Experience the best of Marignane

Marignane lies on the shore of the Étang de Berre, a large salt lagoon in the Bouches-du-Rhône, north-west of Marseille. The town sits on a low, flat plain between the lagoon and the limestone hills of the Chaîne de la Nerthe. Marseille Provence airport stands beside the water, and a large helicopter factory has stood next to it for decades.

Marseille's old port and the Calanques inlets lie to the south-east, while the creeks and coves of the Côte Bleue run along the coast west of Marseille. Aix-en-Provence, with its fountains and the plane trees of the Cours Mirabeau, is close, and so is Martigues, a town of canals and painted fishing boats sometimes called the Venice of Provence. Beyond the Rhône, the marshes and white horses of the Camargue stretch out.

Provençal tables lean on olive oil, tomatoes, garlic and fish, from the bouillabaisse of Marseille to navettes, boat-shaped biscuits scented with orange blossom, and poutargue, the salted mullet roe of Martigues. Rosé is poured at lunch. The mistral can blow hard in winter and spring, and late spring and September are the mildest months.