Best anchorages and harbours in France

Port-Lay

Small cove with a dozen moorings on the north coast of Île de Groix, off the Morbihan coast in Brittany.

• Free
• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Porzmeur

Anchorage on the north shore of the rade de Brest, sand bottom, shelter from NE, E and SE winds.

• Sheltered NE, E, SE

Punta Vallitone

Anchorage on the Balagne coast of Corsica west of Ile Rousse, sand, rock and weed bottom, open to E, SE, S and SW.

• Sheltered E, SW, S, SE

Rupt s. Saône

River anchorage on the Petite Saône off Rupt-sur-Saône, a village in Haute-Saône dominated by its 11th-century keep.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E

Daoulas

Drying harbour at the head of the Daoulas river, a ria on the south shore of the Rade de Brest in Finistère.

Île Callot

Anchorage off Île Callot, a tidal island linked to Carantec by a causeway that covers at high water, in the Bay of Morlaix.

• Sheltered SW, W

Ile de brehat west

Anchorage off the west side of Ile de Brehat, in the Cotes-d'Armor, north Brittany.

• Sheltered E, SW, S, SE

Iles Sanguinaires

Rocky archipelago off the western tip of the Gulf of Ajaccio in Corsica, anchorage on rock bottom with shelter only from the east.

• Sheltered E

Le Havre

Marina of 1300 berths at the mouth of the Seine estuary, on the Normandy coast, the largest yacht harbour on the French Channel coast.

Le Lazaret

Marina of 780 berths in the Baie du Lazaret, on the northern shore of the rade de Toulon, in the commune of La Seyne-sur-Mer.

Mas Larrieu

Sand anchorage off the Mas Larrieu nature reserve, at the mouth of the Tech between Argelès-sur-Mer and Saint-Cyprien, on the Roussillon coast.

• Sheltered SW, W, NW

Plage d'Aiguebelle

Sand anchorage off the coast of Le Lavandou in the Var, sheltered from the north sector, facing south toward the Îles d'Hyères.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, NW

Saint-Elme

Small marina of 183 berths on the southern shore of the baie du Lazaret, at the foot of the Saint-Elme fort, commune of La Seyne-sur-Mer.

Cala della Chiesa North

Prohibited anchorage zone off the northern shore of the Îles Lavezzi, southern Corsica, sand bottom, within the Bouches de Bonifacio nature reserve.

• Sheltered E, SW, S, SE

Cassis

Port of 400 berths in the bay of Cassis, between Cap Canaille and the calanque of Port-Miou, within the Calanques National Park.

Étrier De Marzan

River mooring on the Vilaine near Marzan, upstream of the Arzal dam, in southern Brittany.

• Sheltered NW, N, W, SW

Îlot Ziglione

Anchorage behind Îlot Ziglione in the Gulf of Porto-Vecchio, south-east Corsica.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, S, SE

Point Maubousquet

Prohibited anchorage zone on the north coast of Porquerolles, inside the Port-Cros National Park maritime perimeter.

• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Port St Thibault St Satur

River port on the Canal latéral à la Loire at Saint-Satur, opposite Sancerre, Cher.

Trehiguier

Single visitor buoy on the Vilaine river estuary at Pénestin, south Brittany, mud bottom, well protected from N, NE, E, S and SE.

• Free
• Sheltered N, NE, E, S, SE

Anse de Fouras

Anchorage off Fouras on the Charente-Maritime coast, opposite the Île d'Aix, in the Pertuis d'Antioche.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, N, W

Anse des Vieilles

Sandy cove on the south coast of Île d'Yeu, 2.5 nm SE of Port-Joinville.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W

Baie du Dervin

Sandy bay between Le Croisic and Le Pouliguen on the south Brittany coast, sheltered from the northerly quadrant, open to the south.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE

Palavas les Flots

Marina of 1100 berths at the mouth of the Lez canal, 10 km south of Montpellier on the Languedoc coast.

Plage Trottel - Ajaccio

Anchorage off Plage Saint-François, known locally as Plage Trottel, on the north shore of the Gulf of Ajaccio, 0.9 NM SW of Port Tino Rossi.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W

Pointe de Fornali

Anchorage off Pointe de Fornali at the entrance to the Gulf of Saint-Florent, northern Corsica. Sand and seagrass bottom, sheltered from S, SW and W.

• Sheltered S, SW, W

Pointe de Ramonette

Anchorage off the east coast of Belle-Île-en-Mer, 0,3 nautical miles southeast of Le Palais, the main port of the island.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Rade d'Agay Nord

Anchorage in the northern part of the Rade d'Agay on the Esterel coast, sand and weed bottom, sheltered from NW through N and E.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Roscoff

Rock-bottom anchorage off Roscoff, north Finistère, Brittany, exposed to W, SW and S winds.

• Sheltered W, SW, S

Anse de Focolara

Small cove on the west coast of Corsica, between Galéria and the Golfe de Girolata, inside the Parc Naturel Marin du Cap Corse et de l'Agriate buffer zone.

• Sheltered NE, E, SW, S, SE