Marseille (France)

how do I get there?

Well despite Marseille being right at the bottom of France it is still remarkably easy to get to and you do not have to rely on the plane. Firstly the obvious way to get there is by plane - British Airways, Air France and Buzz (only from Stanstead) fly there.

Now if you're not too keen on the travelling by plane you can go entirely by train to Marseille. (When I went to Marseille I went by plane so I don't know how much this option will cost but I imagine a fair bit more than an airfare). To get to Marseille by train you need to get to Waterloo Station (in London) and catch the Eurostar to Paris. And then from Paris catch the TGV to Marseille. I'm not sure what the exact journey time would be if you went to Marseille that way but I think the Eurostar takes a 2 or 3 hours and the TGV from Paris to Marseille takes just over 3 hours. The French TGV is the fastest train in the world and TGV are probably the best trains in the world. So it is slightly better than Virgin Trains or Connex South Central!! (The French government seem to take expenditure on rail travel seriously)

And the other way to get to Marseille is by car; a long, long way but some people do it. I saw several English number plates whilst I was in Marseille.
French lorry driver so I can't advise you to use that option.Notre-Dame de la Garde is perhaps the most well-known tourist attraction of Marseille and it is one definitely worth visiting. Notre-Dame de la Garde is a cathedral overlooking Marseille. The view is magnificent and from Notre-Dame de la Garde you can see all of Marseille. You can go inside the cathedral which is historical but frankly nothing particularly different to any other cathedral. Though I don't know of any other city having the cathedral overlooking the city. But this is a must visit if your in Marseille if only just to see the view.
And don't forget your camera like I did!! The postcards for sale are of poor quality and are a rip-off!

The other big tourist attraction of Marseille is Le Chateau D'if is a tiny island just off Marseille that is unspoilt and untouched. There is quite a long story to it, to put it short it was used as a prison or something a few centuries ago but you'll find all about that when you visit. To get there you need to take a ferry from Marseille, which takes around 30 minutes.

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Eating out in Marseille is cheap and easy. French cafes are cheap and usually pleasant, at lunchtime a croque-monsieur can be got for £3 or £4, which is a simple ham and cheese toastie. Though you can always have a burger - there's McDonald's dotted around Marseille and there's also lots of Quick restaurants dotted around. Quick is very like McDonalds apart from the chips and burgers come in different packaging. It's a very similar price too.

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What lets Marseille down is its high crime rate, there's some problems too with racism and such; the French National Front are big in Marseille.
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Overall Marseille is a great place, it even has its own mini underground system to help you get around the city. Its also only a 2 hour trip away from Italy, an hour trip to millionaires playground Monaco.