This eye-catching white structure next to MuCEM is no ordinary ‘villa’. Designed by architect Stefano Boeri in 2013, the sleek white edifice sports a spectacular cantilever overhanging an ornamental pool. Inside, a viewing gallery with glass-panelled floor (look down if you dare!), and two or three temporary multimedia exhibitions evoke aspects of the Mediterranean, be they aquatic, historical or environmental. Not unlike MuCEM, the building itself is the undisputed highlight.
Villa Méditerranée
Marseille
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Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
16.41 MILES
Aix established one of France's first public museums here, on the site of a former Hospitallers' priory, in 1838. Nearly 200 years of acquisitions …
21.72 MILES
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7.29 MILES
The calanques (coves) of the coast surrounding Marseille became France's 10th national park in 2012, preserving their astonishing beauty and harbouring an…
Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde
1 MILES
Occupying Marseille’s highest point, La Garde (154m), this opulent 19th-century Romano-Byzantine basilica is Marseille's most-visited icon. Built on the…
0.41 MILES
'The Basket' is Marseille's oldest quarter – site of the original Greek settlement and nicknamed for its steep streets and buildings. Its close, village…
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Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée
0.06 MILES
The icon of modern Marseille, this stunning museum explores the history, culture and civilisation of the Mediterranean region through anthropological…
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16.4 MILES
The Caumont is a stellar art space housed inside the Mazarin quarter’s grandest 18th-century hôtel particulier (mansion). While there are three quality…
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23.53 MILES
The vine-clad slopes, woods and and olive groves of this Provençal estate are graced by harmonious examples of art and architecture, including work by…
Nearby Marseille attractions
1. Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée
0.06 MILES
The icon of modern Marseille, this stunning museum explores the history, culture and civilisation of the Mediterranean region through anthropological…
0.07 MILES
This niche museum is housed in the city’s former sanitary station, operational from 1948 until 1971. It’s essentially a graphic art museum exploring…
0.12 MILES
Intended as much to control the citizens of Marseille as guard them from external threat, Fort St-Jean was built by Louis XIV in 1660 on the site of a…
4. Cathédrale de Marseille Notre Dame de la Major
0.19 MILES
Standing guard between the old and new ports is the striking 19th-century Cathédrale de la Major. After its foundation stone was laid by Napoleon III in…
0.3 MILES
Perched high above the southern side of the Vieux Port are the six immaculately grassed hectares of the Jardin du Pharo, the grounds of the Palais du…
0.35 MILES
In the heart of Marseille's Le Panier quarter is this grand and gorgeous almshouse, built by Pierre Puget (1620–94), an architect and sculptor born just a…
0.35 MILES
This teeny tiny art gallery, located along a narrow sloping road in the historic neighbourhood of Le Panier, offers a platform to emerging artists and a…
8. Musée d’Archéologie Méditerranéenne
0.37 MILES
Founded in the mid-19th century, and housed in La Vieille Charité since 1989, this small archaeological museum explores Mediterranean and Near-Eastern…