While the 21st edition of the Voiles de St Tropez regatta wrapped up yesterday, on October 9th 2021, the village of St Tropez filled up to the rim with visitors eager to catch a glimpse at the magnificent yachts racing around the bay.
Meanwhile, the hiking trails that surround the peninsula of St Tropez were almost empty, and simply gorgeous.
This summer (2017), three French riviera museums celebrate the life and lively creations of Theo Tobiasse (1927-2012): the Musée Magnelli in Vallauris, Saint-Paul de Vence's streets and Espace Verdet and Le Cannet's Chapelle Tobiasse.
If you're anywhere along the French Riviera this summer and you're curious about Tobiasse, hop on the trail and enjoy. This Lithuanian born french artist portrayed hope, despair and all colors of the human experience through his expressive textured paintings, but also his ceramics creations, his sculptures and words.
Well worth a visit.
One of the nice things about Boulouris, a little beach town at the edge of Saint-Raphael on the French Riviera, is its large number of beaches. One of the popular ones is Plage de la Peguiere.
Why popular?
It's sandy, sheltered, relatively long (though narrow) and includes a small drinks, snack & ice cream shop as well as a beach lifeguard post with an eye on the delineated swimming area. Plus it's accessible by bus (bus 5) from Saint-Raphael - stop at "La Peguiere".
It does get crowded in the summertime. But then again, most beaches here do during the first two weeks of August. You can still find your spot on the sand without too much trouble!
The Western French Riviera offers many hidden sweet little beaches, in addition to famous ones such as Pampelonne beach behind Saint-Tropez or even La Nartelle by Sainte-Maxime or Saint-Raphael's Plage du Veillat.
You'll find many of them along the coastline between Saint-Raphael and Agay.
One of my personal favorite is Plage de la Pescade. I'm not the only one to think so, so this isn't an entirely secret beach.
Why is this an AzurAlive Best Beach?
First, it's environment is simply gorgeous. The rocky shores that surround this sandy beach are an auburn red color that comes to life and glow in the evening under the setting sun. The sea gently laps ahead, and purrs in the distance along the rocky sides of the beach.
It's relatively sheltered, depending on where the wind blows.
It's family-friendly and children often get to make friends with other beach explorers lucky enough to have found this place. You'll find all generations on this beach, from great-grand parents to the little ones.
Note the La Pescade is not overseen by lifeguards even during the summer months. If you are keen on the watchfull eyes of lifeguards, consider La Peguiere or the Veillat beach in Saint-Raphael.
You'll find no snack bar or restaurant on the beach here, and no transat rental. This is the raw deal, the wildish beach, a non-commercial just the sea kind of a place. You will find a small "Spar Casino" grocery shop across the street towards Boulouris.
If you enjoy swimming out around the rocky side of the beach, I recommend you bring a pair of water shoes. These are essential for children who enjoy roaming around. They're very useful for adults too if are like me and enjoy exploring the areas such as La Pescade that are untamed and do include the region's pebbles and rocks and not just sand.
Water shoes are available at the Spar Casino close-by if you need them.
La Pescade does have one little fresh water shower so you can clean the sand off your toes before leaving. There's also a portable toilet (in a Mediterranean light blue colour to blend with the elements).
Where is the beach La Pescade?
You'll find it in Boulouris, just east of Saint-Raphael on the Western side of the French Riviera.
Holland America's 968 feet long Zuiderdam cruise ship dropped by the Saint-Raphael bay today, making the rest of us on the water look ridiculously tiny, like ants next to an elephant.
Weather was briefly overcast and heavy with imminent rain this morning, giving a shiny grey luster to sea and sky. Even our beloved Plage de la Tortue beach around Saint-Raphael was shining like polished metal under these cloudy skies.
Rain poured in a very narrow section of town early in the afternoon, giving way to clearer skies once again. Typical tropical storm of the Western French Riviera!
Plage de la Tortue in Boulouris, between Saint-Raphael and Agay on the Western French Riviera is one of our favorite beaches on the Western French Riviera. Check out our article on this fantastic little beach of fine white sand. And access information on all of our favorite beaches under "Best Beaches" in the category cloud in the right-side column.
The Palladio beach club is a simple, fast, friendly and non-pompous beach restaurant in Boulouris, on the Western French Riviera close to Saint-Raphael.
The beach is rarely crowded. You can actually spread your stuff all over the place, and it won't bother anyone.
The restaurant's atmosphere. This is a relaxed (for the customers that is, waiters go 100 miles per hour), friendly beach restaurant.
Food is very decent. The venerable cheese-burger is on the menu, with its generous helping of chips/fries and its little green salad. But Palladio also offers a half-dozen composite salads, ranging from the exotic thai salad with chicken to the carpaccio.
It's reasonable in price. A "plat du jour" costs between 12 euros for grilled sardines, to 14 for a generous salad or 20 for fish. A children's menu 8 euros.
