Public transport in Marseille is efficient and consists of two metro lines, three tram lines and dozens of bus routes.

However, travelling to popular tourist areas in particular often means very crowded buses, and it can sometimes be more pleasant to walk.

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Public transport tickets

Fares are the same for all types of transport operated by RTM – that is, the metro, trams and city buses.

RTM tickets cannot be used on the ‘Le Car’ and ‘Le Pilote’ intercity buses, nor on regular trains.

All tickets are valid on all routes in Marseille along their entire length within the CIEL zone (the whole of Marseille, including the Calanques National Park). Other zones are only applicable for monthly or annual travel passes.

Prices and types of tickets

In Marseille, you can use single tickets valid for 59 minutes, as well as day passes or multi-day passes.

Ticket type	Price	Payment method
59 minutes*	1,70 eur	Paper ticket (+ 0,10 eur) With your own contactless card
24 hours	5,20 eur	Paper ticket
72 hours	10,80 eur	Paper ticket
7 days	15,50 eur	Paper ticket

*The 59-minute ticket is valid for an unlimited number of changes, but the underground can only be used once.

How to use the tickets?

Paying with your own contactless card is only possible for a single 59-minute journey. In Marseille, daily limits do not apply when paying by contactless card, so if you’re travelling more than four times, it’s worth buying a paper all-day ticket for 5,20 eur.

You must tap your paper ticket against the reader inside the bus or tram as soon as you board.

On the metro, the ticket is tapped against the yellow reader at the turnstile, not the device that looks the same as the readers on buses or trams. The reader used on buses and trams for both card payments and tapping tickets is, rather illogically, used in the underground solely for payments made with your own contactless card.

Where are tickets valid?

Tickets are valid on all RTM buses, trams, the metro and the ferry across the Vieux-Port. However, only day and multi-day tickets are valid on the ferry, not the 59-minute ticket.

Where can I buy tickets?

Paper tickets and travel cards can be purchased from ticket machines, where you can pay with coins or a contactless card.

You’ll find ticket machines at all underground and tram stations and at the main bus stops.

If you are outside the city centre in Marseille and do not have a day ticket, you can buy a single-journey ticket (no transfers) from the bus driver for 2 eur.

The mobile app for buying tickets in Marseille is not yet working.

City Pass

If you’d like to visit the Mucem museum and the fortress Chateau If on the same day, it’s worth buying a CityPass.

There are also 2-day and 3-day options, but these aren’t really good value for money.

Pass type	Price
24 hours	29 eur
48 hours	39 eur
72 hours	47 eur

What does the City Pass include?

• Unlimited travel on public transport (tram + bus + metro + ferry across the harbour)
• 1 entry to Mucem
• 1 entry to Chateau If
• 1 return trip from the Vieux-Port to the island ofIf with Le Bateau
• 1 ride on the tourist train

Maps and route finder

Find your route from a specific stop to your destination easily, without having to search through maps and timetables. You can use several websites to look up connections. 

• Thertm.fr website
• The RTM mobile app on Google Play / the App Store

Maps of the transport network will also be useful:

• Maps of individual routes: rtm.fr/plans
• Map of the entire network in PDF format: api.rtm.fr/rtm_plan_reseau
• Interactive network map: carte-interactive.rtm.fr

Metro

The Marseille Metro has two lines and is particularly useful for tourists travelling to St Charles station and to the stops from which buses run to the Calanques National Park.

Book a hotel near a metro station

As the metro is the most popular means of transport in Marseille, we have compiled detailed information in a separate section entitled ‘The Metro in Marseille’.

Buses

Buses run to most of the tourist attractions and will be a very useful means of transport when visiting Marseille.

Routes and timetables

Most bus routes run every 12–15 minutes; the busier routes run every 8–10 minutes, whilst the less frequent ones run every 20–30 minutes.

Bear in mind that delays of 5–10 minutes are common due to heavy traffic in the city centre.

The most popular bus routes for tourists are as follows. Click on the route number to view a map of the route:

• B1 – a very busy route from Castellane metro station to the Calanques National Park
• 19 – runs from the Castellane metro station southwards towards Pointe Rouge and Madrague de Montredon, where you can change to route 20
• 19B – a supplementary service to route 19, running from Rond Point metro station to the Pointe Rouge ferry terminal
• 20 – connects with route 19 and runs to Les Goudes at the south-western tip of the Calanques National Park using small minibuses
• 60 – runs from the city centre to the Basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde
• 82 – runs from Catalans Beach and the Pharo viewpoint around the entire Vieux-Port, via the Mucem and La Major Cathedral, to the main harbour
• 82S – runs from Catalans Beach and the Pharo viewpoint around the entire Vieux-Port, via the Mucem and La Major Cathedral, to St Charles main station
• 83 – runs fromthe Mucemaround the entire Vieux-Port, via thePharo viewpoint, past CatalansBeach and on along the entire coastline southwards to the Rond Point du Prado metro station

Most buses run from around 5.50 am to 12.30 am.

