La Ciotat had a long history of shipbuilding. In the 19th century, over 3000 people worked in the shipyards. International competition (and the choice by the French government to keep Saint Nazaire as the single large-scale shipyard) led to the closure of the yards in the 1980s.

More recently, La Ciotat has built a reputation for refitting luxury ocean going yachts.

Parts of the old shipyard area are currently undergoing redevelopment…