"Cool Noons" freshness trail: from the Old Port to the Marina Olympique

The Cool Noons project is a European project under the Interreg Euro-MED program (sustainable tourism), the main aim of which is to improve the visitor experience for tourists and residents of Mediterranean urban areas during the hottest hours of the day. By summer 2024, the project aims to offer routes that, wherever possible, include passages through shaded and/or ventilated streets, through existing cool spots where it is possible to refresh oneself, and close to free drinking water points.

Leaving Norman Foster's shade on the Old Port (1), walk along the Quai de Rive-Neuve. Turn left into rue Fortia, cross Cours Estienne d'Orves, a large Italian-style square (2), then join rue Emile Pollak to Cours Pierre Puget, skirting the Palais de Justice (3). Turn right up Cours Pierre Puget and pause in front of the entrance to the Colline Puget garden (4).

Follow the winding path through the park until you reach the Sépia restaurant. On the left, there's an exit over a small bridge and a staircase leading to rue des Lices. As its name suggests, this is an ancient rampart wall that marked the boundary of the city of Marseille in the 17th century.

Cross the small square planted with magnolias and a palm tree to reach rue d'Endoume.

Join the grand avenue de la Corse, where hackberry and plane trees provide shade until you reach the junction with the Place du 4 septembre, its hackberry trees and avenue Pasteur. Rue Girardin, which joins the end of Avenue de la Corse, leads to Plage des Catalans (5), dominated by the Lazaret tower.

This beach is ideal for a refreshing swim. Its waters are also home to the Musée Subaquatique de Marseille (6), which can be explored by simply taking a few dips in the water with a mask and snorkel.

Then, for almost 5 km, the route follows a structuring coastal axis that links districts such as the Vieux-Port, Les Catalans and Malmousque along the seafront. The route follows a single artery all the way to the Olympic Marina: the famous Corniche Kennedy (7), where you'll find, in order :

- The Monument de l'Armée aux Morts de l'Armée d'Orient (8)

- Vallon des Auffes (9)

- Le Marégraphe (10)

- Villa Valmer Park (11 and 12)

- La Plage du Prophète (13)

- Memorial des rapatriés aka, l'hélice de César (14)

- Olympic Marina (15)


And let's not forget the many "follies" - villas and bastides built in the mid-19th century that dominate the Corniche from the hills of the Bompard and Roucas Blanc districts. We've already mentioned Villa Valmer, where the architect drew inspiration from the Renaissance style. This style is also to be found at Château Berger (now Promicea), which bears some similarities (albeit on a much smaller scale) to the Château de Chambord, with its slate roof and bell towers. But there are others to be found behind the vegetation.



We're well aware that the walk from the Catalans beach to the marina can be a bit strenuous, as there's no real opportunity to walk regularly in the shade on this stretch of the Corniche. That's why we recommend bus line 83, which runs very frequently in summer, and whose vehicles are air-conditioned. There are numerous stops along the Corniche, including "Catalans" and "Chemin du Roucas Blanc". The terminus of line 83 is at the Prado traffic circle, where several bus lines pass through to provide access to Place Castellane and the Mazargues district. There is also access to metro line 2.

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