Discover Marseille: Stunning Beaches, Vibrant Street Art, and Innovative Tasting Menus

Marseille is often overshadowed by its glitzy Côte d’Azur neighbors. But, as Sara Lieberman discovers, France’s once-infamous port city deserves a closer look.

There is, perhaps, no other city in France as controversial as Marseille. A major European port and the second-largest city in the country, with a population of 1.6 million, it sparks intense debate thanks to its rough-and-tough reputation once riddled with mob-related corruption, drugs, and crime. Friends in Paris reacted vastly differently when I mentioned my plans to visit; some were repelled while others expressed their love for the city. However, as a New Yorker relocated to Paris, I felt drawn to the urban environment that is a little worn around the edges yet sits on the Mediterranean coast—it was my idea of heaven.

Desperate to see the sea after several landlocked months, my friend Jess, an Australian turned Parisian, and I headed straight for Les Goudes, a neighborhood on the edge of Calanques National Park, where cliffs twist down into turquoise coves. While it’s only nine miles from central Marseille, it’s a world away from the graffiti-covered streets.

We stayed in Les Goudes at the new Tuba Club (tuba-club.com; doubles from $245), a five-room hotel and restaurant that, upon opening in July 2020, seemed to take up half of my Instagram feed—thanks to all the in-the-know Parisians who managed to make the trip south faster than you can say “la plage.” Until the 1980s, the compound was a diving center frequented by Jacques Mayol, the inspiration behind Luc Besson’s 1988 film The Big Blue. Now it’s a stylish hotel designed by Marion Mailaender, featuring hand-painted murals, rustic ceramic pieces, and 70s-style beaded curtains in shades of rust and yellow.

The hotel is the brainchild of Greg Gassa and Fabrice Denizot, who grew up together in Marseille. Gassa previously worked both in hospitality and fashion, while Denizot was a film producer, which explains the très hip crowd who descend in droves for meals and drinks served, quite literally, on the rocks.

After dropping our bags in our chic, minimalist room—dubbed a “cabana” because of its surfer-friendly curtainless shower (complete with a hose), knotted rope carpeting, and seashell-shaped lamps—we shimmied into swimsuits and headed straight for the cliffs. Yellow-and-white-striped chaise longues reserved for guests set against a sparkling seaside backdrop welcomed us. It didn’t take long for Jess to grab the snorkel gear on offer and dive in. The waves were too rough for me, so I ordered a Sumule (like a Moscow Mule, but named after a nearby calanque) from the handsome, shirtless waiter while keeping an eye on Jess’s whereabouts—and my tan.

We stayed until day-drinking became apéro hour, when the staff began rearranging the seating for incoming dinner guests. Thanks to the region’s famously strong mistral winds, it’s often impossible to sunbathe on the rocks without getting soaked by waves—exactly what happened the next morning when we attempted a selfie before heading into town.

With salty skin and skirts sticking to our legs, we dried off in an Uber en route to the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations (mucem.org). This vast complex, which opened in 2013, is spread across three buildings, including the 12th-century Fort St.-Jean. It features a dizzying number of rooms and rotating exhibitions; my favorite was “Vêtements Modèles,” showcasing key fashion staples (espadrilles, the kilt, and overalls among them) and their evolution over time.

It didn’t take long for hunger to strike, so we cycled through the old port neighborhood using the city’s bike-share system, passing fishing and leisure boats bobbing on the water as day turned into night. Our destination was Les Bords de Mer (lesbordsdemer.com), a stunning four-story, all-white hotel with 19 rooms and a rooftop bar that is especially popular in the early evening. There, we indulged in sunset Spritzes and a delicious version of panisse, or fried chickpea sticks, a regional staple. We kept it light, as we planned a five-course tasting dinner at La Mercerie (lamerceriemarseille.com; tasting menu $69), which offers dishes like ceviche with watermelon and Thai basil and, for dessert, a mezcal-infused pound cake with popcorn ice cream—all in an industrial-cool, candlelit atmosphere. This turned out to be the best meal of our trip.

By this point, I was enchanted by Marseille’s mix of grit and glamour: crumbling buildings emblazoned with colorful murals, and the smell of bouillabaisse mingling with motorcycle exhaust. Nothing encapsulated the city’s balanced, flexible identity better than Le Corbusier’s Cité Radieuse (citeradieuse-marseille.com), a Modernist apartment complex and UNESCO World Heritage site in the Ste.-Marguerite neighborhood. While the 1952 building is worth a wander for its architectural significance, designer and Marseille native Ora Ito holds an annual exhibition of contemporary art at Marseille Modular, or MAMO (mamo.fr), a gallery on its rooftop.

During our visit, the French street artist Invader, known for installing small mosaics on the walls of cities worldwide, had just completed a Marseille “invasion” of over 80 works around town, including one gracing the exterior wall of Tuba Club. This culminated in an exhibit at this famous architectural marvel. After an hour admiring the whimsical show, I decided to spend the remainder of our time searching for other Invader pieces. I counted 41, with locations ranging from a bridge by the sea in the Endoume neighborhood to a brasserie off the city’s main thoroughfare, La Canebière.

The only element we had yet to explore was the calanques from the water. Nevertheless, we had not planned ahead, which meant we settled for one of the crowded group boat tours that leave from the old port. A hot tip is to be organized and consider a more intimate private ride with a company like Bleu Evasion (bleuevasion.fr; tours from $88).

We managed to score a seat at the back, where we rested our legs on the railing and pretended we were alone with the gulls, the wind, and the salty sea air.

Back on dry land, with about an hour before we had to catch our train back to Paris, we detoured for one last taste of the life aquatic at the kitschy nautical café La Boîte à Sardine (laboiteasardine.com; entrées $15–$22). The garlicky prawns and fried fish balls were enough to seal the deal: Marseille, je t’aime.

A version of this story first appeared in the June 2022 issue of iBestTravel under the headline French Twist.