Harbour

L'Ayguade du Levant

3.0Hyères les Palmiers, FranceVar

Maximum length: 25 m
VHF channel: 12
Maximum draught: 3.5 m

Small harbour of 33 berths on the north coast of the Île du Levant, Îles d'Hyères, facing the mainland in Provence.

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach from the north between Port-Cros and the Levant. Concrete jetty protecting the basin from westerlies. Maximum draught 3.5 m. Military firing zone occupies 90 percent of the island with restricted access. VHF 12 for the harbourmaster.

Practical

33 berths, mostly for residents, limited visitor capacity. Water at the quay. Ferry landing used by service from Le Lavandou and Cavalaire. Small grocery and a few restaurants in Héliopolis village, 400 m uphill from the port.

Ashore

Héliopolis naturist village founded in 1931, reached by a 400 m road from the harbour. Plage des Grottes 300 m east of the port. The remaining 90 percent of the island is a French Navy firing range and is closed to the public.

History

The Île du Levant hosted a penal colony for children from 1861 to 1878. The western tip became a naturist village in 1931 while the Navy took over the rest of the island in 1948 for missile testing.