Stops and boarding

Passengers must always board buses via the front door.

When boarding, tap your ticket or your own contactless card on the black reader in the middle of the door. When alighting, you do not need to tap your card or ticket on any reader.

All stops are on request. You must therefore always press the ‘Stop’ button before getting off.

Trams

The modern but very short tram network consists of three routes that run only through the city centre.

You’ll find the tram particularly useful when travelling from the port, where ferries to Corsica depart, to the city centre (lines T2 and T3), to the Palais Longchamp (line T2) or from the Noailles metro station further east in Marseille (line T1).

Trams run from 5.15 am to around 12.30 am at intervals of approximately 4 minutes.

You can board via any door. Once on board, tap your card or ticket on the black reader; you do not need to tap anything when alighting.

Ferries

Boats operated by several companies depart from the old harbour for various destinations in Marseille.

Ferry across the Vieux-Port

The shortest, but very popular with tourists, ferry crosses only the Old Port.

The crossing takes about 3 minutes and the boat runs every 20 minutes from 7.30 am to 8.20 pm.

On board, you can use 24-hour, 72-hour and 7-day tickets, or purchase a single-journey ticket for 0,50 eur from the crew.

Le Bateau

These boats are, in a sense, part of the public transport system; however, 24-hour or 72-hour tickets are not valid on them. You must always purchase a special ticket.

Le Bateau is the cheapest way to travel by boat around Marseille and operates on several routes.

You can buy a ticket at the kiosk at the pier, on board the boat (card payments are accepted) or online atlebateau-frioul-if.fr/en/buy.

• Vieux Port – Chateau If – Port Frioul
  • Price – 11 eur / return / 1 island (If, or Frioul)
  • Price – 16,70 eur / return / 2 islands / includes the crossing between the islands ofIf and Frioul
  • Frequency – every 40 minutes
  • Timetable: lebateau-frioul-if.fr

La Navette

These boats are operated by the RTM transport company and offer a comfortable, direct journey from the outlying suburbs to the historic centre without the need to change. They are widely used by both locals and tourists.

However, standard public transport tickets are not valid on these services, and you must always purchase a single-journey ticket. Payment can be made in cash or by card on board the boat when boarding.

• Vieux Port – Pointe Rouge
  • Price – 5 eur or 8 eur: route from Vieux-Port to Les Goudes with 1 change
  • Frequency – every 60 minutes
  • Timetable and information: rtm.fr/lanavette
• Les Goudes – Pointe Rouge
  • Fare – 5 eur or 8 eur; route from Les Goudes to Vieux-Port with 1 change
  • Frequency – every 60 minutes
  • Timetable and information: rtm.fr/lanavette
• Vieux Port – Estaque
  • Fare – 5 eur
  • Frequency – 60 minutes
  • Timetable and information: rtm.fr/lanavette

Calanques - If

This ferry company specialises primarily in sightseeing cruises on two main routes.

• Vieux Port – Chateau If
  • Price – 11 eur / return
  • Frequency – every 60 minutes
  • Timetable: calanques-if.com/if-castle
  • Tickets can be purchased at the pier from the kiosk just before the trip
• Vieux Port – Calanques
  • Price – 26 eur to 38 eur depending on the type of cruise (duration 2.5 to 3.5 hours – cruises are round-trip and always return to the Vieux-Port)
  • Information: calanques-if.com/calanques-national-park
  • Tickets can be purchased at the kiosk at the pier andmust be bought at least 24 hours in advance

Tourist train

There are also three tourist road train routes operating in Marseille.

Hop aboard an open-top carriage and enjoy a ride through the city with the wind in your hair.

• Route 1: Vieux Port – Notre-Dame de la Garde – the seafront – Catalans Beach – Pharo – Vieux Port
  • Price – 10 eur
  • Frequency – every 20 minutes
  • Journey time – 75 minutes
• Circuit 2: Vieux Port – Le Panier – Harbour – Vieux Port
  • Price – 10 eur
  • Frequency – every 30 minutes
  • Journey time – 75 minutes (including a 30-minute stop in Le Panier)
• Route 3: on Ratonneau Island
  • Price – 5 eur
  • Frequency – according to the boat timetable
  • Journey time – 30 minutes

For further details, please visit:petit-train-marseille.com.