Best anchorages and harbours in Provence and Côte d'Azur

Port de la Figueirette

Marina of 218 berths in the hamlet of Le Trayas, on the Corniche d'Or at the foot of the Estérel massif.

Port de Sainte-Maxime

Marina of 800 berths on the northern shore of the Golfe de Saint-Tropez, facing Saint-Tropez across the gulf.

Port de San Peïre Les Issambres

Marina of 409 berths at Les Issambres, on the northern shore of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, between Sainte-Maxime and Saint-Aygulf.

Port du Pilon

Small harbour on the north shore of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, between Saint-Tropez town and the Marines de Cogolin, Var.

Port La Galère

Small marina of 16 berths on the Corniche de l'Estérel, below the La Galère residential estate designed by architect Jacques Couëlle.

Port Maritima

Marina of about 1000 berths at Martigues, on the Caronte channel linking the Étang de Berre to the Mediterranean.

Port-Grimaud

Lakeside marina of 2050 berths on the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, designed in the 1960s by architect François Spoerry as a lacustrine village with a canal network.

Saint Mandrier

Marina of 790 berths on the southern shore of the bay of Toulon, on the Saint-Mandrier peninsula in the Var.

Mouillage de Saint-Selon

Anchorage on the southern shore of the Saint-Mandrier peninsula, at the entrance to the Toulon roadstead in Provence.

• Sheltered NW, N, W

Sèche de Cassin

Offshore shoal in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, between Pampelonne and the Baie des Canebiers, usable as a fair-weather anchorage.

• Sheltered N, NE, W, NW

Vieux Port- Les Lecques

Small harbour of 203 berths adjoining the Nouveau port in the bay of Les Lecques, reserved for shallow-draught boats.

Villefranche - Santé

Small harbour tucked in the south-west corner of the Rade de Villefranche, between the old town and the Cap-Ferrat peninsula, on the Côte d'Azur.

Baie de la Gorguette

Anchorage on the Provençal coast between Bandol and Sanary-sur-Mer in the Var, off the Plage de la Gorguette.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE, NW

Baie de la Vierge

Anchorage on the north-east side of La Ciotat bay, sand bottom, shelter from W through N to NE, exposed to southerly swell.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W

Baie de Port Man

Deep bay on the north-east tip of Port-Cros, inside the national park and one of the most sheltered anchorages on the island.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW, S, SE

Baie du Niel Est

Anchorage on the east side of the Baie du Niel, on the Giens peninsula south of Hyères, Var.

• Sheltered N, NE, NW

Calanque de l'Establon

Small calanque on the Côte Bleue west of Marseille, between Niolon and the port of Corbières, inside the parc marin de la Côte Bleue.

• Sheltered N, W, NW

Calanque de la Tripe

Small calanque on the south side of Cap Bénat in the Var, between Bormes-les-Mimosas and the Île du Levant. Bottom of sand and posidonia.

• Sheltered N, NE, W, NW

Calanque de Morgiou

Calanque east of Sormiou with a small fishing port in the Calanques national park. Anchoring is prohibited in the calanque itself to protect posidonia meadows.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Calanque de Pouars

Narrow calanque on the southern coast of the Marseilleveyre massif, inside the Parc national des Calanques between Les Goudes and Morgiou.

• Sheltered S, SW, W, NW

Calanque de Sugiton

Narrow calanque between Marseille and Cassis, in the core zone of the Parc national des Calanques, where anchoring is prohibited and access is regulated.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE

Calanque des deux frères

Small calanque of the Esterel coast between Théoule-sur-Mer and Miramar, named after the two rocky islets off its entrance.

• Sheltered SW, W, NW

Calanque Saint-Pierre

Small bight immediately east of La Ciotat harbour. Anchoring is prohibited: moorings on buoys only during the season.

• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Cap d'Ail

Deepwater marina of 260 berths on the Riviera, immediately west of the Principality of Monaco.

Cap de l'Estérel

Anchorage off the south-east coast of the Giens peninsula in the Var, sand bottom, open to easterly winds.

• Sheltered SW, W, NW

Cap Roux

Anchorage on the red porphyry coast of the Esterel massif, between Théoule-sur-Mer and Agay, Var.

• Sheltered N, S, SW, W, NW

Cavalaire

Marina of 1200 berths in the bay of Cavalaire, between Cap Cavalaire and Cap Lardier, Var coast.

Îles de Lérins - Plateau du milieu

Anchorage on the plateau between Sainte-Marguerite and Saint-Honorat islands off Cannes, sand and weed bottom, open to all sectors.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, SW, S, SE

Îles du Frioul

Anchorages among the four limestone islands of the Frioul archipelago, 2.7 NM west of Marseille, within the Parc national des Calanques.

• Sheltered SE, S, SW

Îlot de l'Îlon

Anchorage off the small islet of l'Îlon on the south side of Île Sainte-Marguerite, the largest of the Lérins Islands off Cannes.

• Sheltered N, NE, NW