Marseille is a beautiful and fascinating city, with incredible architecture, medieval alleyways and trendy cafés and boutiques. There are plenty of things to do in Marseille in 1 day, experiencing the city and the culture of southern France.
Things to Do in Marseille in 1 Day
If you only have 1 day in Marseille you have plenty of options to choose from when it comes to your daily activities. To pick and choose your best options, reference the map below.
Vieux Port
The best place to start in your 1 day in Marseille is the Vieux Port, or the Old Port of Marseille for my folks who don’t speak French like me. Dating back to the 6th century, this is a beautiful area of town near the ferris wheel and has wonderful views of the city, which is built more or less on several hills.
Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde
This iconic symbol of Marseille means Our Lady of the Guard and it’s as beautiful inside as the views you get of the city. There are multiple viewing areas where you can get amazing 360 views of the city, from the port and the ocean to the spectacular mountains on the other side of the city.
This should be done early on in the day because the hike up is really quite exhausting and it’s best to do if you’re fresh and awake. You could take a taxi if you don’t want to walk or have small children, as there is a road leading up to it, but I think the walk is very rewarding. Plus, you can stop as many times as you like to get views overlooking the city at every point of the ascent.
Once you get to the top though, all of your hard work will be rewarded and going down is a lot easier than the way up.
Pavilion M and Marseille Cathedral
Head to the other side of the Vieux Port and stop by the Pavilion M and make your way to the Marseille Cathedral. There are so many cute cafés and lots of beautiful areas to just sit and enjoy the beautiful weather that Marseille is lucky to have most days of the year.
The Pavilion M is a large square right off the port and has lots of places to sit and enjoy the sunshine, as well as a large metal M that you can sit in and have your photo taken in. We walked along Rue Caisserie and saw so many soap and perfume shops. Marseille is known for its soap so you can find lots of stores pretty much at any point in the city, however, we found this particular area was home to many more authentic ones rather than tourist traps. The prices were reasonable and the quality was great.
The cathedral is just a short 5 to 10 minute walk from there and is unique and impressive. Unfortunately, they’re restoring parts of it so there was a lot of scaffolding on the front at the time, but the rest of it is beautiful and impressive.
Part of the cathedral remains from the original building constructed in the 12th century and the rest was added on in the 19th century, culminating to one very large, beautiful and pretty unique cathedral.
Panier
Near the cathedral is the historic district of Panier, which dates back as far as 600 BC. What I loved about this area were the narrow alleyways that are reminiscent of the medieval layout of the city, as well as some of the architecture which looks different to the rest of the city.
I found Panier to be a much quieter and low-key area than the rest of Marseille with lots of reasonably priced boutiques and cafés (this is France after all, there are cafés everywhere).
Palais Longchamp
Next, head to Palais Longchamp and the park and I couldn’t get over how impressive it was. Approximately a 30-minute walk from the Vieux Port, Palais Longchamp was built in 1839 to commemorate the construction of the Canal de Marseille and today houses two museums. There’s a large fountain in the middle and directly behind is Parc Longchamp, which until 1987 had a zoo.
The best part of Palais Longchamp is the architecture and the view of the city. Since it’s built on a slight incline and it is quite tall, you get wonderful views of the basilica on the hill on the other side of the city.
Cours Julien
The final place on your things to do in Marseille in 1 day itinerary is Cours Julien – the trendy district of town. From Palais Longchamp it takes about 30 minutes to walk there and brings you quite close to Vieux Port, so you’re sort of making a large circle.
Cours Julien is known for its graffiti and it has a very different feel to the rest of Marseille. It’s obvious that the younger crowds have made this area their home and a lot of places are a little edgier and more modern than you would find in the older parts of the city.
This is a cool, grittier area to explore and if you’re in the market for any clothes or items this could be a great place to look.
Where to Eat in Marseille
Of all the things to do in Marseille in 1 day, spending time in cafés and boutiques is a perfect idea, and finding delicious, affordable food isn’t difficult. Here are a few suggestions of great cafés and restaurants dotted around the city. All are more than affordable, have great food and a wonderful atmosphere.
For Coffee or Lunch:
- Coogee: This café plays great music and has a sort of hippy chic vibe. Slightly pricey coffee, but worth it for the environment.
- The Cup Of Tea: This adorable café is affordable but also doubles as a bookstore, talk about heaven.
- Au Vieux Port: Mainly Italian food, this restaurant serves very cheap pizzas to share as well as pasta and other dishes.
For Dinner:
- La Carbone: Focusing on the cuisine of Brittany, this restaurant was beyond affordable and had a really cozy atmosphere.
- Restaurant Lilin: If you’re looking for something a little less French, this Chinese restaurant was cheap and incredibly tasty. Wine was a bit expensive considering, but the food itself was beyond affordable.
Transportation in Marseille
Marseille does have two metro lines, trams and buses, so if public transport is your preferred mode of transportation you’re totally covered. One ticket on each costs €1.70.
However, if you’re only in Marseille for 1 day, then the best thing to do is to walk everywhere. It’s not a big city and walking between attractions is pretty efficient. Plus, when you walk you get to see all of the beautiful and unexpected things in between.
Where to Stay in Marseille
On the off chance you decide to extend your stay, I just wanted to touch on some of the best places to stay in Marseille.
Vieux Port
We stayed in a hostel just off of Vieux Port (The Old Port), which is the most central part of the city and probably the best location to stay since it’s pretty much equidistant from all of the major attractions.
Le Panier
This is the perfect place to stay if you want to stay central but are looking for something a bit more unique. This is one of the most historic neighborhoods in Marseille and the streets are so narrow most cars can’t fit through it.
Longchamp and Cinq Avenues
These high-end neighborhoods will come with a higher pricetag, but they’re perfect if you’re looking for something quiet and lowkey.
Marseille is a city with a unique culture that’s not typical French and is the kind of city you go to to see the few major sights and spend the rest of the time sipping coffee in a café overlooking beautiful views of the hills, sea and city buildings. If I were to go back to France I wouldn’t hesitate to visit Marseille again.
