The Lourdes route also records a 79% increase in its overall ranking, compared with +110% in September 2025. The visit of Pope Leo XIV on September 26–27 may have contributed to this surge, even if the data cannot precisely quantify its impact.
Another significant uptick: searches between Paris and Brussels rise by 121%, and those between Paris and Milan climb by 217%. Conversely, the Lille–London connection falls by 51%. London remains the most searched destination, despite an annual dip of 3%.
TOP 10 TRAIN ROUTES MOST SEARCHED ON RESANEO
TOP 10 TRAIN DESTINATIONS MOST SEARCHED ON RESANEO
Marseille Curbs Airbnb Amid Housing Crisis
The city of Marseille claimed on Wednesday some early successes in its battle against the “Airbnb drift” with a slight decline in the number of tourist furnished rentals following a series of measures to limit seasonal lettings.
Between 2024 and 2025, the supply of tourist furnished rentals in the second-largest city in France fell by 16%, dropping from 13,000 to 11,000, Audrey Garino, the deputy mayor for housing, said to the press. In the only tourist district of Panier, this drop reached 35%. Marseille had experienced “an explosion of Airbnb with a 73% increase in listings between 2020 and 2023”, she recalled.
À Marseille, la mairie durcit les règles pour freiner les locations touristiques
The city is combatting the excessive supply of tourist furnished rentals because the “Airbnb phenomenon” has “considerably reduced” Marseille’s housing stock “where the housing crisis is very acute (…) with 54,000 social housing applications overdue, with a prevalence of substandard housing”, Ms. Garino noted.
Among the city’s flagship measures: capping the rental of primary residences at 90 days per year and obliging owners of tourist furnished rentals wishing to operate a property to offer in return another dwelling for long-term rental.
The city has also stepped up legal proceedings: by the end of September, a multi-owner who had transformed, without authorization, a small residential building in Panier and a downtown apartment into short-term rentals was fined 440,000 euros.
“More than 70% of the landlords who do Airbnb are not from Marseille and are not even from Bouches-du-Rhône or from Provence-Alpes-Câte d’Azur”, Ms. Garino stressed, noting that “around twenty legal procedures” are still ongoing.
Dans le Panier, la mairie veut éviter un quartier transformé en “Disneyland-sur-Mer”
Wednesday morning on a picturesque square in Panier, municipal workers were breaking large key boxes, hung on barriers and encroaching on public space.
Mayor of the 2nd and 3rd arrondissements, where this neighborhood is located, Anthony Krehmeier laments an “Airbnb drift”, fallen into “pure business” and used by investors coming “to make money off the backs of Marseille residents”.
“Where I used to have shops, today I have stalls selling postcards and Made in China soap, I no longer have a bakery. And ultimately I have a district that is dying”, he adds, deploring the development of a “Disneyland-sur-Mer”.
The Airbnb group said on Wednesday in a statement that it shares with the city of Marseille “the objective of preserving a balance between access to housing and the development of a tourism that fully benefits residents”.
It thus states that it is “favorable to proportionate and targeted local rules, in the image of quotas by neighborhood, particularly in the most strained areas”. While asserting that “80% of the accommodations offered on Airbnb in Marseille are temporarily rented by Marseille residents and are therefore not intended to return to the long-term rental market”.
Exotismes Kicks Off Its Roadshow in Marseille
Organized as part of SportBeach by the sea, in partnership with the Dominican Republic, the evening brought together 350 attendees, including 180 travel agents. The troupe of the Dominican ballet notably set the rhythm of the night.
Time highlights of the event: the indispensable partner workshop where hoteliers, airlines and the tourism office could present their latest offerings.
Julien Cisneros alongside his brother Sylvain, both co-CEOs of Exotismes who will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year, recalled “ No algorithm will ever replace listening, advice, empathy of real people ”
If the tour operator is working on developing technological tools, it is to better support the sellers: “ Travel is not a good that we put on a shelf (…) we always need more humans, especially in this period of incessant change. ” he added.
Guillaume the Gold Rush winner honored
The winners are:
– Marion – Digne-les-Bains (Air Transat)
– Lisa – Aubagne (Air Europa)
– Manuelle – Arles (Air Caraïbes)
– Myrto – Saint-Maximin (Air France)
The evening was also an opportunity to award the winner of the Gold Rush, Exotismes’ flagship annual challenge. The 9th edition, held in Mexico in partnership with Air Caraïbes, Colonial Tours, Bahia Principe, Iberostar, Palladium and Riu, was won by Guillaume (Occitanie region). He received, from Julien Cisneros, a genuine gold coin.
