Marseille Travel Guide

Notre-Dame de la Garde is the iconic religious building and highest point of Marseille, France. This Neo-Byzantine church built 1853-1864 stands on a limestone hill ~150 m above the Vieux-Port, crowned by an 11.2 m gilded Virgin Mary statue overlooking Marseille Bay — affectionately called "La Bonne Mère" (the Good Mother) by the people of Marseille, patron of sailors and spiritual symbol of the city. Designed by Esperandieu in Neo-Byzantine style — Romanesque lower, Byzantine upper — with green-and-white Florentine striped marble and gilded domes. The bell tower is topped by the 11.2 m gilded Virgin — visible far out at sea, a beacon for sailors returning home. The interior dome is decorated with gold leaf and mosaics; model ships hang below — offerings from sailors thanking the Virgin for safe return. The plaza before the church offers 360° views of Vieux-Port, the city and the Mediterranean. Visiting to overlook Marseille Bay and the Mediterranean under the golden gaze of the "Good Mother" is a stirring, warm summit experience in Marseille.

Le Vieux-Port (Old Port) of Marseille is the birthplace of the city's 2,600-year history, serving as a key Mediterranean trade harbor since ancient Greek times. The marina holds thousands of yachts and traditional fishing boats, while the quays are lined with cafés, restaurants, and fish-market stalls. Early-morning fishermen selling ingredients for bouillabaisse capture the essence of southern French life. Fort Saint-Jean on the north and Fort Saint-Nicolas on the south guard the harbor entrance — the iconic intersection of history and daily life in Marseille.

The Palais Longchamp is a magnificent and beautiful monumental building in Marseille, a palace-like structure of grand colonnades, waterfall features and fountain sculptures—one of Marseille's most splendid landmarks, and a glory monument commemorating a great project that benefited the city. The Palais Longchamp was completed in the 19th century; its building has a special meaning—to commemorate the completion of a great water project that brought water from the Durance River in Provence into Marseille, solving the city's long-standing water shortage, the Marseillais built this magnificent monumental building to show the grace of water. The palace is majestic and beautiful: its main body is a grand colonnade spreading in an arc; at the center of the colonnade is a grand commemorative water feature—on tiered steps and pools are magnificent fountains, waterfalls and fine sculpture groups (centered on allegorical statues of rivers and abundance), with flowing water and vivid sculptures, grand and gorgeous, one of Marseille's most classic, photogenic architectural scenes. The two wings of the palace are the Musée des Beaux-Arts (with rich paintings and sculptures) and the Natural History Museum; behind the building is a spacious, pleasant park. Strolling before the Palais Longchamp, admiring this magnificent palace-like building and the spectacular waterfall fountain, visiting the two-wing museums, you feel Marseille's splendor and glory. Explore Marseille, tour the majestic Palais Longchamp, and enjoy the beauty of this monument to water—an unmissable sight in Marseille.

Marseille's hilltop guardian was built 1853-1864 on the limestone ridge south of the Vieux-Port, its Romano-Byzantine belfry crowned by an eleven-metre gilded Virgin. Sailors have prayed to her before departure for generations, and from the harbour everyone looks up and sees her first. Inside hang hundreds of ex-voto ship models and marble thanksgiving plaques - the key to reading this port city's bond with the sea. A petit train runs from the Vieux-Port to the summit, where sunset over the Frioul islands closes the show.

Île d'If is a legendary island fortress in the bay of Marseille, made famous by the classic novel by Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo—a sight full of history and legend off the coast of Marseille. Île d'If is a limestone islet in the Mediterranean off Marseille's old port, crowned by an ancient castle—the Château d'If. Built in the 16th century, it was first a military fortress guarding the port; later it became a stern state prison holding political, religious and serious criminals—isolated at sea, easy to defend and hard to escape, it became a feared, almost inescapable sea prison. What made the Château d'If truly famous is the classic novel by the French literary giant Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo—in the story, the hero Edmond Dantès is wrongly imprisoned in the dungeon of this Château d'If, suffers, and finally escapes and takes revenge in a legendary way. This gripping tale made the Château d'If and its dungeon a world-famous literary landmark. Visitors take a ferry from Marseille's old port to this sea island, explore the ancient castle and deep cells (including one named after the novel's hero), recall the real history and the immortal legend, and look back from the island at Marseille's coast and the Notre-Dame de la Garde. Explore Marseille, take a boat to the legendary Île d'If, and follow the immortal story of The Count of Monte Cristo—a sight in Marseille full of history and legend.

The flagship of Marseille's 2013 European Capital of Culture year, designed by Rudy Ricciotti: a latticed concrete shell - lace cast in stone - wrapping a seafront block, its perforations letting light and salt wind pour through. A high footbridge joins it to the 17th-century Fort Saint-Jean, new architecture and old ramparts eyeing each other across a moat. Permanent galleries take Mediterranean civilisation as their theme, from market food to harbour trade, while the free rooftop platform has become a local sunset fixture.