MARSEILLE, France — A blind waiter guided my group and me into a pitch-black room where we ate, drank and made conversation in the dark.
The Dans Le Noir ? restaurant concept wasn't born in Marseille, but it might be the perfect example of the city: an import made local.
The dark-dining experience, which is available in 11 countries, invites guests to use their other senses to enjoy a secret menu. Don't worry, there are accommodations available. The experience also has guests reckon with the reality that their waiters live with every day. While the restaurant has Parisian roots, the experience brought by a Marseillian team was life-changing.
French and Mediterranean traditions
come together in Marseille, a city whose eclectic style, varied cuisine and bars remind me of Brooklyn, New York, with the added benefit of the Mediterranean Sea outside.
"The founding myth of Marseille is the meeting of two people: a local princess and a sailor from Greece. The princess welcomed the Greek sailors, and they created Marseille. So welcoming is part of the city’s spirit," President of the Marseille Tourist Office Arnaud Drouot told USA TODAY.
Marseille’s tourism office reported 19.9 million tourist overnight stays in 2025. But Drouot remembers when residents doubted visitors would come for the city itself rather than pass through on their way to Provence.
"They want to have a real experience," he said of today’s travelers. "We say we are not really like other French people. The city is older than France ... We like to cultivate that particularity."
And in 2027, Americans will have a new way to get there without making Paris their first stop.
What is there to do in Marseille?
You can start at the Vieux-Port. There you'll find a spacious marina with a fish market to one side, and a row of shops and cafés to the other. Then wander through Le Panier, Marseille’s oldest neighborhood, to take in the colorful alleys and street art.
The waterfront Mucem explores European and Mediterranean civilizations – and is close to the luxury ships port, if you happen to come via cruise. For a broader perspective, and not a long drive, you can head to Notre-Dame de la Garde, the hilltop basilica with sweeping views of the city and sea.
Anne Dallaporta, public relations officer for Marseille, highlighted the mix of museums, architecture and outdoor activities. Visitors can build a trip around culture, hiking, climbing, kayaking or boat excursions, with food connecting the experiences.
The best itinerary for the city leaves room to linger over a meal between the bigger sights.
"If you’re expecting a mini Paris, you’re going to be surprised," she said. "If you’re expecting a small town, you realize it’s really huge, very dynamic and has a lot of people. You’re surprised by that, too. I don’t think anyone has the right idea before they come to Marseille."
The Calanques offer another good reason to carve out room in the itinerary: coastal inlets where the city gives way to nature. Plan ahead, though. Access to Sugiton and Pierres Tombées requires a free reservation during designated peak periods, a measure intended to protect the landscape from erosion.
How to get to Marseille
United Airlines plans to launch daily nonstop service from Newark Liberty International Airport to Marseille Provence Airport on June 4, 2027.
For American travelers, that means a flight straight to the Mediterranean city, without a Paris connection or an additional train journey south.
Until then, Paris is an option, not a requirement. Travelers arriving at Charles de Gaulle in Paris can take a train from the airport to Marseille Saint-Charles. Current direct services take approximately three-and-a-half to four hours. You should compare that itinerary with connecting flights into Marseille when booking.
What’s the vibe like in Marseille?
Marseille stands tall against Paris.
The relaxed coolness of a second city permeates its people and businesses.
But its identity also comes from generations of newcomers. Drouot described neighborhoods shaped by Italian, Corsican and Armenian communities, including people who arrived fleeing poverty, war or genocide. It is a city shaped by immigration.
"I think that’s the identity of Marseille," Dallaporta said. "Usually, people from Marseille don’t say, 'I'm French.' They say, 'I'm from Marseille,' because it has a very strong culture."
The city's welcoming spirit does come with its own balancing act. For now, Drouot said regulating short-term rentals and managing access to fragile natural areas are part of keeping tourism beneficial for residents while having tourists enjoy the area.
With new direct flight options, arecently added airport terminal and new cruise ports, overcrowding is a consideration – for the future. For a good tourist-to-inhabitant ratio, Drouot said: "Someone said it's normally 10 (tourists) per inhabitant, so that would be something like 8 or 9 million (tourists for us). We have 5 million today."
Marseille is expected to reach 7 million tourists in 2026.
For visitors, Dallaporta said first-time guests often leave surprised by its scale and energy.
Her preferred months to visit are September and April. Summer visitors should prepare for heat: Bring water, consider a personal fan and plan breaks indoors. Marseille regularly faces summer heat alerts, so the sea breeze shouldn’t be your only cooling strategy.
Come for the coast, but leave time for the city.
The reporter on this story received access to this event from Atout France. USA TODAY maintains editorial control of content.
Josh Rivera is a senior editor at USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads or Substack.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Skip Paris. This French city is getting easier to visit
