Best anchorages and harbours in France

Stone Wall

Quay along the Canal des Vosges at Vincey, in the Moselle valley of the Vosges department, in eastern France.

Le Gois échouage

Drying anchorage on mud in the Baie de Bourgneuf along the Passage du Gois, the tidal causeway linking Noirmoutier to the mainland, in the Pays de la Loire.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Mesnil Val

Mooring off a pebble beach at the foot of chalk cliffs on the Alabaster Coast, between Le Tréport and Criel-sur-Mer in Seine-Maritime.

• Sheltered E, S, SE

Plage de la Pointe du Pellegrin

Rocky anchorage on the Var coast, about 1.3 NM east of Port Maravenne and Port Miramar, between Toulon and Hyeres.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

La Cassine

Small fluvial halt of 4 berths on the Canal des Ardennes, at the village of Vendresse in the Ardennes department.

Bethencourt

Small halte on the Canal de la Somme at Béthencourt-sur-Somme, between Saint-Simon and Péronne in the upper Somme valley.

Les Bernu

River pontoon on the right bank of the Gironde estuary, commune of Saint-Genès-de-Blaye, facing the Île Nouvelle.

Halte Plaisance Vnf

VNF pleasure stop on the Canal du Rhône à Sète at Saint-Gilles, on the northern edge of the Camargue in Gard.

Anleger Villey st. Etienne

Single-berth mooring on the canalised Moselle at Villey-Saint-Étienne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, west of Nancy.

Gadouch

Canal port on the Canal du Midi in Haute-Garonne, on the summit level of the Seuil de Naurouze between Toulouse and Castelnaudary.

Port Picain

Drying harbour on the north coast of the Cancale peninsula, Ille-et-Vilaine, facing the Îles Rimains and Granville bay.

Mouillage du golfe d'Ajaccio

Anchorage on the southern shore of the golfe d'Ajaccio, Corsica, rock bottom, sheltered from SW, S and SE winds.

• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Alizee boat rental

Boat rental base at Bauduen on the south shore of the Lac de Sainte-Croix, a reservoir of 2200 hectares created in 1974 at the downstream exit of the Gorges du Verdon in Provence.

Andernos

Anchorage off Andernos on the north-east shore of the Bassin d'Arcachon, Gironde. Sand and mud bottom, shelter from NE, E and SE winds.

• Sheltered NE, E, SE

Andernos les Bains

Single-berth anchorage off Andernos-les-Bains on the north shore of the Bassin d'Arcachon, at the foot of the 232 metre wooden pier.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE

Anglet Montbrun

Small basin on the right bank of the Adour at Anglet, between Bayonne and the sea, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, maximum draught 1 m.

Anse de Kerhervy

River anchorage on the Blavet below Hennebont, Brittany. Mud bottom, sheltered from all directions except south.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SE

Anse de la Couronne Vieille

Small cove on the Côte Bleue west of Marseille, between Carro and Port des Laurons, with a sand bottom. Anchoring is prohibited here.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW

Anse De La Mondrée

Sand-bottom anchorage on the north-east coast of the Cotentin peninsula, between Cherbourg and Fermanville.

• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Anse de la Touesse

Sandy cove on the west side of the Baie du Mont Saint-Michel, south of Cancale in Ille-et-Vilaine.

• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Anse de Locoal

Anchorage in the Ria d'Étel at Locoal-Mendon, southern Brittany.

• Sheltered NE, E, SE

Anse de Tréhennarvour

Bay on buoy mooring near La Trinité-sur-Mer in the Morbihan, sand bottom, shelter from SW winds.

• Sheltered SW

Anse des Rivières

Buoy mooring on the Rance estuary between La Richardais and Dinard in Brittany.

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

Anse des Roseaux

Cove on the Saint-Mandrier peninsula in the Rade de Toulon, posidonia bottom, sheltered from NW, W and SW.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Anse des Trois-Fontaines

Buoy field on the Rhuys peninsula at the entrance to the Gulf of Morbihan, opposite Locmariaquer.

• Paid
• Sheltered W, E, SW, S, SE

Anse du Montenno

Buoy field on the Rhuys peninsula near Port Navalo, just inside the mouth of the Gulf of Morbihan.

• Paid
• Sheltered E, SW, S, SE

Anse la Galère

Cove on the étang de Bages-Sigean south of Narbonne, mooring prohibited, bottom of sand, rock, weed and mud.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW

APAM

Association port on the Canal du Rhône à Sète at Aigues-Mortes, Gard, between the Camargue and the medieval ramparts of the walled town.

Arcades

Anchorage of 60 moorings on sand in the bay of Perros-Guirec, on the Côte de Granit Rose in northern Brittany.

• Paid
• Sheltered N, SE, S, SW, W, NW

Arz

Small harbour on the Ile-d'Arz in the Golfe du Morbihan, south Brittany, about 1.5 NM east of the Ile-aux-Moines.