The Endoume neighbourhood

A city with 111 neighbourhoods, Marseille is brimming with unusual spots across all its districts. This is certainly true of the Endoume neighbourhood, which, whilst less well-known than Le Panier or L’Estaque, is thoroughly authentic and picturesque thanks to its small fishing harbours, magnificent coves and narrow streets leading to the Bonne Mère. Let’s take a closer look at this charming Marseille neighbourhood.

An exceptional location

Located in Marseille’s 7th arrondissement, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, Endoume is a neighbourhood on the coast to the west of the city. It is surrounded by the neighbourhoods of Le Pharo (and Catalans Beach), Saint-Lambert and Bompard. Endoume is crossed by two main thoroughfares that define the neighbourhood: the Corniche Kennedy and Rue d’Endoume. It also includes Malmousque, at its western end, which is sometimes regarded as a neighbourhood in its own right.

Originally, the village of Domezes (the former name of Endoume) was home to customs posts, beach huts and open-air cafés. With the construction of the Corniche during the 19th century, the neighbourhood attracted a more affluent population who had bastides – small Provençal country houses – built. Today, it features both simple huts and beautiful mansions.

The Endoume neighbourhood enjoys a stunning setting, close to the sea, particularly the small fishing port of Vallon des Auffes and the cove of La Fausse Monnaie. Peaceful without being too sleepy, the neighbourhood is often highly sought after by those looking for a small townhouse or a flat in a residential complex with views of the Garde hill or the Bay of Marseille.

What’s there to see in the Endoume neighbourhood?

The little harbour at Vallon des Auffes

The little harbour at Vallon des Auffes takes its name from the ‘auffiers’, who used to make ropes and esparto grass products. It is here that the fishing village has nestled. On either side of the bridge, the harbour is home to around fifty small fishermen’s cottages, restaurants and traditional fishing boats. The Vallon des Auffes often attracts tourists keen to admire its colourful façades or take a dip in its natural pool. It is one of the last places in Marseille to have retained its typical Provençal charm.

The Malmousque cove

The beach atAnse de la Malmousque is not a fine sandy beach, but consists of rocks and a concrete slab. Despite this, it is nonetheless a refreshing change of scenery. Situated along the Corniche Kennedy, this cove features a small harbour with a direct view of the Endoume archipelago and Degaby Island – a vista that is certainly worth the detour. Here you can see little beach huts with shutters in shades of lavender, saffron yellow or pastel green, which capture theauthentic character of the Endoume neighbourhood.

The Marseille tide gauge

Tucked away along the Corniche Kennedy is the Marseille tide gauge, a device for measuring sea level. The French State, which owns the equipment, has entrusted its management to the IGN,the National Institute for Geographic and Forest Information. Today, the tide gauge – listed as a historic monument in France – is still in operation and remains essential to the observatory’s work. It is also a high-quality monitoring station. Equipped with modern instruments, its current significance lies mainly in monitoring the rise in mean sea level, one of the effects of climate change.

The association‘Les amis du marégraphe de Marseille’organisesoccasional tours of the tide gauge throughout the year.

Valmer Park

Situated opposite the tide gauge, this 1.6-hectare green space overlooks the Corniche Kennedy, offering an incredible view of the sea. You can take a stroll there, admire the islands off Marseille from the benches provided, or enjoy a picnic at the tables set up for this purpose. The park also has a children’s playground, to be used under parental supervision.

Within the garden, you can discover a mix of exotic and native plants, as well as traces of 19th-century Marseillais rockery work. These are faux-wood ornaments that masons used to carve onto cement walls to embellish gardens, creating low walls, basins and so on.

Although Valmer Park is now a public park open every day of the year (with opening hours varying according to the season), it is in fact part of the lush gardens of Villa Valmer, which was once a private residence. The architecture of this villa, formerly known as Vague à la mer, resembles a veritable little castle. It was built by Charles Gonnelle, a wealthy merchant from Salon-de-Provence. Its paths once led to the park.

The little extra? Admiring the sunset from the park’s balcony!

The Silvain Theatre

With a capacity of 4,000 to 5,000 people, the Silvain Theatre is an open-air theatre situated at the far end of the Vallon de la Fausse-Monnaie in Marseille. Opened in 1923 and transferred to the City of Marseille in 1941, it operated intermittently before undergoing a complete renovation in 1999. Built on the initiative of Dominique Piazza, the first president of the Marseille Excursionists’ Society, the theatre has offered a regular programme of events (concerts, festivals and shows) since 2009.

The Fausse-Monnaie Bridge

Completed in 1863, the Fausse Monnaie Bridge overlooks the Vallon du Silence and the Théâtre Silvain. According to legend, workers are said to have found a counterfeiter’s equipment there. In this cove, shallow-draught vessels would seek shelter from the mistral, a dry and violent wind. Thanks to its south-facing position, holidaymakers and residents of the Endoume neighbourhood enjoy lounging on its flat rocks as soon as the first rays of sunshine appear. With its picturesque landscape dotted with small fishermen’s huts and ‘pointus’ (traditional fishing boats), the Anse de la Fausse Monnaie is situated on the outskirts of the village of Endoume.