W hen a place becomes a meme, you know it is having a moment. This is what is happening to Marseille, which found its name plastered on a satirical Instagram account this week. “‘Mate was finkin’ of goin’ Marseille? Apparently it’s poppin’ off!?’,” read the caption on the viral Socks House Meeting fashion account that satirises the absurdities of trends, usually with an eye to London’s cultural niches but with a foothold in wider British internet humour.
It was accompanied by a picture of the type of lifestyle and fashion staples that a certain kind of traveller might enjoy while in the southern French city, including a skinny Vogue cigarette, on-trend wraparound sunglasses and a bottle of Terre d’Hermès eau de toilette. On Instagram, influencers, style writers and creative types are posting snaps of the yellow-and-white-striped sun loungers of the beachside restaurant and guesthouse Tuba Club, which was founded in 2021 by a self-described “friends collective” of Marseillais locals. Or they are sharing picture of times spent enjoying a pan bagnat at Cécile Food Club , a cafe opened by the Texan model Erin Wasson and her Marseillais husband last year.
On TikTok, Marseille is having what Hannah Bennett, the head of travel on the platform, would call “a moment” – they have seen a 100% increase in the number of posts related to the city. A certain algorithmic chemistry has anointed France’s second city with its seal of approval. Away from the i.