Best anchorages and harbours in France

Baie de San Ciprianu Nord

Northern lobe of the San Ciprianu bay on the east coast of southern Corsica, between Pinarellu and the Golfe de Porto-Vecchio.

• Sheltered N, NE, W, NW

Bram

Small canal port on the Canal du Midi in the Aude, between Carcassonne and Castelnaudary, serving the circular village of Bram.

Cala di u Grecu (Nord)

Anchorage on the east side of the Golfe de Sant'Amanza, southern Corsica, 4.1 nm S of Sant'Amanza and 5.1 nm SE of Bonifacio.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW, S

Carnon

Open anchorage off the beach of Carnon, between La Grande-Motte and Palavas-les-Flots on the Occitan coast.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE

Etang del Salé

Sand anchorage on the east coast of Corsica facing the coastal lagoon of the Étang d'Urbino, between Aléria and Ghisonaccia.

• Sheltered NW, N, W

Halte fluviale de Saint-Vallier

River halt on the Rhône at Saint-Vallier, Drôme, between Vienne and Valence.

Île de la Chaussée

Anchorage on the Seine between Bougival and Croissy, sheltered by the Île de la Chaussée with shelter from most directions, mud and weed bottom.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, SW, S, SE

L'anneau de la Marguerite

Anchorage off Courseulles-sur-Mer on the Normandy coast, on Juno Beach of the 6 June 1944 landings.

• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Locmaria

Small anchorage on the south coast of Île de Groix, off the village of Locmaria, in Brittany.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Pont de Villiennes-sur-Seine Quey

River pontoon on the Seine at Villennes-sur-Seine, Yvelines, about 25 km downstream of Paris.

Relais Nautique Epernay

Pleasure port on the Canal latéral à la Marne at Épernay, capital of Champagne in the Marne department.

Jetée Des Ileaux

Anchorage off the east coast of Noirmoutier island, in the bay between the jetty and the Gois causeway, on mud.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

L'étier

Mooring on the Vilaine river at the confluence with the étier de Foleux, on the border of Morbihan and Loire-Atlantique.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, NE, W, E, SW, SE

Mouillage Du Storang

Anchorage on the south coast of Île de Groix, off Brittany, on a mixed sand and rock bottom.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W

Port Du Cros de Cagnes

Small harbour of 60 berths on the Baie des Anges at Cagnes-sur-Mer, between Nice and Antibes.

Calanque des Anglais

Anchorage on the Esterel Corniche d'Or, just east of the Rade d'Agay, facing the red porphyry cliffs of the Cap du Dramont.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Golfe d'Étrétat

Open roadstead off the chalk cliffs of Étretat on the Normandy Alabaster Coast, between the Falaise d'Amont and the Falaise d'Aval with its arch and needle.

• Free
• Sheltered E, S, SE

Île aux Moines

Sand anchorage off the largest of the Sept-Îles archipelago, 3 NM north of Ploumanac'h on the Côte de Granit Rose in northern Brittany.

• Sheltered N, NE, W

La Seine Aval - Poses

Section of the Seine at Poses in Eure, immediately upstream of the écluse de Poses-Amfreville, the last lock on the Seine before the tidal river to the sea.

Les Portes de l'Atlantique - Port à Sec

Dry-stack marina on the south bank of the Loire estuary at Le Migron, commune of Frossay, between Paimbœuf and Nantes.

Plage de la Romaniquette

Anchorage on the northern shore of the Étang de Berre, between Saint-Chamas and Istres, Provence.

• Sheltered N, W, NW

Pont S Moussen

River marina on the right bank of the Moselle at Pont-à-Mousson, PK 328, 300 m from the town centre.

Pontrieux

River marina of 173 berths at the head of the navigable Trieux, 6 NM upstream from Lézardrieux, in the Côtes-d'Armor.

Anse du Camp Long

Small cove on the Estérel coast between Agay and Anthéor, Var. Anchorage on sand and rock, in red porphyry surroundings.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Baie du Grand Soufre

Anchorage on the west side of Pomègues, archipel du Frioul, off Marseille.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E, S, SE

Calanque de Fontagne

Sand anchorage on the Marseille coast east of the Port des Goudes, within the Parc national des Calanques.

• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Evian - Port Central

Small central harbour of Évian-les-Bains on the southern shore of Lake Geneva, facing Lausanne across the lake in Haute-Savoie.

Halte fluviale de Chavanay

Four-berth river halt on the right bank of the Rhône at Chavanay, Loire department, in the Condrieu wine area.

la Solenzara

Sand anchorage off the mouth of the Solenzara river, on the east coast of Corsica.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW, S

Le Grand Lambert

Anchorage off the Grand Lambert rock in the Rance estuary approaches, between Saint-Briac and Dinard, Ille-et-Vilaine.

• Sheltered S, SW, W