Marseille: Renting a Car and DIYing?

[sailawaybellaluna]

I'd love any advice from cruisers that have rented a car for the day in Marseilles?

 

Planning our day there next year... It will be my husband and I and our two kids (one is not yet born, but she's already booked on the cruise). :p

 

The excursions for our itinerary on the Carnival Vista haven't been released yet, but honestly, we're really more of DIY excursion people anyhow. We typically book private trains and/or rent cars in port.

 

We've driven in France before without problems, so I'm not so worried about that...Rather, I'm wondering if there are any car rental agencies you would recommend near the port? Or is it required to travel all the way to the airport to rent and drop off?

 

Also, we will be in port from 9am - 6pm, so I'm wondering if anyone has any recommendations on what we could fit in during that time? We like off the beaten path.

 

We would love to see a lavender field and even hit Chateauneuf for a wine tasting if possible? I was thinking Les Caves Saint Charles... Senanque Abbey was also on our list. Honestly, if we could do these two things and have lunch at a quaint restaurant, I'd be thrilled.

 

And, perhaps also visit Sault?

 

Would love any advice! Thanks!

[sailawaybellaluna]

Okay, I just I just found a Europcar Rental Office approximately 4 km from the port at:

 

121 AVENUE DU PRADO

13008 MARSEILLE FRANCE

 

Would still love advice on a driving itinerary!

 

Thanks!

[Hlitner]

Guess my question to you would be what day of the week? It does matter in Provence as you might want to stop at a town/city that is having their weekly market. We assume your baby will be at least 6 months old, or otherwise you will have some other major issues. With a car you have a tremendous number of options depending on your own likes/dislikes. You could drive to some larger cities (i.e. Aix En Provence, Avignon, Nimes, Arles, etc), you could do smaller "cute" places like Les Baux, St Remy,et., or you could do a combination. And then there is the attraction of the more rural Luberon (which also has its share of cute villages). And if you are into really historical places you could drive (1 1/2 hours each way) to Pont du Gard.

 

Hank

[sailawaybellaluna]

Thanks Hank!

 

We will be there on a Thursday.

 

Yes, baby will be 10 months old... :)

 

I was reading about Aix today, but we are more of small/"cute" little places kind of people I think.

 

I was mapping it out and thinking of this as a rough plan: Depart ship at 9am, rent car and head straight out to a wine tasting in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Stay until 12:30pm or so, and head to Avignon for lunch and a browse around the Pope's Palace (we don't need to do a full tour, etc). After exploring Avignon a bit, head to Gordes and Senanque Abbey, and then return back to port?

 

That seemed unrushed to me and seemed to offer enough time for getting lost or stopping somewhere cute we might see along the way?

 

I'm not convinced Avignon is best for a lunch stop. Perhaps one of the other places you've mentioned?

 

Thanks for the input.

[Hlitner]

Just another thought (from an old Dad) which we assume you have considered. Bring your own baby seat as you can never find a decent one when you need it :).

 

Hank

[sailawaybellaluna]

Just another thought (from an old Dad) which we assume you have considered. Bring your own baby seat as you can never find a decent one when you need it .

 

Hank

 

Oh yes, definitely!!! We will be bringing it with us! We've chanced renting boosters in France and Italy for our big boy, but will definitely be bringing our baby car seat along with us. Thanks!

[AliBeach]

Hi!

We are thinking about doing the same when we get to Marseilles on the Vista on Sunday, July 10th. Concerned that we will be there on a Sunday and might not be able to rent a car at a place nearby because they might not be opened. Have you contacted the car rental company that you posted?? We have to be back on the ship by 5:00 pm. An hour earlier than you.

Thank you

Alina

[Hlitner]

Hi!

We are thinking about doing the same when we get to Marseilles on the Vista on Sunday, July 10th. Concerned that we will be there on a Sunday and might not be able to rent a car at a place nearby because they might not be opened. Have you contacted the car rental company that you posted?? We have to be back on the ship by 5:00 pm. An hour earlier than you.

Thank you

Alina

 

Have not looked at all options, but Europcar's Marseille St Charles Train Station Office is open on Sundays. Since nearly all the closest rental offices are near the train station this is probably your best bet. Getting from the ship to the rental car office can either be done with a taxi or by taking the shuttle bus (ships usually have a shuttle) into the town (old port) from where its about a 20-25 min walk to the rental car office.

 

Hank

[Iluvcruising2]

Was in Marseilles on a cruise stop late last year and I couldn't see any car rental company nearby. The walk out from the cruise ship to the cruise shuttle was already quite far. If you had success in renting a car, do share how this was done!

