Feel like a count at Chateau d'If, Marseille

Dominating the entrance to Marseille's Vieux Port, at the southern tip of France, is Chateau d'If , a massive island-fortress immortalized in Alexandre Dumas’ classic The Count of Monte Cristo.

Many political prisoners were incarcerated in the fort, including Mirabeau, the hero of French revolution. The fort was built in the mid-1500s as coastal defense. Its three-story walls have rough texture and gunnery towers but no attack ever took place. It was converted to a prison in the 1800s. Visitors can come to the island from the Marseille Vieux Port, but there is no much to see on the island, except wonderful views of the port.

Marseille, France