As I mentioned yesterday, the plan for today was to visit the Notre-Dame de la Garde which stands proud over the city of Marseille and provides panoramic views from its numerous vantage points.
The Notre-Dame de la Garde sits atop of a rather steep hill hence one was unsure of how accessible it would be in terms of pavements. During ones research the night before, Google stated that the best way to reach the top of said hill was via road train. Although their website claims to be ‘wheelchair accessible’, this means for manual wheelchairs, not Superbunny! After some more Googling, a bus route was found. The buses in Marseille are similar to the ones that can be found in London, where automatic ramps are deployed from the side, so it was simple to get on and off.
Once at the top, one was surprised to see that there was a lift which takes you to the top of the Notre-Dame de la Garde, The Basilica of Notre-Dame despite all the steps which can be seen on arrival. Before we ascended, it seemed appropriate to explore inside which is mostly accessible for wheelchairs…
Again, the top level is mostly accessible for wheelchair users and provides a great vantage point to admire Marseilles cityscape…
The next stop was the CMA CGM Tower which is tallest skyscraper in Marseille. The easiest way to reach said structure from the hotel was to hop on the Marseille Tramway (as the accessibility of the Metro is debatable). Akin to most modern tramways, the network uses low floor vehicles allowing for level boarding. This, in addition to the bus network, makes it a great way to explore the city if you are a wheelchair user…
Of course, one had to admire said towers architecture…
Back in the city, the final stop was the bridge connecting the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations to Fort Saint Jean which is a feat of engineering in itself…
Although there is an accessible path around Fort Saint Jean, the issues occur when one crosses the second bridge back into the city. One would highly recommend doubling back on yourself to avoid numerous steps..
Tomorrow, we head back to Marseille Saint-Charles station to travel to Geneva tomorrow via TGV!