 

Here is a video of our walk from the ship to the free port shuttle bus stop.

[YOUTUBE]o6kf_QSX7JQ[/YOUTUBE]

[Hlitner]

Was in Marseilles on a cruise stop late last year and I couldn't see any car rental company nearby. The walk out from the cruise ship to the cruise shuttle was already quite far. If you had success in renting a car, do share how this was done!

 

Here is a video of our walk from the ship to the free port shuttle bus stop.

[YOUTUBE]o6kf_QSX7JQ[/YOUTUBE]

 

As we have previously posted (many times on this blog) there are no rental car offices at the port. But there are quite a few (including all the majors) located at or near the St Charles Train Station in town. One can use either a shuttle bus (which usually drops passengers at the Vieux Port) or a taxi to get into town (a taxi would take you directly to the rental car offices).

 

Hank

[sailawaybellaluna]

Hey guys,

 

For some reason I don't think I was getting the update emails on this thread, and am just seeing some of the responses!

 

Since I last posted, I have changed our plans a bit..

 

I have confirmed a car rental at Europcar at 59 Allees Leon Gambetta. Depending on where we port in Marseilles, it's approximately 2 miles away.

 

I decided trying to hit the wineries in Chateauneuf-du-Pape may be a bit aggressive, so we are going to "loosely" attempt the following (willing to change it up if the baby is freaking out, or we find some amazing food and wine on the side of the road with a great view):

 

*Depart Ship at 9am, head straight to rental car agency

*Drive directly to Senanque Abbey to do a self guided tour, hopefully see the lavender fields, etc.

*Have lunch in Gordes and then drive West to Les Baux

*Visit wineries of Mas Sainte Berthe and Mas de la Dame and explore Lex Baux

*Drive South to Chateau Calissanne for a little food/wine/olive oil

*Drive back to the Car rental Agency

*Convince my husband to pop in to Louis Vuitton and buy me a purse for our 10th anniversary (it's cheaper there) ;-) #justkidding #kindof

*Return to ship by 5:30pm

 

If there's time en route to Les Baux, we might stop in St. Remy since we'll be driving through anyhow...

 

It seems our total driving time will be around 3 hours at 20 minutes round-trip including all the stops. Of course there's traffic, getting lost, eating, changing diapers, etc. etc. So I'm not convinced we have to do everything. Basically, the lavender fields surrounding the abbey is my #1 priority (and the farthest point from the port), so we'll head there first, and then work our way back South...

 

Would love feedback and ideas! Thanks!

[Morgans]

Your itinerary is very ambitious - be aware that Marseilles is known for traffic problems and traffic jams. It's one place where we wouldn't want to drive at all - even our friends who live in Aix don't enjoy driving there.

[Hlitner]

We think you have the right attitude....even if your itinerary is a bit ambitious. As long as you keep your flexibility, you should do fine. Our suggestion would be to skip St Remy (we have rented apartments in that city) and head over to Les Baux (assuming you have enough time for even Les Baux). You also need to allow some extra time for the trip back and we advise planning on dropping the car AT LEAST an hour before you must be back at the port. Be prepared for some traffic delays (already mentioned above) as you drive back into Marseille.

 

Hank

[sailawaybellaluna]

Thanks for the feedback! So, as I feared, this may be a bit too ambitious!

 

Should we simply hang out at the Abbey/Gordes and drive straight back, skipping Les Baux? We're pretty "go - getters" when it comes to traveling (even with our children), so I don't mind a busy day...but I definitely don't want to cut it close with the ship though. Or the LV store. ;-)

 

Tell me more about traffic...What kind of traffic delays should we plan for? We live in SoCal, so we're used to traffic! Ha. My husband and I are comfortable driving in Europe - we've done it several times, including central Paris and Rome, so the driving doesn't make me nervous...Just the risk of horrible traffic and missing the ship!

[Hlitner]

A great advantage to having your own car is that you can have the flexibility to alter your plans as the day develops. My advice is not to overthink the issue and just do what feels right at the time.....allowing for an extra 1 to 1 1/2 hours for the drive back to Marseille. Traffic should not be a major problem except possibly close and in Marseille. Also be prepared for some parking delays at Les Baux, where you need to factor in a long walk from parking space up into town. The road to Les Baux is a 2 lane country road....but we have never run into any major traffic problems in that area.

 

Hank

[budgetED]

I just reserved a rental car and plan to go to Aix, Valensole and the Lavender Fields. That pretty much should take up our time there. Any extra time we will just hang out in Marseille before heading back to the ship.

[sailawaybellaluna]

Valensole looks gorgeous! If I didn't have my heart so set on seeing the Senanque Abbey, I'd probably head there too!