Aix-Marseille-Provence Metropolis encompasses a city.
The Aix-Marseille-Provence Metropolis ( métropole d'Aix-Marseille-Provence ) is a French intercommunality formed on , encompassing the urban agglomerations of Marseille , Aix-en-Provence , Aubagne , Martigues and other smaller towns in the suburbs of Marseille , in the Bouches-du-Rhône departement . Aix-en-Provence ( [ ɛksɑ̃pʁɔvɑ̃s ] ; Provençal Occitan : Ais de Provença in classical norm , or Ais de Prouvènço in Mistralian norm , [ ˈajz de pʀuˈvɛⁿsɔ ] , Aquae Sextiae ) , or simply Aix ( [ ɛks ] ; medieval Occitan Aics ) , is a city-commune in the south of France , about 30 km north of Marseille .