from there to the Old Port where the ferries are. Make a note of where the shuttle stop is, because it's behind an iron gate and it's not really visible from the street.

[spiceyxi]

This is basically my plan as well! Seems so beautiful and relaxing :) Glad you enjoyed it, makes me even more eager to go ha!

 

So I'm curious how much time did it take from the cruise port to vieux port? Was there a lot of traffic? And how about returning to the cruise? I hear the shuttle busses get quite busy!

 

I believe the ferry from the old port to chateau d'if is around 20 minutes but I heard there is a very long line when you want to return from the island... And you might have to wait a boat or two?

How was your experience regarding the shuttle and the ferry? Eager to hear!

Really want to visit the island(s) but I don't want to miss my cruise because the ferry or shuttle was a disaster lol.

 

Thanks in advance and kind regards!

It has been 5 years so I am fuzzy on the details. The ship out to the island was very pleasant and we were able to get the tickets right when we got there and had the first sailing out. It was a rather spur of the moment decision. We spent a comfortable time exploring around the island and took the boat back without much issue. Had some time back in port to rest with a beer and get a ship back. If the ship is in port long enough for the long day trips to Provance you should be okay if you plan it out well.