The other laureates are: François (Région Hauts-de-France), Alexandra (Région Parisienne) and Lisa (Région Provence) who received a special jury prize.
Tour dates
Each evening will feature a workshop followed by a cocktail, giving travel agents the opportunity to exchange directly with the partners present.
Also on the program: surprises and gifts, in a friendly atmosphere designed to mark the start of the season.
Contact : [email protected]
Marseille: Tourist Overnight Stays Up 5% From May to Mid-August 2026
The Phocaean city presents a positive assessment of its 2026 tourism season, with a 5% rise in overnight stays by leisure visitors between May and mid-August, compared with the same period in 2025.
If the first three months of summer show a solid uptick, August, for its part, remained stable.
This momentum unfolds in a context marked by several heatwaves, which led some travelers to reconsider their vacation plans.
The programming of the “Marseille Summer” season, run by the City and the Office of Tourism, Leisure and Congresses, notably helped bolster activity.
Des événements qui dopent la fréquentation
From the month of May, four consecutive holiday weekends, paired with several major happenings, encouraged arrivals.
The matches of Top 14, Corsu Mezu Mezu and JUL concerts notably helped fill the accommodations.
The momentum continued in June with the concerts of ‘Alonzo, the Marsatac festival, the Top 14 semifinals at the Vélodrome Stadium or the Au Large festival.
July turned out to be the busiest month of the period. It also accounted for the largest share of foreign overnights, at 32% of the total during the period.
The Bad Bunny concert, held on July 1 at Cepac Vélodrome, epitomizes the impact of major events on tourist activity: overnight stays rose by 60% compared with 2025 on the evening of the concert.
Les clientèles internationales au rendez-vous
Spain rises by 3% and Switzerland by 11%. Conversely, British visitors fall by 20%. The Tourist Office explains this decline by the higher cost of holidays, which may have pushed some Britons to favor the domestic market, but also by the new Brexit-related formalities.
The American market could continue to expand with the opening, in June 2027, of a new direct connection between Marseille and New York.
On the French side, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (+14%), Occitanie (+10%) and Hauts-de-France (+6%) drive the growth. Île-de-France remains the leading source region, with 1.26 million overnight stays, steady compared with 2025.
Près de 140 000 visiteurs renseignés
Average prices have, for their part, risen by 1.9% across the entire period, enabling RevPAR to advance by 5% compared with 2025. Conversely, furnished rental accommodations record a 12% drop in reserved overnight stays from May to July. The City links this trend to its policy of regulating the tourist rental stock to promote long-term housing.
Beyond accommodation performance, the Office de Tourisme welcome programs also saw strong activity. Between May and August, travel counselors assisted nearly 80,000 people.
The “Hors les Murs” initiative, deployed notably in the Calanques, at the Mucem, on the Vieux-Port and through cargo bicycles, enabled informing nearly 60,000 additional visitors. In the face of high heat, the Office also adapted its guided tours, prioritizing morning and late afternoon time slots. A new evening tour, “Malmousque in the Evening,” offered at 18:30, was particularly well received.
Marseille mise sur les activités et la fréquentation à l’année
From May to August, its turnover surpassed €788,000, with particular success for water activities, the Petit Train and the City Pass.
For the City, the challenge is now to transform this summer momentum into sustained attendance, while limiting tourist pressure on certain sectors. The stated objective is twofold: to preserve residents’ quality of life and to better distribute tourist activity throughout the year.
A balancing act that is expected to persist as Marseille aims to strengthen its international appeal, driven by major events, foreign clientele and the opening of new flight connections.
Assas Hotels Opens Soléo Prado in Marseille City Center
Following the July 2025 inauguration of RockyPop in Marseille, the operator continues its expansion in the South of France by radically transforming a former Citadines hotel residence.
This ambitious project, led by project manager and director Philippine Razou, required nine months of comprehensive renovation to adapt the building to the evolving uses of modern hospitality.
Located at 9/11 Boulevard de Louvain, in immediate proximity to major transit routes and the Parc Chanot exhibition center, the hotel offers a flexible 98-key proposition, distributed among standard, superior, and executive rooms, as well as 18 apartments and studios equipped with kitchenette areas. This diversity enables it to welcome long-stay business travelers as well as families and groups of friends up to five people.
