Relaxing on the Cours Julien, Marseille

Getty Images/Lonely Planet Images

Cours Julien

Marseille


Marseille's most vibrant bohemian quarter centres on Cours Julien, an elongated concrete square shaded by palm trees. It’s lined with great bars, cafes and music venues, and its street-art-slathered side-streets are home to a wealth of bookshops, galleries, tattoo parlours and ethnic restaurants. Markets are held in the square on several days of the week: flowers on Wednesday and Saturday, antique books alternate Saturdays, and stamps or antique books on Sunday.

Transportation

  • metro: Notre Dame du Mont-Cours Julien

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Marseille attractions

1. Musée Cantini

0.3 MILES

Donated to the city by the sculptor Jules Cantini on his death in 1916, this 17th-century mansion-turned-museum conceals some superb art behind its…

2. Fotokino

0.41 MILES

Its subdued façade makes the Fotokino visual art gallery easy to miss, but inside it offers a dazzling world of graphic eye-candy. Expect illustrations,…

3. Musée d’Histoire de Marseille

0.53 MILES

This intriguing 15,000-sq-metre museum traces the story of 'France's Oldest City' from prehistory (the paintings of the Cosquer Cave) to the present day,…

4. Vieux Port

0.74 MILES

Ships have docked for millennia at Marseille’s birthplace, the vibrant Vieux Port. The main commercial docks were transferred to the Joliette area in the…

5. Le Panier

0.78 MILES

'The Basket' is Marseille's oldest quarter – site of the original Greek settlement and nicknamed for its steep streets and buildings. Its close, village…

6. Musée du Santon

0.85 MILES

One of Provence’s most enduring Christmas traditions is its santons (plaster-moulded, kiln-fired nativity figures), first created by Marseillais artisan…

7. Galerie Trajectoire

0.87 MILES

This teeny tiny art gallery, located along a narrow sloping road in the historic neighbourhood of Le Panier, offers a platform to emerging artists and a…

8. Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde

0.9 MILES

Occupying Marseille’s highest point, La Garde (154m), this opulent 19th-century Romano-Byzantine basilica is Marseille's most-visited icon. Built on the…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "france/provence/marseille/attractions/cours-julien/a/poi-sig/1227095/359286",
      "destination": "Marseille",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "France",
      "city": "Marseille",
      "position": "superzone"
    }