Villa Valmer, Renaissance villa in 7th arrondissement of Marseille, France
Villa Valmer is a three-story manor house with white stone facades located in Marseille's 7th arrondissement. It features ornamental details and a central garden with Mediterranean views.
Villa Valmer was built in 1865 by architect Henry Condamin for olive-oil manufacturer Charles Gounelle, as a summer residence on the Corniche. Originally named "Vague à la mer", it passed to his granddaughter Aymée, countess Jean d'Andigné. In 1941 the Vichy regime began expropriation for military works, and the state kept the villa after the war, housing the École nationale de la Marine marchande there until 1967.
The name comes from "Vague à la mer" (wave to the sea), contracted into Valmer. The villa was the summer residence of olive-oil manufacturer Charles Gounelle, and it later served as an exterior set for the France 3 series Enquêtes réservées. Its garden is open to the public.
The villa stands on the Corniche du Président-John-Fitzgerald-Kennedy in Marseille's 7th arrondissement, near the villa de Gaby Deslys. Its garden is open to the public. The building itself is not open for visits: after the 2021 halt of the hotel works, access inside is not possible.
In 2018 a luxury hotel project won the city's call for proposals, but after the 2020 municipal elections the new majority negotiated a scheme more open to the public, including an artists' residence. In 2021 the city halted the works after an unauthorised demolition at the rear of the building; the operator sought to restart them in court while the municipality sought to end the 60-year lease.
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