Fuelled by winds, the blaze forced evacuations and confined thousands indoors in France’s second-largest city.
Marseille’s mayor, Benoît Payan, said the situation had improved by Wednesday, calling the fire “in net regression”.
More than 1,000 firefighters were deployed after the fire began near Les Pennes-Mirabeau, burning 720 hectares.
Smoke filled the skies over the city’s historic port as aircraft continued to drop water. Travel remained disrupted, with trains and flights still affected.