Marseille: The French city named Europe’s ‘most authentic’

Usually when we travel, the word ‘touristy’ is used as an insult. Everyone wants to experience the cities they visit ‘like a local’ and get a real sense of the people and the culture, without feeling like you’re getting a sanitised version of reality, or worse – overcharged.

But it turns out that it’s easier to have that less touristic experience in some places than others. You’re unlikely to have the best pizza of your life in a restaurant with a view of the colosseum, you know?

That’s why InsureandGo has done some number crunching to find out which European cities offer travellers the most genuine, immersive experiences. The team trawled through 1.3 million Google Maps reviews, searching for the number of people who used words like ‘local’, ‘authentic’, and where there was a distinct lack of complaints about a place being too touristy.

Once that data had been crunched, cities were given an overall ‘authenticity score’ – and it was the French city of Marseille that came out on top, with a score of 51.5 out of 100. 

According to InsureandGo, Marseille’s lack of pretence is most clear in its ‘working-port neighbourhoods [which] feel lived-in rather than curated for tourists’. The city is a vibrant hub for artists and creatives, as well as an industrial centre on the south coast of France, which gives it a pretty unique vibe. We actually named one of its neighbourhoods – Notre Dame du Mont – the coolest in the world in 2024, so we can definitely see why so many visitors praised its atmosphere.

RECOMMENDED: ’It feels like the Berlin of France’: How Marseille became the ultimate Euro summer hotspot

If this has got you in the mood to visit, have a look at our locally-curated list of the best things to do in Marseille here. We promise it isn’t full of tourist traps or overpriced landmarks.

Warsaw came second. The Polish capital just narrowly missed out on the top spot, scoring 50.6, and was praised for its ‘blend of modern culture, due to rebuilding after World War II, and conscious preservation of tradition’. Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, came third. It also appeared in a list of the top trending destinations for 2026, according to TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards.

The most ‘authentic’ cities in Europe

Here are Europe’s most ‘authentic’ cities, based on research from InsureandGo:

1. Marseille, France
2. Warsaw, Poland
3. Tbilisi, Georgia
4. Porto, Portugal
5. Lyon, France
6. Vilnius, Lithuania
7. Gdańsk, Poland
8. Naples, Italy
9. Frankfurt, Germany
10. Lake Bled, Slovenia

You can read the list in more detail on InsureandGo’s website here.

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