Marseille - CITY BREAKS

It’s surely no coincidence that Marseille rhymes with ‘soleil’, for the sun shines hot in this southern French port city. Its French, Provençal and a global cultural melting-pot, all at once. It mixes the beauty of picturesque harbour, surrounding hills and a stunning coastline with a certain grit. Not for nothing is it the setting for the crime fiction novels known collectively as Marseille Noir.

Here you can sense more than two millennia of vibrant culture. Greeks founded the city in 600 BC, traders left Marseille for the Levant in the Middle Ages and for the French colonies in the 19^th century. In 2013 it was Europe’s Capital of Culture. Visit Marseille for Mediterranean bouillabaisse or North African couscous, for street art or for fine art. It’s all here!

Our 10 Marseille episodes will bring you all the background history and culture you need to really understand the city. In short, here is all the research you’d do yourself if only you had the time!

MARSEILLE : HISTORY & CULTURE

Episode 1: Introduction to Marseille

January 3, 2024

Bienvenue à Marseille: welcome to Marseille. This introduction brings you information to help you get your bearings and pick up the basic facts which underpin everything. Handy! See below for reading ideas and useful links. … Read more

Episode 2 10 Places to Find History in Marseille

February 7, 2024

There are 26 centuries of history in Marseille, which is the oldest city in France! For starters, here are 10 places where you can find a little of the past. They range from the plaque … Read more

Marseille Old Port © Marseille Tourist Office

Episode 3: The Old Port, the Canebiere and Notre Dame de la Garde

March 6, 2024

This episode centres on Marseille’s most popular sights, the Old Port, the hilltop church of Notre Dame de la Garde, and the Canebière, the wide avenue leading back from the port into the heart of … Read more

Episode 4: Marseille’s Le Panier district

April 3, 2024

This post focuses on the Le Panier district of Marseille, the oldest part of the city which has its own atmosphere: think steep, narrow roads, colourful houses, flowers, little restaurants in pretty squares, artisan shops … Read more

Episode 5: La Joliette, the Mucem and the Cosquer Museum

May 1, 2024

This post takes you around La Joliette, the new port area in Marseille, and takes a look at what there is to do there. That includes the city’s two newest must-see museums – one gives … Read more

Marseille Regards de Provence La Route vers le Mas

Episode 6: Art in Marseille

June 5, 2024

This post explores art in Marseille, taking you first to two art galleries where you’ll see lots of paintings on local themes – Marseille itself, the ports, the beaches and the rural hinterland – and, … Read more

Episode 7: Marseille Boat Trips, Beaches and the Chateau d’If

July 3, 2024

Marseille boat trips – those words belong together. But beaches and the Château d’If are also great ideas for trips out from Marseille and so this post covers all three. And then it offers suggestions … Read more

Episode 8: Marseille Food and Marseille Shopping

July 31, 2024

Two great pleasures in this Provencal city: Marseille food and Marseille shopping. This post summarises both, starting with the signature dishes and key ingredients of the city’s cuisine, plus a few ideas on where to … Read more

Episode 9: Marcel Pagnol in and around Marseille

September 4, 2024

The author and film-maker Marcel Pagnol is inextricably linked with Marseille – where he lived, set some of his early works and is buried – and with the Provencal countryside around the city. The garrigue … Read more

Marseille view from Notre Dame de la Garde

Episode 10: A Marseille Anthology

October 3, 2024

Our Marseille Anthology includes some travel writing, plus a range of fiction pieces set in the city, from detective stories to the opening chapters of the Count of Monte Cristo which recount the hero’s escape … Read more

Marseille: links and reading

Three useful websites for tourists
Marseille Tourist Office
Marseille Tourisme.fr
About France: a short guide to Marseille

3 Guide Books
The Rough Guide to Provence and the Cote d’Azur
Marseille Travel Guide by Angela J Rea
Marseille Travel Guide by Betty Vanslyke

4 books on Marseille Culture
The Wicked City The many cultures of Marseille by Nicholas Hewitt
Garlic, Mint and Sweet Basil by Jean-Claude Izzo
Unveiling Marseille Your Insider’s Guide to the Multicultural Marvel by Tailored Travel Guides
Taste the World in Marseille by Vérane Frédiani

Literature
Marcel Pagnol wrote a trilogy of plays set in Marseille: Marius, Fanny and César. All three were also filmed.
Try eBay or other second-hand sites to track them down.

Pagnol’s two books of childhood memoirs centre on the Provençal countryside just a few miles outside Marseille.
Memoirs of a Provence Childhood by Marcel Pagnol
This comprises 2 autobiographical novels in one volume: My Father’s Glory and My Mother’s Castle

Marseille Noir
This is the collective name for gritty crime fiction set in Marseille. The best-known examples are the Jean-Claude Izzo trilogy
Total Chaos by Jean-Claude Izzo
Chourmo by Jean-Claude Izzo
Solea by Jean-Claude Izzo

The First Fingerprint by Xavier-Marie Bonnot
Marseille Noir by Cédric Fabre

More Fiction set in Marseille
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
The Marseille Caper by Peter Mayle