Best anchorages and harbours in France

Châteaulin

River mooring on the canalised Aulne, in the town of Châteaulin, 15 nm upstream from the rade de Brest at the start of the Nantes-Brest canal.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Halte ancien ecluse

Small river halt on the Doubs near Besançon, 5 berths on the pontoon.

Îlot de Toul-Bras

Day anchorage off the eastern shore of the Quiberon peninsula in southern Brittany, between Port-Haliguen and Port-Maria.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

Marine de Luri

Open anchorage off Santa Severa on the east coast of Cap Corse, sand bottom.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Marines de Cogolin

Marina of 1400 berths in the gulf of Saint-Tropez, between Port-Grimaud and Sainte-Maxime, in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Rouen

Small halt of 4 berths on the Seine in the centre of Rouen, at the limit of tidal navigation upstream of Le Havre.

Royan

Large marina on the right bank of the Gironde estuary mouth, 1000 berths, max draught 2.5 m, VHF 9.

Toulon Vieille Darse

Marina of 560 berths inside the old naval harbour of Toulon, on the south coast of Provence.

Tregana

Sand anchorage on the Plougonvelin shore of the Iroise, opposite Brest roadstead, sheltered from N to E.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

Anse de Sainte-Evette

Mooring of about 25 buoys in the bay of Audierne, western Finistère, just outside the fishing harbour.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Aramon

Small river port on the right bank of the Rhône in the Gard, between Avignon and Tarascon.

Brignogan - Pontusval

Anchorage off Brignogan-Plages on the north coast of Finistère, sand bottom among pink granite rocks, sheltered from E through S to W.

• Free
• Sheltered E, SE, S, SW, W

Cala Muretta South

Rocky cove in the Golfe de Valinco, 2.7 NM SW of Propriano, with shelter from SE to SW winds under the headland.

• Sheltered SE, S, SW

Calanque de l'Indienne

Small anchorage on the south coast of Porquerolles, within the Parc national de Port-Cros, the oldest marine national park in Europe, established in 1963.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Caramontinu

Small cove on the south-east coast of Corsica, between Porto-Vecchio and Bonifacio, with sand and rock bottom.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Ezer

Anchorage off Île Ezer in the Glénan archipelago, off the southern Finistère coast in Brittany.

• Sheltered NW, N, W, SW

Grande Conche

Open anchorage off the Grande Conche beach east of Royan, on the northern shore of the Gironde estuary.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE

Île du Toro

Anchorage off Île du Toro, a small islet in the Cerbicale archipelago off the south-east coast of Corsica.

• Sheltered N, SW

Le Croisic

Town harbour of 500 berths at the end of a narrow tidal ria on the Guérande peninsula, with an active fishing fleet and a bottlenose dolphin research station on the quay.

Marinest

River marina on the Bassin des Remparts in Strasbourg, just north of the historic city centre, operated by Marinest since 2019.

Monthermé

River halt on the Meuse in the Ardennes, 15 berths, at the confluence of the Meuse and the Semoy.

Mouré Rouge

Municipal marina of 450 berths east of the Pointe de la Croisette in Cannes, sheltered by a curved breakwater opening south-west toward the Îles de Lérins.

Pointe de la Touche

Fair-weather anchorage off the Pointe de la Touche on the Emerald Coast, Brittany, sand bottom.

• Sheltered NW, N, W

Port de Tréboul

Marina of around 500 berths on the west bank of the Pouldavid river at the entrance of Douarnenez Bay, western Finistère.

Port-La-Forêt

Large marina of 1130 berths at the head of the Anse de la Forêt, south Finistère, home of the Pôle Finistère Course au Large.

Quai st Henri "port de commerce"

Commercial quay in the northern part of the Grand Port Maritime de Marseille, in the Saint-Henri district.

Rocher d'Orto

Anchorage at the foot of the red porphyry cliffs of the Golfe de Porto on the west coast of Corsica, between Porto and Girolata.

• Sheltered NE, E, S, SE

Anse de Penhap

Anchorage at the southern tip of the Île aux Moines in the Golfe du Morbihan, Brittany. Mixed sand, rock and weed bottom, open to the south.

• Sheltered NW, N, W

Camaret-sur-Mer

Marina of around 800 berths on the Crozon peninsula, sheltered behind the Sillon gravel spit at the entrance of the Brest roadstead.

Conche de Saint-Georges

Anchorage in the bay north of the Gironde estuary mouth off Saint-Georges-de-Didonne, sand bottom, sheltered from N, NE, E and SE.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE