Bastide de la Guillermy

Bastide de la Guillermy is a historic bastide in Les Aygalades, a neighbourhood of Marseille's 15th arrondissement. Built in the 17th century, it ranks among the oldest surviving buildings in the city.

What exactly is a bastide?

A bastide is a type of country house typical of Marseille and the wider Provence region — a rural residence built by wealthy merchant and bourgeois families outside the city walls between the 16th and 19th centuries. These estates combined a summer home with a working farm: orchards, vineyards, and olive groves usually surrounded the main building. As Marseille expanded through the 19th and 20th centuries, many such estates were swallowed up by the growing city, their land subdivided for industrial and residential development. Bastide de la Guillermy illustrates this history well: built as a rural residence, it now stands amid the distinctly urban, industrial fabric of northern Marseille.

Where is it and how do you get there?

The bastide sits in Les Aygalades, part of Marseille's 15th arrondissement, in the northern reaches of the city. The area is largely industrial and residential, a short drive or public-transit ride from the tourist-heavy Vieux-Port. The easiest way to reach it is by car or taxi/VTC; Marseille also has an extensive bus and metro network, so it's worth checking current routes to Les Aygalades before setting off. Since the site sits off the main tourist circuit, it pairs well with a broader look at Marseille's northern districts — less polished than the city centre, but rewarding for anyone interested in the city's architectural and industrial past.

What's the history behind the building?

Bastide de la Guillermy dates to the 17th century, placing it among the small number of buildings that have survived Marseille's repeated waves of growth and redevelopment. Its name comes from the Guillermy family, former owners of the estate — a naming pattern typical of Provençal bastides, which usually carry the name of the family that built or long held them.

What will you actually see?

The building is above all a window into the region's older residential architecture: its form and setting give a sense of what the countryside estates ringing Marseille once looked like, before the city expanded northward and absorbed them. Because the bastide now stands in a denser, more industrial part of town, the contrast between the old structure and its surroundings is itself worth a second look for anyone interested in the history of urban growth.

When's the best time to visit?

Spring and autumn are the most comfortable seasons, as temperatures are milder than the height of summer. Plan a daytime visit and combine it with other stops in northern Marseille, since Les Aygalades itself is a residential and industrial neighbourhood without much dedicated tourist infrastructure.

Frequently asked questions

Can you visit the inside of Bastide de la Guillermy? It isn't set up as a conventional tourist attraction with visitor facilities — it's primarily an architectural landmark best appreciated from the outside while walking through Les Aygalades.

How do you get to Les Aygalades from central Marseille? Car, taxi, or VTC are the most convenient options; public transport is an alternative, though it's worth checking current routes beforehand since the neighbourhood lies outside the city centre.

Why does this bastide matter to Marseille's history? Because it's one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city, dating from the 17th century, when what is now northern Marseille was still rural rather than urban land.

What else is worth seeing nearby? Marseille's northern districts hold other traces of the city's rural estates and industrial past — a good choice for visitors looking to explore Marseille beyond the usual tourist route.