Avignon and Marseille

[PunksVersusBrats]

I'm thinking of going to Avignon and Marseille at the end of August with DH and teen DS. We'd fly into Marseille and get the train to Avignon.

That's as far as I've got so far 😁

Does anyone have any recommendations for good accomodation, things to do, etc. that they've experienced themselves?

Both Avignon TGV and Aix TGV are situated out of town and you will need a bus or taxi to the centre.

We did this: Travellers going from Marseille Provence Airport (MRS) to Avignon by train will first take a brief airport shuttle bus to the Vitrolles-Aéroport Marseille Provence railway station. From there, regional SNCF (TER) trains run directly to Avignon Centre

"Avignon Centre" station - not TGV - is just outside the city walls and is about a ten minute walk into the very centre of the city.

The Pont du Gard and lovely town of Uzes are worth a trip from Avignon.

We did a lot of family holidays there over the years. Pont du Gard, Nimes (lots of Roman history) and Arles are all worth a visit. If you want beach or nice scenery, head down to the Camargue - it's a national park (I think) with inland waterways, famous for flamingos and wild horses.

If you like wine, head to Tavel or Lirac, both within easy reach of Avignon, and the wine (esp Rose) is fantastic. Also worth seeing for the petrol pump type dispensing.

I've never been to Marseille, but know it can be sketchy in some areas, so worth researching

Check opening times for tourist stuff, especially things like swimming pools, as the schools go back end of Aug / early Sept so some things start to close.

Also recommend St Remy!

Also will you be hiring a car OP? DH and I didn’t and when we visited places like St Remy it took two buses so I think if we went to that part of the South again and used Aix as our base, we’d hire a car

Avignon is a rail hub and you can get trains to different places from there. Have you tried Chat GPT ? It can give you a complete itinerary if you ask

Just to add to the conversation - if you were thinking about using the train, it could well be easier to change at Lille for Avignon or Marseille - see man in seat 61;

https://www.seat61.com/France.htm#london-to-avignon-aix-marseille-by-train

The OP is travelling from Wales and has said that travelling by train is not practical. She is flying to Marseilles.

I am always a bit surprised when people want to go to Marseille. Yes, there are some nice bits (walking round the corniche is really nice) the main harbour is OK (but not remarkable) and some outlaying areas are OK, but some of it is like being surrounded by the cast of Thriller. I have travelled all over Europe and wider with no bother, but it definitely makes me nervous. You get a short shuttle bus to the train station at the airport.

Marseilles is often described as Aix’s naughty sister, but it has smartened up its act in recent years. Rather than say “yes there are some nice bits” l would say “yes there are some bad bits”. To sum up, when there you don’t have to be paranoid, just careful.

Some people like everything sterile, sanitised and handily packaged for mass tourism, and some people like anarchic, vibrant and multicultural. Different strokes for different folks eh 🤷‍♀️.

I loved Marseille. Loved all the different cuisines, loved that it was all so cheap and good, found the people the friendliest in France, loved the market in Noailles, loved the Cours Julien area for eating and drinking, really wanted to go to the Panier area- just skirted the edge but it looked fascinating, thought the Vieux Port looked a bit touristy and dull, loved loved LOVED the Calanques National Park, which starts literally on the city's edge.

Canoeing under the Pont du Gard is wonderful. We started about 8km upstream and saw kingfishers on the way. Also, eat boulabaisse in Marseilles.