A design inspired by Marseille’s identity
The materials favor authenticity with an omnipresence of linen, raffia, raw or glazed terracotta, and light woods.
From the entrance, living spaces invite conviviality through a large lobby equipped with a self-service honesty bar offering coffee, syrups, and herbal teas.
At the rear of the establishment, a tree-lined terrace surrounded by flowering laurels provides a true calm cocoon away from the urban hustle and bustle. A fully equipped fitness room and a generous breakfast buffet blending homemade cakes and savory flavors complete the offerings.
Sustainable management on a daily basis
In a biodiversity-preservation approach, the hotel has also banned nearly all of its cleaning chemicals in favor of an ozonated water system.
The property features an underground private parking with electric vehicle charging stations and a reception that is open around the clock.
Pricing positioning: the end of the puzzle for traveling families
The hotel offers family rooms with bunk beds or interconnecting rooms linked by a private vestibule that isolates noise. It maintains a very accessible average rate, typically between 120 and 130 euros per night for five people, excluding exceptional events.
For its business clientele and for hosting professional seminars, management chose not to invest in constructing bulky internal meeting infrastructures. The hotel has thus entered into a win-win commercial agreement with a local association located in office buildings facing the property.
The hotel rents and valorizes the workshops and meeting rooms of this organization when they are unused, allowing companies to lodge their staff at Soléo Prado while working just a stone’s throw away.
The story of Philippine Razou: from a life change to leading a hotel
This former Parisian chose to leave a permanent contract after business school and four years in human resources to pursue this sector out of passion.
Driven by a strong desire to undertake, she first learned the ropes of operational roles on the ground at a four-star property in Paris.
It was while exploring new opportunities that she seized the chance to partner with the Assas Hotels group to revive this former Citadines hotel residence, whose transformation potential immediately captivated her.
Philippine Razou thus led the nine-month construction as project manager, working in close collaboration with the management group throughout the renovation phase before officially taking the helm of the hotel for its opening.
Travel & Cruise Summit Marseille: A New Meeting for Tourism Leaders (Video)
About thirty travel executives, mostly from the luxury travel and cruise sectors, gathered for an afternoon of reflection and exchange, in a relaxed, convivial atmosphere.
Named “Travel & Cruise Summit Marseille”, this event — supported by Salesforce, Revolut Business and TourMaG — was the occasion for the co-founders, Medih Fatihi and Thomas Verdier Fuentes, to better showcase the full scope of their capabilities. MUDA brings together around twenty independent consultants with varied profiles: engineers, HR specialists, customer-relations experts, etc. — but also to highlight the projects of the clients they accompany. The partners, among others, include former Ponant executives, giving them a solid expertise in the worlds of luxury and cruising.
In the room, several Ponant executives had traveled to attend, but also well-known figures from the maritime world such as Hervé Bellaïche (Catlante Catamarans), Clément Mousset (ex-Orient Express Silenseas), and other luxury names such as Véronique Leiber (Peplum).
AI at the Heart of the Discussions
On the program then, the future of cruising and the customer relationship in the AI era.
Far from another AI conference, the format was meant to be interactive, led by Medih Fatihi and Thomas Verdier Fuentes, but also by their partner Salesforce, which joined to discuss the challenges of customer relations in hospitality in the AI era.
The speakers notably stressed that travelers, especially the younger generations, now expect ever more personalized experiences and immediate responses, whatever the channel used.
In this context, AI is expected to automate low-value tasks, while the teams focus on advisory, customer relations and the creation of differentiating experiences.
Another issue highlighted: the evolution of Internet search and visibility. Professionals emphasized the importance of “GEO” (Generative Engine Optimization), which consists of making travel offers visible and usable by conversational AIs like ChatGPT or Claude.
Incomplete or outdated data can now penalize a brand directly in the responses generated by these new tools.
Gen Z, a Clientele Not to Be Neglected
A boon for the travel sector, provided one knows how to attract these clients.
The speakers cited in particular the Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, Orient Express or Aman groups to emphasize that the clientele of these hotels is not necessarily the same as the one found aboard their ships.
Read about this: Luxury cruises: the high end sets sail!
“There is a marketing and distribution challenge” for shipowners, added Medih Fatihi, who, to stand out, must offer more intimate, lesser-known destinations and increasingly refined onshore experiences.
