Marseille Airline Crew Layover Guide
Reviewed by Captain AL
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The MRS crew card
| Fastest into town | The A1 airport coach from the bus station outside the terminals to Marseille Saint-Charles: 30 to 50 minutes in normal traffic, EUR 10,00 one way, every 10 minutes between 07:00 and 20:00 |
|---|---|
| First and last | From the airport the A1 runs 04:05 to 01:50, every day including public holidays. From Saint-Charles it starts at 03:30 and the last bus is 01:15, which the operator runs only from May to October |
| Payments | A single A1 ticket is EUR 10,00, a return EUR 16,00, and EUR 10,90 buys the same ride plus 90 minutes on the Marseille city network. Ticket machines at the airport bus station and at Saint-Charles run around the clock. On board you can pay by contactless card, phone or watch, or in cash with exact change, but only single, return, child 6 to 11 and youth 12 to 25 tickets are sold there, so buy before you board while the counter is open |
| Tap water | Safe to drink |
| Emergency | 112 (France-wide numbers plus the Marseille municipal police line, valid in the city and at the airport) · non-emergency 04 91 55 41 01 |
| Solo & at night | The city police post for the ground between the station and the harbour is at 42 Canebiere in the 1st, open every day 07:30 to 18:30, with a beat that runs from Porte d’Aix and Gare Saint-Charles to the Prefecture and from the Vieux-Port to Les Reformes. Outside those hours dial 17 for the police, and 3117, or an SMS to 31177, for trouble on a metro, tram or bus. The taxi rank in front of Terminal 1 has 86 vehicles round the clock if you would rather not wait for a coach |
| Crew knows | A city ticket does not cover the airport coach. The combined ticket at EUR 10,90 adds 90 minutes on the city network to the EUR 10,00 single, so it comes out below that single plus a EUR 1,70 city ride. Do not read the coach times backwards either: the last A1 out of the airport goes at 01:50 every day, but the last one back from Saint-Charles goes at 01:15, and the operator runs that one only from May to October. |
| Crew deals | Verified car rental and hotel rates for airline staff: on this page, right below this guide. |
airlinecrewdiscount.net · MRS crew card · Checked Sep 2026 · Next check Oct 2026 · Screenshot this card for offline
Every number on this page comes from an official source. Where no official source gives a number, we say so instead of guessing.
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Getting from Marseille Provence Airport into Marseille: the A1 airport coach, the train, or a taxi?
The airport is at Marignane, not in Marseille, so every option starts with a ride out of the Etang de Berre. One coach does almost all the work into the city. There is a railway station nearby, but you reach it by a separate local shuttle that stops running in the evening, so it is a daytime option only. The 05:50 A2 coach from Aix-en-Provence bus station now leaves at 05:45.
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| Mode | Time | Cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coach (La Metropole Mobilite line A1 to Marseille Saint-Charles) | 30 to 50 minutes in normal traffic conditions every 10 minutes from 07:00 to 20:00, every 20 minutes outside that, with 101 round trips a day |
EUR 10,00 single, EUR 16,00 return, EUR 7,00 for 12 to 25 year olds, EUR 5,00 for children 6 to 11. EUR 10,90 buys the single plus 90 minutes of connections on the Marseille city network, EUR 17,40 the return version; those combined tickets cover the city lines but not the harbour boats | The coach uses the motorway straight into the Saint-Charles interchange next to the main railway station. Buy online, at the ticket office, or from the machines, which run 24 hours at both ends. The La Metropole Mobilite shop at the airport bus station is open 06:00 to 22:15 and the one at Saint-Charles 05:30 to 21:30. You can also pay on board by contactless card, phone or watch, or in cash with exact change, but only single, return, child 6 to 11 and youth 12 to 25 tickets are sold on the bus, and the timetable states that on-board sales are for the hours when the ticket offices are closed, so buy before you board while the counter is open. The operator asks you to label your bags. |
| Train (TER from Vitrolles Aeroport Marseille Provence station, reached by the LeBus13 shuttle) | 5 minutes on the shuttle between the airport bus station and the railway station shuttle every 12 minutes for most of the day Monday to Friday and every 15 minutes at weekends and on public holidays, with wider gaps in the last hour of service, 57 round trips a day; up to 73 trains a day call at the station |
The railway station is not at the terminal. LeBus13 leaves from Quai 5 of the airport bus station and you buy that ticket from the driver, by card or cash. The shuttle is a daytime service: towards the airport it runs from 06:23 to 21:42 on weekdays and 06:03 to 21:13 at weekends and on public holidays, and from the airport it runs 06:24 to 21:24 on weekdays and 06:17 to 21:02 at weekends. Outside those hours the station is not reachable by this shuttle. Train tickets come from the SNCF machines at the airport, or from the ticket office and machines at the station. | |
