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The Calanques National Park is located right outside Marseille and is home to incredible views. After reading this post you will know all about 5 amazing hikes in the Calanques you must see for yourself!
The Calanques National Park is an incredible nature reserve just south of Marseille. It is full of amazing hikes that will make you forget that you are in France.
You can technically visit the Calanques all year round, however, the hiking trails are closed from June 1st until the end of September. This is because the area is very dry and prone to forest fires. If you would like to reach the water at the Calanques during summer, then the only way to do so is by boat.
In general, Marseille gets around 55 rainy days annually. This means that outside of the hot summer months you can hike without fearing bad weather. If you would like to swim, I recommend visiting from late April – May or in October for warmer water. Overall, I recommend making Marseille your base while hiking the Calanques. Not only are there a lot of fun things to do in Marseille, but it is also the closest city and is well connected to the rest of France.
This post is all about hikes in the Calanques
5 Amazing Hikes In The Calanques
1. Hike Calanque de Sugiton
Although I don’t want to play favorites because I loved all of the hikes, I have to admit that this one is my top choice. We had not planned on hiking here at first, because on google maps it looked quite small and underwhelming. However, when we arrived at the lookout spot over this Calanque, we knew we HAD to hike here.
You can easily get to the start of the hike by taking a bus from Marseille. A single journey ticket costs 1.60€ but if you want to buy it on the bus it will be 1.90€, the ticket is valid for an hour. Simply take the B1 bus departing from Castellane, and get off at Luminy PN des Calanques. From there follow the road into the national park and continue straight for about 10-15 minutes. When you get to the large intersection follow the signs to Belvedere de Sugiton to get an incredible view over the Calanque. Sit and enjoy the view for a little bit, before following the signs to Calanque de Sugiton.
This hike is not particularly difficult and you can reach the Calanque in about 45 minutes from where you got off the bus. The hike back up will probably take some more time as there is a bit of an incline. When we were here, we started by hiking Mont Puget (later on the list) and combined the two in a day. Make sure to bring your swimsuit and some food, and spend a few hours enjoying the beauty of Calanque de Sugiton. If you only have time for one hike in the area, make sure it is this one!
2. Hikes in the Calanques: Les Goudes
Les Goudes is the first hike we did in Marseille. I had seen a few photos of it on Instagram and was impressed by the island of Île Maïre. We actually walked from the center of Marseille where we were staying all the way out. It took us 2.5 hours with stopping to take photos and was around 12km. If you don’t mind a long walk, I highly recommend doing this as well. While we only entered the Calanques National Park near the end of the hike, we enjoyed the scenery during our walk. You need to walk inside the city for about 40 minutes until you reach Plage du Prado and from there you are walking along the ocean.
I recommend walking on the way to Les Goudes and then taking a bus back to Marseille. If you want to make the walk very short you can also take a bus to the entrance of the Calanques. This means you only have a 20-minute walk each way. The bus 19T goes from Metro Rond Point du Prado in Marseille and you get off at Madrague de Montredon. This is also the way back from Les Goudes. Once again, the ticket costs 1.90€ if you purchase it on the bus.
What To Do In Les Goudes
The spot we were heading to is called “passage des croisettes“. Simply save this spot on google maps and navigate here from wherever you are staying. If you want to enjoy the sun in style, upon arrival there is a restaurant offering sunchairs. Stop at La Baies des Singes for lunch or reserve a sunchair to swim and tan across from the beautiful island of Île Maïre. The sunchairs must be reserved in advance and cost 25 euros for the day. Here is a link to their website with reservation information. Another great option for lunch is the Tuba Club located in the neighborhood of Les Goudes. It looks amazing, with lots of seating right by the water as well as sun chairs to enjoy the weather. Unfortunately, it was not yet open when we visited, but here is their website in case you want to reserve a spot.
In general, I recommend spending some time in Les Goudes as it is a charming neighborhood.
3. Hike to Port Pin and Calanque d’En Vau
This is the furthest hike from Marseille as it actually starts in Cassis. If you are planning on staying in Cassis for a day or two, then I suggest waiting to do this hike while you are there. Cassis is a small but incredibly charming fisherman village on the other side of the Calanques National Park. If you aren’t visiting Cassis (you really should, but that’s for another blog post😉) then you can also get here from Marseille.
There are two main ways to reach Cassis from Marseille. I am quite torn between which one is easiest so you will decide for yourself, but the second route is cheaper. The supposedly faster route is by train. Simply hop on a train from any of the Marseille stations (Blancarde, and Saint Charles) to Cassis. Unfortunately, the train station is outside the town, so you will need to take the M01 to the Casino by the harbor. From there it’s a 30-minute walk to the start of the trail, but central Cassis is beautiful so it’s not so bad.
