Ideal Weekend in Marseilles, France
Planning a trip for a weekend in the port city in the south of France? You’ll need at least 2 days or a full weekend to take advantage of what the city has to offer. You can fly direct into Marseilles (MRS) and then rent a car depending on your final destination. We stayed a bit outside of the city centre, so opted for the rental car which gave us a lot of flexibility to explore.
Where to stay?
La Luna B&B
This hotel was a real gem tucked right in the rocky hills above the Corniche Président John Fitzgerald Kennedy. The Corniche is a highway that runs along the sea from Marseille to La Plage. It is perfect for runs, walks and drives to take in the natural beauty around Marseilles.
When visiting La Luna for the first time, make sure to drive up from the Corniche on Boulevard Véran. If you come from the top of the hill with your car, you will be in a ride for some very tight little rounds, sharp turns, and lots of backing up.
Once at La Luna, you will be welcomed by the most amazing French host. Both her and her husband live there. He is an architect and that created the most interesting and unique property. There are only 6 rooms in the entire B&B. Each morning you will wake up and go sit around their dining room table with fresh eggs, baguettes, and fruit.
Where to eat?
La Petite Nice
La Petite Nice is a triple Michelin starred restaurant right on the cliffs outside of Marseilles. It isn’t the cheapest dinner, but if you have something to celebrate this is the place to go! Gérald Passédat is the head chef there. You may even get the chance to meet his little French bulldog on the way out.
La Grotte
Restaurant La Grotte is about a 30min drive from Marseilles at the beginning of a national park called the Calanques. Make sure to make a booking here and time it so you are able to see the sunset as you make you way to the restaurant.
Restaurante La Grotte 
Fish of the Day 
Profiteroles de la grotte 
Calanque de Callelongue
What to do?
Hike Calanques from Cassis
Cassis is about a 40min drive from La Luna. It is a small fishing port tucked in the middle of the Calanques. The calanque national park is known for its narrow inlets framed by steep, limestone cliffs. Cassis is the perfect place to start off on a day hike. There are multiple distance options depending on what you are looking for. We opted for a long options that ended up being about 8 miles. We started at Calanque de Port-Miou and walked to Calanque de Port Pin. For this part of the hike, it’s fairly flat and I would rate it medium difficulty. For the next part, we hiked to Calanque d’En-Vau. This section from Port Pin to En-Vau is definitely a bit more difficult with more incline. Once you make it over the ridge and back down to the valley, the walk to En-Vau is pretty easy. Note if you want to visit En-Vau without the difficult hike, there is a place to park and walk in directly.
En-Vau is definitely worth the visit though! Framed with the dramatic limestone cliffs and bright blue Mediterranean water.
Other Activities:
- Day trip to Aix-en-Provence
- MuCEM – Musée des civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée
- Fort Saint-Jean
- L’Ombrière de Norman Foster, Marseille
- Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde