Port

L'Estaque

3.4L'Estaque, FranceMarseille and the Calanques

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Maximum length: 42 ft
Maximum draught: 5 ft

A 600-berth harbour on the northern shore of Marseille bay, in the L'Estaque district at the foot of the Nerthe range.

Guide

Approach and anchoring

South-facing entrance with lateral marks at the pier heads. Maximum draught 1.8 m, one of the shallowest in the northern roadstead, and the approach channel is shallow. The visitor reception pontoon takes only three to four boats and is awkward to lie against. The mistral funnels in from the NW and raises a short chop at the entrance.

Practical

600 berths and a diesel fuel berth on site. Water, electricity and sanitary blocks on the pontoons, worked with a badge from the office, which is closed on Sundays and awkward to reach out of hours. Visitor space is scarce and the harbour is often full through the season, so call ahead to book. A Carrefour Market and a bakery are close by. Market on Tuesday and Saturday mornings on place de l'Estaque 200 m away. L'Estaque railway station 400 m away, Côte Bleue line to Martigues and Marseille Saint-Charles.

Ashore

A maritime shuttle links L'Estaque with the centre of Marseille, and a bus runs to the Grand Littoral shopping centre. Waymarked painters' trail through the village marks the viewpoints painted by Cézanne, Braque, Derain and Dufy between 1870 and 1910. Coast path to Niolon and the Côte Bleue starts at the harbour. Panisses and chichi frégi sold at the seafront stalls, local specialities.

History

L'Estaque was the testing ground of the Fauves and then the Cubists. Paul Cézanne painted there from 1870 onwards, and in 1908 Georges Braque produced the canvases now seen as the start of analytical cubism. The district was then a village of fishermen and tile-works labourers.