“Wealthy people turn to experiences to feel things, while in a more and more connected world they feel increasingly disconnected,” emphasized Alina Oenning, who has been working for several months to launch a new yachting company.
Without being able to reveal many details about her project at the moment, the leader nonetheless shared her feedback and questions about Gen Z. “Nothing excites them anymore, neither a Dior purchase nor a luxury car,” she said, noting that while experience is sought by her clients, the ‘purpose’ is also an integral part of the equation.
In other words: what’s the point of consuming a luxury product if there is no purpose, or rather meaning?
For her, this purpose can be expressed, for example, by inviting cruisers to participate in scientific research that can be conducted aboard expedition ships.
A way to foster open-mindedness, gatherings, exchanges and to feel involved within a club. What better way to build loyalty? MUDA’s teams would hardly disagree…
Marseille Struggles with Overtourism, Residents in Despair
Vieux-Port, Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde, the Calanques… These iconic places form Marseille’s fame, now one of France’s most coveted destinations. Yet nothing suggested that the préfecture of the Provence-Alpes-C Côte d’Azur region would become such a tourist hotspot. As a travel expert recently explained in The Guardian, Marseille has long suffered from a multitude of stereotypes, notably the idea that it is a city where safety cannot be taken for granted.
To be frank, it is home to some of Europe’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods and drug trafficking is active in several of them. But these preconceptions now seem far removed from travelers’ concerns, as Marseille asserts itself as an essential tourist destination.
Proof of this is that a few months ago, Booking.com, the online platform that lets users book hotels, flights and cars, revealed that the Phocaean city had overtaken Paris and Nice to become the most searched destination by French users of the site. Likewise, foreign media outlets, such as The New York Times, which ran several pieces about Marseille, have helped to restore the city’s image and attract more international visitors.
Le surtourisme agace de plus en plus les Marseillais
Most of the time, the Marseillais take great pride in their city and do not hesitate to show it. Take the rapper Jul, who racks up over 10 million monthly listens on Spotify and frequently references the city where he grew up in his songs. Influencers, too, enjoy sharing the most photogenic corners of the Phocaean city. But since Marseille became a must-visit destination, locals lament the loss of their quiet life.
In June last year, residents of the Goudes, a picturesque fishing village on the outskirts of the city, took to the streets to protest. One of them explained that they felt overwhelmed by the number of visitors, feeling as though they were under house arrest. In Le Vallon des Auffes, another picturesque and highly frequented spot, locals have been opposing for weeks the opening of a sixth restaurant in the small harbor. Likewise, when swimming was banned at the busy Plage des Catalans at the start of the month because of a bacterial contamination, many residents pointed to over-tourism.
Residents also denounce an unprecedented rise in noise and waste, as well as price increases, which they attribute to a “excessive touristification.” The anti-Airbnb sentiment, often expressed through graffiti, has grown stronger in recent years. Meanwhile, campaigns against cruise ships are gaining momentum, while local elected officials remain divided on the issue.
Un tourisme qui s’est développé à vitesse grand V à Marseille
According to the Guardian expert, the problem mainly lies in the astonishing speed of this transformation. She explains that tourists began pouring in en masse in the summer of 2020, after several months of Covid-19 lockdowns. This surge in visitors was accompanied by rampant gentrification, driving up real estate prices and fueling residents’ resentment.
“It feels like we’ve blinked, and suddenly Marseille summers are defined by crowded beaches, vast and sprawling bars, endless queues for public transport, and streets overwhelmed by groups of tourists”, she wrote. However, tourism has not only produced negative effects; it has also helped create jobs and contributed to reducing the city’s high unemployment rate. This, though, calls for better management and tighter regulation.
Cruise Tourism: Marseille Aims to Better Manage Passenger Flows
One year after his election as president of Marseille Provence Croisière (MPC), Jacques Hardelay reiterates the direction he intends to give the association: to better integrate cruise activity into the region and maximize its local economic impact.
This strategy notably involves a better understanding of the passengers.
MPC has strengthened its statistical observatory to analyze nationalities, maritime and riverine flows as well as the itineraries of cruise passengers in the city.
The objective is in particular to anticipate saturation risks in certain neighborhoods.
Targeting the Mainline Passengers
A clientele known as the ‘head of line’, deemed more beneficial for the local economy since they are likely to stay in the city before or after their cruise.
