Disembark in Marseille on MSC - Time Needed

[Orange Blossom]

Will be traveling in March on the MSC Grandiosa and disembarking at Marseille.  It states we will be there at 8am. First time cruising the Mediterranean and not sure how long it will take to disembark. Not a member or ever cruised on MSC. So will not have priority. Can I make it to the train station by 11am for a 12pm train? Any advise will be welcomed. Thanks. 

[CruiseIreland]

You will have plenty of time,  weather  permitting. The train station is a short taxi ride, 10-15 minutes.  Disembarkation  usually starts within the hour of docking. Ken 

[Norwich Cruiser]

Assuming you dock on time then you will have plenty of time.

[Hlitner]

The problem in Marseille is getting a taxi to do the short haul (a little over 1 mile) to the train station.  Once in a taxi it is less then a 10 minute drive.  If you are catching a train around noon (we assume to Paris) you should be fine and really do not need to be at the station an hour early.  It is a relatively small station and even arriving at 11:30 would be early enough.

 

Hank

[Orange Blossom]

Thank you for the responses. Since I will be traveling with 3 seniors (all in their 70s) I try to keep the process smooth and steady. And yes, will be traveling to Paris. 

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, Orange Blossom said:

Thank you for the responses. Since I will be traveling with 3 seniors (all in their 70s) I try to keep the process smooth and steady. And yes, will be traveling to Paris. 

Just allow yourself a few extra minutes to get a taxi (at the port).  DW and I really love traveling in France and Paris is DW's favorite city in the world :).  You should really enjoy your trip.

 

Hank

[perakcruiser]

Last August in Paris there was UBER and BOLT available finally. Would be surprised if Marseille is different. So the taxi sadness should be a thing of the past 😀

[megaelch]

Just want to mention i was in Marseille 3 times , fall and winter and we never made it on time into the harbor.
It is a tricky port to sail in and most of the time there is strong wind and current.
The last two times we were supposed to be in port  at 8 am and actually made it at 11 am and 1 pm.
So please have a plan B in hand for your convenience.

Fully agree on the taxi situation, there is a line and you will have to wait around 15 to 20 minutes.
 

I will try my luck next time in february on the Grandiosa .

Hope you have a nice vacation

Edited December 2, 2019 by megaelch

[Orange Blossom]

Thanks for the heads up. I was planning to purchase train tickets now but it might be better to purchase them the day of... for the chance of not getting there on time? 

 

I was in Paris with my dad last April and had a great time. He will be traveling with me again but will also have my mom and her best friend who have never been to Paris. So it should be an adventure. 

[jkrislc]

14 hours ago, Orange Blossom said:

Thanks for the heads up. I was planning to purchase train tickets now but it might be better to purchase them the day of... for the chance of not getting there on time? 

 

I was in Paris with my dad last April and had a great time. He will be traveling with me again but will also have my mom and her best friend who have never been to Paris. So it should be an adventure. 

Buy them as soon as you can as the price steadily rises the closer you get to the departure date. Also, done days are in higher demand than others. We actually found it was cheaper for us to fly to Paris on Air France for our January cruise on Grandiosa than to take the train. Two years ago, it was the opposite. I guess traveling on a Friday versus a Saturday makes a big difference. 

 

The change fee on SNCF is only 5 Euros and you can change the day of if needed, but you shouldn't have any problems. We had a short wait for a cab, but were still there with plenty of time to spare (2 hours). 

[little britain]

Word of warning: When we docked in Marseille, despite all documents saying we arrived at 8am, on board the ship they said “we always dock at 9...”.

There was no priority given to disembarking passengers over those just going ashore for the day.