Marché aux Poissons (Fish Market), Marseille

All night the boats are outside the breakwater, at sea. Local, family-owned, every night they are busy. At dawn they begin arriving at the Old Port of Marseille. They are headed for the Marche aux Poissons, the Fish Market of the city on the Quai des Belges.

Only true, local fisherfolk are allowed to dock here. This is a real, traditional fish market of the Mediterranean. The boats tie up at the foot of the quai and unload their nightly catch. The boats and the stalls where the fish are prepared and sold are family operated.

The market is open to buyers, mostly local people and restauranteurs. The stalls are loaded with the "catch of the day". There are perhaps ten or twelve stalls. They each have tanks where the fish are shown. Besides fish there are mussels, oysters and octopus.

The market opens at 8am. To get the best fish of the catch, come early. By 1:30 pm the market is closed. There are a lot of restaurants overlooking the market. It is very probable that the fish you dine on in the evening was part of the daily catch that morning. Try the bouillabaisse, a delicacy of Provence.

Marseille has always been a fishing port and there are a lot of fish in the sea. However, there are fewer and fewer markets in the world like the Fish Market of Marseille. The market was formerly established in the Old Port in 1909. Get there early. Sample the wild oysters while you wait for your order.