Marseille to Cassis DIY with Rental Car

We drove from Marseille to Cassis last year with friends visiting from the states. This was in September. It's not difficult at all and I don't recall parking being a problem. I don't remember that aspect clearly, but that means it wasn't difficult -- if it had been, I would remember it. In other words, a non-event. At the time there was some construction and a few confusing roundabouts to navigate, but that's about it.

If you really, really want to take a boat tour, check before you leave about sea conditions to make sure they're able to operate. It doesn't seem to take much in terms of wind or choppy seas to keep the boats in their kennels for the day. There are ticket booths for tours at Marseille's Vieux Port as well as at Cassis, so you could check at Marseille if tours are running before heading over to Cassis. The ones I saw at Vieux Port were near the northeast corner and along the north edge of the harbor.

I think the 300 euros, if it's for both of you, is well spent on the itinerary you mention. You don't have to waste time picking up, dropping off, getting lost in a country with some different driving rules. They are taking you to several stops you would have a hard time finding on your own, or would be a pain in the neck on your own, and then up to Notre-Dame de la Garde before the ship at the end. Due to the geological setting of Cassis, driving can be jammed.

I would ask for two tweaks: ask them to take the Route des Crêtes to Cassis, as well as back from Cassis. Going, you will be on the sea side of the road, and second, be sure they give you time to go inside Notre-Dame de la Garde and aren't just taking you for a ride to the top for the views.

Bob is correct to point out that if the wind is blowing, the boats to the Calanques don't run. But you do have the option to walk to two of the Calanques. If that's the case, you have more time for everything else.
I base my answer on living in Cassis for six months and driving to Marseille several times a week over the Route des Crêtes.
Just be sure to check reviews and be sure this is a licensed company driving. Can you share a link to the company?

Any driving in Marseille is not fun, so just getting out of the city would be m y biggest reason to take a tour. And yes, be sure you get to see the inside of Notre Dame de la Garde. Take note of the boat models hanging within, representing those fishermen lost at sea.

This wouldn't provide any hiking time, but if you wanted to save money it's very easy to get the train from Marseille directly to Cassis. We also did a boat trip to see the Calanques from Marseille directly. However, if you only have one day I don't think you'd have time for both of these separate trips.

Thanks so much everyone for the advice! I'll be sure to check the weather before we head that way and will also save time to visit the inside of Notre Dame de la Garde. My son (20) really wants to do a little hiking so it sounds like hiring a driver is the best option.

Elizabeth - There are the two drivers that I've found so far. Both quoted 300€ for 5 hours. https://www.marseilletourexperience.com/home-page and https://chauffeurvtcmarseille.com/. Do you know either of these? Or do you know someone to recommend? Also , when you say that we could walk to 2, do you mean from Cassis?

hey hey russandamy
several years ago we had planned a private tour marseille to cassis but life & health issues took over and we cancelled.
we were communicating with Alain with (ventoux-decouvertes.com) which was good telling him what we hoped to do. I'm curious what time your ship is in port and what time it leaves, giving you how many hours to explore (half or full day), earliest you can get off ship with many others disembarking at the same time.
june is busy with it being high season and how hot it will be. you can contact him telling what you want and if possible or letting him offer you ideas to cover most. 300E sounds great like Elizabeth says, for both of you, some drivers charge more if more people but is for tour not per person. a private tour sound better to me instead of picking up car "where" and driving through a busy city, traveling to places you're unfamiliar with, getting lost, parking can be a real PITA, bumper to bumper traffic and getting back to ship on time.
leave the driving/tour to an "expert" plus mention time for your son to do some hiking and best place, plus boat ride.
hoping all works out, you'll have a great time & enjoy
aloha

Thanks for the info. I'll check out Alain. We'll be in port from 10am-8pm (all aboard would probably be 7:30pm) so it seems like we'll have plenty of time.

Hello russandamy. No, I don't know any of the private car companies in Marseille. That one looks like it has a thorough program.

The two hikes were the easy mini-hikes they listed.

However, they do drive you to the top of the Cap Canaille, which is quite a hike up if your son wanted to walk up and wait for you to arrive by car. the short hike is on a paved street, but the view is spectacular and it's quite an incline. There's a longer one, but it could be complicated with you on a short time frame.

When we did it 25 years ago, we ran into locals who amazed up running up and down Cap Canaille for their Sunday run. It's 511 meter elevation gain in a short distance. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cap_Canaille_(Cassis)

Oooo... he would love to do a hike up and meet us at the top in the car. Thanks for the tip!

Dear Russ and Amy,
We drove Aix to Cassis for the Calanques and views. I had a pretty good idea of where to start hiking but double checked with our hotel concierge before we left and he gave us a easy map and circled the public parking near the harbor to park after hike for a lunch We opted for the hike because I was unsure if I'd get motion sick on a boat tour. Didn't want to ruin the experience for others on the boat. Glad we were on our own, it was more our style. It ended up being so beautiful. So glad we did it that way. Our teen loved it! Took some great photos. Even videos of people jumping in the water from the cliffs.

We easily parked on the street to hike the Calanque de Port-Miou. Be ready, there is hardly a railing or ledge and is extremely rocky. no sandals or flip flops. bring water and snacks. It was nice to stop near the water and snack on a rock. I think it was near and Port Pin.

People were swimming and wading in water but it was too cool for us. We hiking back to car to drive to to a public parking : Interparking Mimosas: Located near the town center. I remember the nice name. The concierge told us it was only mile or so from 1st on street parking to Mimosas parking but advised us not to walk it. The roads are switch backs and very steep not for walking to the port. That was good advice.
We walked around the busy harbor and found a great lunch place for pizza and salad with tables outside and some locals eating at La Stazione. The harbor was more crowded but it was fun looking at the fresh fish on ice outside the cafes and window shopping. Good for a day trip. When planning our trip we had considered lodging there in Cassis or La Ciotot but glad we opted to stay few days in Aix and do day trip Cassis. After that we stayed week in beautiful house in Rousillon and few days in Uzes before Marsaille.
We did it all on our own without guide due to my excessive planning (with help of RS).

clapperdanlynne - Thank you so much for taking the time to provide all the details! Very helpful info!