| Taxi | 86 vehicles, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week | metered. For 2026 the national ceilings are a minimum chargeable fare of EUR 8,00, a pickup charge of at most EUR 4,48, at most EUR 1,30 per kilometre and at most EUR 42,15 per hour of waiting or slow running. The airport publishes no flat fare into Marseille | The rank is in front of Terminal 1. Cash and bank cards are both accepted, and the Bouches-du-Rhone prefectural taxi order quotes the transport code on this: for any taxi ride, whatever the price, the passenger may pay in the vehicle by bank card, so a driver cannot set a floor below which he refuses the card. The same order requires a working, visible card terminal in the car. The rank line is 04 42 14 24 44, and the airport says drivers speak English, Spanish and Italian. Ask for an estimate before you load the bags, because the airport publishes no flat fare into Marseille and the departmental rate sheet it offers for download is the 2022 one. |
| Coach (La Metropole Mobilite line A2 to Aix-en-Provence and Aix TGV) | about 30 minutes to central Aix in normal traffic conditions every 25 to 30 minutes |
EUR 10,00 single between the airport and Aix-en-Provence, EUR 4,00 single between the airport and Aix TGV | Useful if the hotel is in Aix rather than Marseille, or if you are connecting to a TGV. From the airport the A2 runs 05:35 to 23:05 with extra departures at 23:40 and 00:25; towards the airport it runs 04:50 to 22:40 with an extra departure at 23:25. It leaves from Quai 3 of the airport bus station and stops on request at the Pole d’activites and Plan d’Aillane. |
Best Areas for Crew Stays in Marseille, from the Vieux-Port and Le Panier out to the towns by the airport
Vieux-Port: The old harbour and the city’s front door, a short walk or one metro stop down from the Saint-Charles interchange where the airport coach drops you.
Le Panier: The steep old quarter above the north side of the harbour, narrow streets and small squares, best done on foot and in daylight.
Cours Julien and Notre-Dame-du-Mont: The evening neighbourhood on the hill east of the centre, street art, small restaurants and bars rather than sights.
La Joliette and Euromediterranee: The rebuilt dock area north of the harbour, museums and modern architecture along the waterfront, flat and easy to walk.
Marignane and Vitrolles: The towns around the airport itself, built for early report times and short rest rather than sightseeing.
What to Do on a Layover in Marseille, from a short sit in the terminal to the Vieux-Port and one quarter beyond it
Under 5 hours: Stay airside or in the terminal. The coach into Marseille and back is a round trip of well over an hour of riding before you add screening, and the airport Wi-Fi is free.
5 to 9 hours: One clean move: the A1 into Saint-Charles, downhill to the old harbour and back on the same coach. Fix the departure you intend to catch before you leave the bus station, because the A1 thins out to every 20 minutes after 20:00.
9 hours plus: Enough for the harbour, one quarter beyond it such as Le Panier or the docks, and a proper meal. Aix-en-Provence is the other option on the A2 coach if you would rather have a quiet town than a city.
Crew Tips for Marseille and MRS Airport: the coach fare, the daytime-only train, and Saint-Charles at night
Paying for transit: The airport coach is its own fare product and is not covered by ordinary city tickets. A single on the A1 is EUR 10,00, a return EUR 16,00, and the combined ticket at EUR 10,90 adds 90 minutes of connections on the Marseille city network, which is worth it if the hotel is not walkable from Saint-Charles. City travel on its own is cheaper: a single Marseille metro, tram or bus ride is EUR 1,70 by contactless, or EUR 1,80 the first time you buy it on a rechargeable ticket; a 24 hour pass is EUR 5,20, a 72 hour pass EUR 10,80 and a book of ten rides EUR 15,00, or EUR 15,10 on that first purchase. Buy the coach ticket online, from the 24 hour machines at either end, or at the ticket office. On board you can pay by contactless card, phone or watch, or in cash with exact change, but only single, return, child 6 to 11 and youth 12 to 25 tickets are sold there.
The railway station is not at the terminal: Vitrolles Aeroport Marseille Provence station is a separate place, reached by the LeBus13 shuttle from Quai 5 of the airport bus station, about 5 minutes, ticket bought from the driver by card or cash. The shuttle runs every 12 minutes for most of the day on weekdays and every 15 minutes at weekends and on public holidays, with wider gaps in the last hour, and the last one out of the airport is 21:24 on a weekday and 21:02 at weekends and on public holidays, while the last one towards the airport leaves the station at 21:42 on a weekday and 21:13 at weekends. On an evening or a night arrival the train is not an option, whatever the timetable at the station says.
