Le Trolleybus

Trolleybus was probably the first nightclub I visited during my first stay in Marseille. It is located right on the waterfront in the centre of Marseille in Vieux Port. This makes it really easy to access if you live in or near the city centre but it can pose problems for people who don't, namely the international students who live in the campus accommodation in Luminy. If you are in the latter group and want to go to clubs in Vieux Port then be prepared to either shell out around €20 for a taxi back or to hang around until about 5am for the first bus back! The clubs are usually open until around this time but it can tough waiting out that long especially if you have class the next day!

If I remember correctly you usually have to pay to get in but it's not that much really. If you drink at one of the nearby bars like the Shamrock beforehand then you can ask for free passes to Trolleybus sometimes. I don't think I ever had any problems with the bouncers but they will not let you in if you are visibly wasted!

Once you do get inside you will think to yourself: "When is this passage going to get to the club? " This is because Trolleybus does not have the look of a conventional nightclub. It looks like you are in a large wine cellar with low stone walls all around you. There are two-three long, skinny rooms attached to the main hallway and this is what makes up the majority of the club. Each room has a bar and usually a different DJ playing a different style of music. Sometimes a room might be reserved for a private party or something like that so it can limit your choices at times. One problem that thankfully I never had to worry about was the very low ceilings! If you are very tall then you have to be a little careful when walking around because if you are not paying close attention you can bang your head quite easily!

I would recommend going to Trolleybus at the weekend and not for Student Parties. Trolleybus is quite small and when you have hundreds and hundreds of students crammed in there it can be quite uncomfortable. We were there for one student party and it was so cramped it was scary. The heat inside was terrible and really ruined the night. They might have gotten proper air conditioning since I was there but if not, then it's not somewhere where I would be too keen on going back to in the future!