In the same spirit, Marseille Provence Croisière is preparing the promotion of the future J4 maritime terminal, which should allow the destination to strengthen its positioning in the luxury small-cruise market.
On the environmental front, the on-quay electrical power supply installations, officially inaugurated in April 2026, are now operational. A commissioning phase is nonetheless necessary: each vessel must carry out its own tests and adjustments before regularly using the equipment.
According to MPC, several shipowners are choosing Marseille to carry out these technical tests.
Marseille Provence Croisière Will Celebrate Its 30th Anniversary
The association also plans to strengthen dialogue with local stakeholders. Working groups bringing together hoteliers, merchants and tourist sites have been created, while a strengthening of territorial governance is scheduled for July.
This new phase comes a few months before Marseille Provence Croisière’s 30th anniversary. Created in 1996 under the name Club de la Croisière Marseille Provence, the association adopted its current name in 2023.
PromPerú Trains Travel Agencies in Marseille
A free training session for on-site travel agencies.
For almost four hours, participants alternated between presentations of the destination, exchanges of experience and technical questions.
An approach faithful to ProDesti’s philosophy, which prioritizes trainings led by active tourism professionals and centered on the commercial realities of agencies.
“PromPerú’s objective is really to showcase Peru in the Marseille region, to help travel agents better master the destination and thus sell it better.”, explains Luis Roche, CEO of ProDesti and trainer on Peru and Chile.
A Destination That Goes Beyond Machu Picchu
Throughout the training, Luis Roche sought to dispel the image of Peru being limited to Machu Picchu. “There are many things to explore beyond Machu Picchu. It should be noted that two-thirds of the country is jungle.”, he recalls, by highlighting the regions of Iquitos, Madre de Dios, Chachapoyas and also the sites of the Moche and Lambayeque civilizations.
The objective is also to give travel advisers concrete arguments to tailor their recommendations according to their clients’ profiles.
The questions, moreover, addressed very operational topics: the various circuits to Machu Picchu, the categories of trains, or the domestic air services.
A Highly Advanced Training
The professional also underscores the quality of Luis Roche’s intervention: “It is an extremely advanced training. It is not generic; we go into the detail of the circuits. The instructor is passionate and engaging, and it makes you want to discover the destination.”
According to Luis Roche, Peru also possesses strong commercial arguments. “It is a destination that is sold almost all year round, between March and November. It has the best value-for-money in South America.”, he notes, before adding: “Peruvian gastronomy is clearly a major selling point for French travelers.”
Discover the Giza Plateau from Marseille
For its installation in the Phocaean city, the brand will offer L’Horizon de Khéops, a virtual reality expedition dedicated to ancient Egypt.
After Lyon, Paris, Bordeaux, Lille and Nantes, Eclipso thus continues its national rollout. Marseille becomes the fourth French city to host L’Horizon de Khéops, after Bordeaux, Paris and Lyon.
Eclipso: a 45-minute immersion at the heart of the Gizeh Plateau
L’Horizon de Khéops invites visitors to explore the Gizeh plateau and the Great Pyramid of Khufu, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Equipped with a connected virtual reality headset, participants are transported to the foot of the great pyramid, where they begin a guided expedition led by an avatar named Mona.
To read: Virtual reality: another way to travel?
For 45 minutes, the experience offers to discover different aspects of Egypt during the IV Dynasty.
Visitors can notably soar above the Gizeh plateau, reach the pyramid’s summit to enjoy a 360-degree view, then explore its corridors and burial chambers, including the Queen’s Chamber.
An experience developed with experts in ancient Egypt
The uniqueness of the experience lies in the freedom of movement offered to participants. In a space of over 700 m², everyone can move freely thanks to their avatar and share the expedition with other visitors, whether as a family or with friends.
L’Horizon de Khéops was developed after several years of on-site research and data collection. The project notably benefited from the collaboration of Egyptologist Peter Der Manuelian and his team at the Giza Archives Project, affiliated with Harvard University.
To read: Travel in virtual reality: a substitute for real tourism or an ecological imperative?
Archaeological, architectural, and historical data were used to reconstruct the Gizeh plateau and the various environments visited during the experience.
The creation of the immersive universe and the information delivered by the virtual guide Mona were also overseen by specialists in ancient Egypt.
Having already been presented at the Institut du Monde Arabe in 2022, where it was notably visited by the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, the experience now settles permanently within an Eclipso center.
Published by Amelia Brille TourMaG.com editor See all articles by Amelia Brille