Connectivity: Wi-Fi is free in all terminals on the network named *Airport-Free-Wifi, and the airport says it takes two clicks and asks for no personal details. The airport calls the offer unlimited and prints 100 Mo next to it, so treat it as enough for messages and mail rather than for video. The information desk at international arrivals on the ground floor of Terminal 1 is staffed 06:00 to 23:00. The airport information line is 0820 81 14 14, a chargeable number at up to EUR 0,20 a minute, answered by a person 07:00 to 10:00 and 18:00 to 22:00, with a recorded flight information service on the same number around the clock.
Luggage storage: Bag Mobile runs left luggage at the airport, in Terminal 1 at the departures check-in area and in Terminal 2 at the baggage scale, open 05:00 to 20:00 seven days a week. Plan a pickup inside that window: if you go into the city on an evening off, the desk closes well before the last coach back. The airport publishes no price for the service.
What a taxi will and will not cost: There is no flat airport fare into Marseille, only the meter. For 2026 France caps the meter nationally at a minimum chargeable fare of EUR 8,00, a pickup charge of at most EUR 4,48, at most EUR 1,30 per kilometre and at most EUR 42,15 per hour of waiting or slow running; the rate actually applied here is set by a departmental order that sits at or below those ceilings. Ask for an estimate at the rank before you get in. That departmental order also quotes the transport code on card payment: for any taxi ride, whatever the price, you may pay in the car by bank card, and the driver must keep a working, visible card terminal in the vehicle.
Saint-Charles at night, and who to call: Between 01:00 and 04:30 the Saint-Charles bus interchange is only reachable by the stairs on Place Victor Hugo, on the university side, so a late arrival means a climb with bags in a quiet corner of the station. That window sits right across the last A1 of the night from the airport at 01:50 and the first at 04:05. The city police post for that ground is at 42 Canebiere in the 1st, open every day 07:30 to 18:30, and its stated beat runs from Porte d’Aix and Gare Saint-Charles to the Prefecture and from the Vieux-Port to Les Reformes, which is the whole walk down from the coach. Outside those hours dial 17 for the police, and for trouble on a metro, tram or bus the national line is 3117, or an SMS to 31177.
Emergency Numbers for Marseille, France, and the European Union
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| Emergency, any service, from anywhere in the European Union | 112 |
| Medical emergency (SAMU) | 15 |
| Police | 17 |
| Fire and rescue (pompiers) | 18 |
| Police municipale, Marseille, non-emergency radio room | 04 91 55 41 01 |
| Emergency for deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing and speech impaired callers, by app, internet or SMS | 114 |
| Care when surgeries are closed and it is not an emergency, the Service d’acces aux soins, on the same number as SAMU | 15 |
| Safety problem on public transport (also by SMS to 31177) | 3117 |
| France country code (calling from abroad) | +33 |
Save these before you fly; numbers work from any phone.
How do I get from Marseille airport to the city centre?
Take the A1 airport coach from the bus station outside the terminals to Marseille Saint-Charles, next to the main railway station. The operator puts the ride at 30 to 50 minutes in normal traffic, and it leaves every 10 minutes between 07:00 and 20:00 and every 20 minutes outside that, 101 round trips a day. A single is EUR 10,00 and a return EUR 16,00.
Is there a train from Marseille Provence Airport?
Not from the terminal itself. Vitrolles Aeroport Marseille Provence station is a separate station served by up to 73 trains a day, and you reach it on the LeBus13 shuttle from Quai 5 of the airport bus station, about 5 minutes, ticket bought from the driver by card or cash. That shuttle runs every 12 minutes on weekdays and every 15 minutes at weekends and on public holidays, but only from about 06:24 to 21:24 out of the airport, so it is a daytime option only.
What time does the last bus leave Marseille airport?
The last A1 leaves the airport at 01:50, after departures every 20 minutes from 20:00, and the first of the morning is at 04:05. In the other direction the A1 starts from Saint-Charles at 03:30 and the last one is at 01:15, which the operator runs only from May to October. Between 01:00 and 04:30 the Saint-Charles interchange is reachable only by the stairs on Place Victor Hugo, on the university side.
How much is a taxi from Marseille airport?
The airport publishes no flat fare, only the meter, and the rank sits in front of Terminal 1 with 86 vehicles available 24 hours a day. For 2026 France caps taxi meters nationally at a minimum chargeable fare of EUR 8,00, a pickup charge of at most EUR 4,48, at most EUR 1,30 per kilometre and at most EUR 42,15 per hour of waiting. Ask for an estimate at the rank, and note that the Bouches-du-Rhone taxi order quotes the transport code: for any ride, whatever the amount, you may pay in the car by bank card.
Is tap water safe to drink in Marseille?
Yes. The water comes mostly from the Durance through the Canal de Marseille, the utility states it suits every age group and reports 2,1 milligrams of nitrates per litre against a limit of 50, and the regional health authority’s list of drinking water restrictions dated 28 August 2026 names no network in the Bouches-du-Rhone.
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