Cassis with a private driver: the harbour, Cap Canaille, the vines
Your driver collects you from your hotel, the station, the airport or the cruise port, and drops you as close to Cassis harbour as traffic and local rules allow. You have lunch by the harbour, looking out over the boats to Cap Canaille. The driver comes back at the agreed time or, if you have the car for the day, stays available throughout.
Cassis is also a wine appellation: with Arbois, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Cognac, Monbazillac and Tavel, it was one of the first six appellations d’origine contrôlée, recognised by the decree of 15 May 1936. To call at an estate, mention it in your request.
The Calanques in summer: what to know before you go
From 1 June to 30 September, access to the Calanques massifs depends on the wildfire risk, which the prefecture publishes the evening before, at around 6 pm (Mes Calanques app).
- Red days: access to the national park by land is forbidden; boat trips remain permitted, without landing.
- Sugiton and the Pierres Tombées: booking is free but compulsory on certain summer dates. It is done online, from 9 am three days before your visit until 6 pm the day before, for up to five people per booking. In 2026: 20 and 21 June, every day from 27 June to 30 August, 5 and 6 September, then 12 and 13 September. The national park has extended the scheme to 2027 and will publish the dates.
- If the massifs close: we rework the day with you around Cassis, La Ciotat, Bandol or a boat trip without going ashore.
The Route des Crêtes, from Cassis to La Ciotat
The Route des Crêtes climbs out of Cassis over Cap Canaille and follows the clifftops to La Ciotat, with several lookouts along the way. With a driver, every passenger can enjoy the view.
The road is closed to motor vehicles every Sunday, when it is left to walkers and cyclists. Between 1 June and 30 September, it also closes automatically on days classed red for wildfire risk; it can be closed in strong wind or when the weather requires. When you stop, keep well back from the edge: the wind can rise without warning.
To drive it, choose a day other than Sunday. If it is closed on the day, the driver takes another road to La Ciotat: the plan stays the same, just without the view.
La Ciotat and the Bandol vineyards
La Ciotat is where the Lumière brothers filmed L’Arrivée d’un train en gare de La Ciotat, and home to the Eden Théâtre, one of the oldest cinemas still in operation. Beyond it, the road continues to Bandol. The Bandol appellation reaches well beyond the town: its vineyards spread over eight municipalities in the Var, including Le Castellet, La Cadière-d’Azur and Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer. One day can take in Cassis harbour in the morning, the Route des Crêtes, lunch in La Ciotat or at an estate, then a tasting, with no one needing to drive afterwards.
Two or three stops make a better day than five. If you already have an appointment at an estate, send us the address and time: we will plan around it.
A day at sea, then the drive home
A boat trip along the calanques can be arranged on request. It is carried out by the chosen operator, under its own licence; your driver drops you at the harbour and collects you when you come back ashore.
In the evening, the driver takes you back to your hotel in Marseille or Aix-en-Provence, to the station or to the airport. If your stay continues in the Luberon or the Alpilles, the same request can cover the following days.
What to tell us
- where to collect you and where to take you back;
- your restaurant booking time, if you have one;
- the harbour and boarding time, if a boat trip is planned;
- the number of passengers and any children’s ages;
- your preferred return time, with some leeway if you might stay on.
With these details, we send you a personal quote: write to us.