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Since 2015, the arrival of thousands of migrants in France has brought out the dysfunctions of an asylum system already at the saturation point. This situation, combined with budget cuts, has forced the state administrations responsible for the reception of migrants to prioritise the new populations. In such a context, how are the challenges related to their settlement in the city reflected locally? The experience of one recently arrived Syrian family in Marseilles has allowed us to explore the forms of access to the city in two areas: housing and schooling. Based on an ethnographic study, this article brings out the multiple obstacles created by the French administrative system. But the family’s experience also demonstrates the existence of many actors coming to the assistance of migrants and brings out the hospitable side of centre-city Marseilles.