Les Calanques de Marseille

This rock climbing area is located in southern France and stretches from Marseille to the little town of Cassis. It is large and is usually divided in 8 main areas, each of which is very different. Climbing there varies enormously from single pitch sport climbs, long multipitch climbs reaching 250m in height, to deep water soloing (DWS).

Similarly, the limestone rock is different on each crag and offers a great variety of climbing styles, from technical slabs to climbing on steep seaside cliffs and in overhanging caves. In terms of difficulty, again, what you find in Les Calanques is a wide range of grades.

There are about 2500 bolted routes and about 1000 trad climbs. In fact, Calanque belongs among France's largest rock climbing areas.

Climbing in Calanque is possible throughout the year, the best conditions are during the spring, though. South-facing crags are a good alternative for climbing in the winter because these crags are usually also sheltered from the Mistral wind. On summer days you can go DWS or head to some of the north-facing cliffs. In the autumn you are likely to get a lot of rainy days.