Harbour

Tabarka

Name: Tabarka
Address: Marseillan, FR

4.2Marseillan, FranceLanguedoc-Roussillon

Type: Harbour

Small marina on the south bank of the étang de Thau at Marseillan, next to the historic harbour of the village, in western Hérault.

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Entered from the étang de Thau through the lateral buoys of the Marseillan channel. The étang is shallow on average around 4 m, with well-marked oyster tables on the north side that must be given a wide berth. Sea access by the Canal des Onglous and the Sète locks. Local tramontane from the north-west can build a short steep chop across the lagoon.

Practical

Pontoons with water and electricity, capitainerie shared with the main Marseillan basin next door. Sanitary block with showers. Bakery, grocer and restaurants along the quai de la Résistance, 200 m. Supermarket in the village at about 800 m.

Ashore

Noilly Prat distillery, founded in Marseillan in 1813 and still ageing its vermouth in open-air oak casks on site, is 300 m from the pontoons and open for guided tours. Sentier du Lido runs 12 km of sandbar between the étang and the Mediterranean, with the beach of Les Onglous 1,5 km from the port. Oyster tasting huts on the road to Bouzigues, east of Marseillan.

History

Marseillan was founded as a Greek trading post linked to Agde in the sixth century BC. The étang de Thau has been farmed for oysters and mussels since the late nineteenth century and now produces around 10 000 tonnes of shellfish a year, making it the first shellfish production area of the French Mediterranean.