The other option which I prefer is taking a direct bus from Marseille to Cassis (it’s also a bit cheaper). The only issue with this is that the bus doesn’t run very frequently so you need to time yourself well. The M08 leaves from Prado Castellane in Marseille and then you get off Augustin Isnard station in Cassis. From there it is also a 30-minute walk to the start of the trail.
Hiking to Port Pin and Calanque d’En Vau
As for the hike, the trail begins at Port Miou. From there you follow the trail along the water to get to Port Pin, it should take around 20 minutes. Once you reach Port Pin make sure to enjoy the spot a little bit before heading to En Vau, the main attraction. From Port Pin, you follow the signs to En Vau, and you will begin an ascent shortly. After about 20 minutes of the ascent, you will reach a large intersection. I recommend stopping at a beautiful viewpoint before hiking down to the beach. This means that you will take the trail to the left and towards this point for the best view.
Afterward, head back in the direction of the intersection and hike down to the beach. The beach here is amazing and very popular so make sure to arrive in the morning to secure a good spot. We happened to visit on a stormy day so we didn’t have time to go down to the beach. However, I recommend giving yourself a good half day to explore the Calanques and swim here. The hike itself is not very difficult and takes about 1 hour in total to reach the Calanque d’En Vau (around 3 km each way). When you’re done, simply follow the same route back to Cassis.
4. Hike to Calanque de Morgiou
Originally we had planned to hike to the Calanques de Sormiou, however, during the hike we decided it wasn’t worth it. This is because it is the largest of the Calanques and is accessible by car. This meant that the whole route was pretty much a paved road which was not what we were looking for. We then decided to hike to the Calanque de Morgiou, which is also accessible by car but has an actual hiking trail. I recommend starting from Sormiou and hiking to Morgiou as we did. This is because you get to see both Calanques, and you are hiking along the sea and not through the forest.
To get to the start of the trail take bus number 23 from Rond Point du Prado in Marseille and get off at Sormiou Cayolle. Once you get off, walk straight, and soon you will be on the Chem. de Sormiou. Walk for about 20 minutes until you reach Col de Sormiou (intersection) where you will take a left. When you reach Col de Baumettes, continue left until you reach “Route du Feu de la Calanque de Morgiou”. Continue on this route until you reach the beach of Morgiou, it will take around 45 minutes. Towards the end of the trail, you will encounter a paved road for cars to reach Morgiou, watch out for signs as there are hiking trails going down as well.
Once there, I recommend stopping at Bar Nautic Restaurant for a cold beer. Bring some food with you to enjoy on the rocks overlooking the Calanque de Morgiou, and if the weather is nice go for a swim.
Getting Back from Calanque de Morgiou
When you would like to head back look for the trail starting behind Plage Sauvage de Morgiou. I recommend taking this trail to shorten the climb back, as well as get a great view over Morgiou. Take this trail up and continue until you reach Col de Sugiton, about 30 minutes. From there take the trail heading out of the Calanques and towards the Luminy Campus. Once again, you can take the B1 from Luminy PN des Calanques towards Castellane in Marseille. Overall, the hike is about 10km in total.
5. Hikes in the Calanques: Mont Puget
Most hikes in the Calanques National Park lead you to the water, however, for those looking to climb a peak then Mont Puget is perfect. It offers amazing panoramic views of the park as well as of Marseille.
Getting to the start of the trail is the same as hiking to the Calanque de Sugiton. Take the B1 bus from Castellane to Luminy PN des Calanques. Continue straight for about 15 minutes until you reach Col de Sugiton. From there take a left and start the ascent to Mont Puget. Use google maps to direct you onwards as the trail is not always very obvious, especially near the end when you leave the main trail. I saw many people of all ages do this trail, so it should be fairly ok for most, however, the end is not very easy and requires some scrambling. The whole trail is about 10 km in total, and if you don’t mind an extra hike I recommend pairing it with the Calanque de Sugiton.
Overall, you are spoilt for choice when it comes to hiking in the Calanques National Park. There are lots of hikes to choose from, however, from our experience, these 5 are the best hikes in the Calanques. I highly encourage you to use the busses going from Marseille to the park. First of all, they are frequent and efficient. Second of all, there have been reports of theft from the car parks around the trails, so this way you can hike in peace.
Next time you plan a trip to the south of France, make sure to add this incredible park to your itinerary.
