Marseille wheelchair accessibility guide

RTM is the local operator for metro, tram, and bus. The whole tram network is step-free with level boarding, so the T2 and T3 lines that thread along the Vieux-Port and through the centre work autonomously without staff. Around 840 RTM bus stops are accessible, and central low-floor routes like the bus 60 up to Notre-Dame de la Garde are the practical second option when the tram does not go where you need.

The metro is the harder part. Only nine stations have lifts: La Fourragère, St Barnabé, Louis Armand, Blancarde, St Charles, and Vieux-Port on line M1, plus Sainte Marguerite Dromel, Rond-Point du Prado, Saint Charles, and Gèze on line M2. RTM requires wheelchair users to call Mobimétropole on 04 91 10 59 00 at least half a day in advance to book a staff escort, without which the platforms are off-limits.

Mobimétropole also runs a door-to-door paratransit service in 33 adapted vehicles, daily 06:00 to 01:00, across the wider Marseille Provence Métropole area. Booking is required and eligibility is set by the MDPH disability board, so this is the option to set up before you arrive if the metro escort timing is awkward.

Five named attractions in this guide cover the waterfront museum, the city's two-museum palace, the basilica on the hill, the cathedral by the new port, and the central old harbour. All five are reachable on the step-free tram or the wheelchair-accessible Vieux-Port metro.

MuCEM: the modern museum of Mediterranean civilisations on the J4 esplanade. Free for disabled visitors and one companion, three accessible entrances, lifts inside.

Palais Longchamp: the 19th-century palace housing the Musée des Beaux-Arts (step-free via a ramp on boulevard Montricher). The Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in the right wing is not wheelchair-accessible.

Notre-Dame de la Garde: the basilica on the hill, reached on bus 60 from the Vieux-Port. The upper basilica is reachable by lift; the bell-tower Panoramic Visit is not.

Cathédrale La Major: the 19th-century cathedral by the new port. Free entry, but the parvis has steps at the time of writing; a court order requires an accessible route by 31 May 2026.

Vieux-Port: the old harbour, the central pedestrianised tourist district. Step-free at the Vieux-Port metro and on the cross-port César Ferry Boat.

MuCEM grants free admission to the disabled visitor and one companion. The Vieille Charité (MAM and MAAOA) permanent collections are free for everyone, and so is the Beaux-Arts permanent collection at Palais Longchamp. Paid temporary exhibitions at the municipal museums charge the reduced rate, not free. See the full table with prices, companion policy and the documents to bring on the Marseille disability discounts page.

All on-street parking in Marseille is free for holders of a Carte Mobilité Inclusion. The city asks CMI users to register the licence plate at the on-street meter or via the parking app for up to 24 hours, so the spot is recorded against the card.

At Marseille Provence Airport, the PHMR assistance service is free and must be booked at least 48 hours in advance through your airline. The airport's help-centre articles document the practical detail on arrival.

The Vieux-Port and the new port at La Joliette are the easiest base because both sit on the step-free tram and within rolling distance of the headline waterfront sights (MuCEM, Vieille Charité, La Major). Booking direct is the best way to confirm the practical detail your accommodation needs: a step-free entrance, a wheel-in shower, and lift access if you are not on the ground floor.