Anchorage

Golfe Juan

Shelter: NW, N, NE, E, SE
Seabed: sand, algae
Anchoring: Allowed

Bay on the Côte d'Azur between Cap d'Antibes and the Îles de Lérins, opposite Vallauris and Juan-les-Pins.

Pontoon
Beach
Seagrass

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Open approach from the south between Cap d'Antibes and the Pointe de l'Aiguille. Watch the Formigues rocks marked by a cardinal off the eastern entrance. The bottom runs deep, roughly 8 to 15 metres of mud and thick posidonia, so find a light sand patch and check the anchor is set. Yellow buoys mark the bathing limit and white buoys the no-anchor zones shown on the chart. Wash from motorboats, ferries and jet skis makes it rolly by day, easing at night.

Practical

Sand and algae bottom. Sheltered from NW through NE to SE, exposed to SW swell and mistral gusts. Port Gallice 0,5 nm east and Port du Croûton 0,7 nm east offer refuge in bad weather.

Ashore

Old Golfe-Juan beach and jetty 400 m from the usual anchoring area. Train station on the Marseille to Ventimiglia line 300 m inland. Musée national Pablo Picasso at Château Grimaldi in Vallauris 2 km uphill, in the pottery town where Picasso worked from 1948.

History

Napoleon landed at Golfe-Juan on 1 March 1815 with around 1 000 men after escaping Elba, starting the Hundred Days. A commemorative column stands on the seafront near the old port.

Key facts

Type: Anchorage
Coordinates: 43.56405, 7.10467 (43°33.84'N 7°6.28'E)
Country: France
Shelter: Sheltered from north-west, north, north-east, east, south-east winds
Seabed: sand, algae
Anchoring: Allowed
Services: Pontoon, Beach, Seagrass
Boaters' rating: 3.9/5
Updated: October 15, 2026