Beyond Sightseeing: 7 Unique Things to Do in Marseille

A pretty viewpoint or a colourful market is not unique. Swimming to a museum is. Catching your own lunch is. Dining aboard a 1940s sailing ship is. Marseille has a few experiences that simply do not fit into a conventional sightseeing itinerary, and these are the ones we want to share with you.

Swim to Marseille’s underwater art museum

At La Belle Échappée, we’re usually more at home on the road, but this is one Marseille experience we wouldn’t miss. Just 100 metres off Plage des Catalans, Marseille's underwater museum sits five metres below the surface of the Mediterranean. Swim out from the beach and the sculptures gradually appear beneath you, surrounded by fish and marine life, with the city still close behind. Made from pH-neutral recycled marine cement, the works are designed to become part of an artificial reef.

The museum is free to explore independently with your own equipment, but this is still open-water swimming: you need to be comfortable covering around 200 metres there and back (and conditions matter). 

Catch your own fish and have it cooked by the sea

At l’Estéou restaurant, your meal can start several hours before you sit down at the table. This Mediterranean restaurant at Pointe Rouge offers something rather unusual: head out to sea early in the morning with the owner and local fishermen, then bring your catch back to the restaurant to be prepared in the kitchen.

No fishing experience is needed. Lines, bait and guidance are provided, while what you catch depends on the season, the conditions and, of course, a little luck. Back at Pointe Rouge, the fish can be simply grilled and served overlooking the Mediterranean. You can contact the restaurant directly to book the fishing trip.

Explore the Calanques aboard a hybrid-electric boat

If you're coming to Marseille, the Calanques are probably already on your bucket list. But given their popularity, we like the idea of seeing them with fewer people and a lot less engine noise. We recommend Eco Calanques, which offers small-group trips from the Vieux-Port aboard hybrid-electric boats designed to reduce noise, fuel consumption and emissions. As the boat approaches the protected coves, it can switch to electric power, making the experience noticeably quieter than a conventional boat tour.

Step inside Le Corbusier’s vertical city

Architecture lovers, this one’s for you! UNESCO-listed and designed by the famous architect Le Corbusier, the Cité Radieuse is one of his major works. Conceived as a complete place to live, it brings together apartments, interior streets, shops and a vast rooftop overlooking Marseille. More than 70 years later, people still live here, which makes stepping inside feel very different from visiting a conventional architecture museum.

Some areas can be explored independently, including parts of the interior streets and the rooftop, where the former gymnasium now houses the MAMO contemporary art centre. You can also book a guided visit with the Marseille Tourist Office, which includes access to a listed apartment designed by Le Corbusier and normally closed to independent visitors.

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See Marseille and its surroundings from a vintage side-car

This is where we come into play, with our pretty cool vehicles! At La Belle Échappée, we organise private tours in vintage side-cars to discover Marseille and its surroundings from a different and unique perspective. With a local driver-guide and a maximum of two passengers per vehicle, some tours stay within Marseille, following the Corniche, climbing up to Notre-Dame de la Garde or discovering neighbourhoods you might otherwise miss. Others head towards Cassis and the surrounding landscapes, where the road itself becomes part of the experience.

Travelling by side-car gives you the freedom to pull over, take in the view and move at a rhythm that feels much more personal than a conventional tour. The stops matter, but so does everything that happens on the road between them.

Taste the Mediterranean at Gérald Passedat’s three-Michelin-starred table

Looking for something truly special? A stay in Marseille can be the perfect excuse to experience a three-Michelin-starred restaurant. At Le Petit Nice, Gérald Passedat puts the Mediterranean at the centre of the plate, working with around 60 local fish species throughout the seasons, including lesser-known varieties rarely seen on fine-dining menus.

The Passedat family has been here for more than a century, overlooking the Mediterranean, and Gérald Passedat has held three Michelin stars since 2008. His “My Bouille Abaisse” menu offers a highly personal take on Marseille’s most iconic

Have dinner at sea aboard a heritage sailing ship

We may be a little obsessed with food, but you’re in France, and in Provence, so come on! This time, dinner comes with a sailing ship, a swim and sunset over the Frioul islands.

Le Don du Vent is a heritage sailing ship built in 1947 and moored in Marseille’s Vieux-Port. In the evening, it sets sail towards the Frioul archipelago, where the crew drops anchor in time for a swim and sunset. Dinner is prepared by the chef on board and served with organic wines as the light begins to fade over the Mediterranean. It is a pretty memorable way to end a day in Marseille.

Bonus: Discover the Calanques vertically on a via cordata

If exploring the Calanques by boat or on foot feels a little too conventional, there is another option: go vertical. We’re keeping this one as a bonus because it starts from La Ciotat, around 30 minutes by car from Marseille, at the eastern edge of the Calanques National Park.

Guided routes combine via cordata, abseiling and even zip lines along the limestone cliffs above the Mediterranean. No previous climbing experience is required for some introductory routes, but you will definitely need to be comfortable with heights.

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Marseille doesn’t really need more “hidden gems”. What makes the city memorable is often the way you experience it: from the water, from the road, with a fishing line in your hands or dinner served on deck. Pick the experience that feels least like sightseeing, and you’re probably on the right track to find your unique way of exploring Marseille.