The beach is of golden rough sand, not the fine white powdered stuff next door, but perfectly fine.
The restaurant rents plush lounge chairs with their parasols, for 5 euros an hour, 12 euros for a 1/2 day and 16 euros for a full day from 9AM to 6PM.
You can swim in the shallow waters which are sheltered by a reef formed by an ancient lava flow, which makes it a good choice for families. You will need to wear water shoes as rocks abound. Water is usually pristine. The only downside is when the wind blows onshore, small waves will break on the reef making the waters choppy, but that could be your thing.
The beach is not under the watch of a lifeguard. That's usually the case for smaller secretive beaches in this area.
Palladio is in the seaside resort town of Boulouris, between Saint-Raphael and Agay on the Western side of the French Riviera in the Var region of France. It is right next to Plage de la Tortue.
Reach it by train, stopping at the Gare de Boulouris station.Reach it by bus from Saint-Raphael (AggloBus bus 5, not a very frequent line but convenient for access to lots of beaches) or of course by car (park by the seaside road if you're lucky or in the Boulouris "Parking de la Gare" open lot).
Any other beach you recommend on the French Riviera?
We have a long list of favorite beaches on the French Riviera. Consult the "Best Beach" category on the right and scroll through the list for a taste of what the region has to offer.
Adjacent to it is La Plage de la Tortue, another favorite beach, but with a different more upscale vibe.
And if you're interested in hiking in the region between Saint-Raphael and Hyeres (short hikes from 2 hours to half-day), take a look at this unique hiking guide to the Western French Riviera:
Hiking Guidebook to the Western French Riviera: 26 Gorgeous Hikes on the Western Cote D'Azur
The eastern side of the French Riviera is beautiful, vibrant, cultural, but the western side of the Cote d'Azur is where you'll find the best beaches...
Here's a beach we love, Plage de la Tortue. We've talked it about it before in an 2007 post, but we have to mention it again as a "Best Beach" on the Western French Riviera.
What makes it a best beach?
Plage de la Tortue imports tons of fine soft white sand and the scenery is gorgeous: red rocks of the Esterel around, lush green of parasol and maritine pines, deep blue of the sea, lapping waves just beyond the tip of your toes and this powdery white soft sand. Pure pleasure for all senses.
The beach is rarely over-crowded, which is a real plus on the French Riviera in the middle of summer.
The white-sanded part of the beach is part of a private beach club. You can rent your plush lounge chair with parasol for a half-day or a full day. Current (2015 fees) = Morning 1/2 day costs 9 € from 9AM to 1PM, afternoon 1/2 day 14 € from 1PM to 7PM. Full day 19 € from 9AM to 7PM.
The restaurant next door serves decent food, especially good with seafood even if fish is inevitably the more pricy option on the menu. They often serve the day's fresh local catch with sea bream, sea bass and even swordfish on occasion. If you're looking for a simpler alternative, the restaurant serves lots of creative salads too.
Plage de la Tortue is in the seaside resort town of Boulouris, between Saint-Raphael and Agay on the Western side of the French Riviera in the Var region of France.
You can reach it by train, stopping at the Gare de Boulouris train station. You can reach it by bus from Saint-Raphael (AggloBus bus 5, not a very frequent line but convenient for access to lots of beaches) or of course by car (park in the Boulouris "Parking de la Gare" open lot)
We've talked it about it before in an 2007 post, but we have to mention it again as a "Best Beach" on the Western French Riviera.
The eastern side of the French Riviera is beautiful, vibrant, cultural, but the western side of the Cote d'Azur is where you'll find the best beaches...
What makes it a best beach?
Plage de la Tortue imports tons of fine soft white sand and the scenery is gorgeous: red rocks of the Esterel around, lush green of parasol and maritine pines, deep blue of the sea, lapping waves ahaead and this powdery white soft sand. Pure pleasure for all senses.
The beach is rarely over-crowded, which is a real plus on the French Riviera in the middle of summer.
The white-sanded part of the beach is part of a private beach club. You can rent your plush lounge chair with parasol for a half-day or a full day. Current (2015 fees) = Morning 1/2 day costs 9 € from 9AM to 1PM, afternoon 1/2 day 14 € from 1PM to 7PM. Full day 19 € from 9AM to 7PM.
The restaurant next door serves decent food, especially good with seafood even if fish is inevitably the more pricy option on the menu. They often serve the day's fresh local catch with sea bream, sea bass and even swordfish on occasion. If you're looking for a simpler alternative, the restaurant serves lots of creative salads too.
Plage de la Tortue is in the seaside resort town of Boulouris, between Saint-Raphael and Agay on the Western side of the French Riviera in the Var region of France.
You can reach it by train, stopping at the Gare de Boulouris train station. You can reach it by bus from Saint-Raphael (AggloBus bus 5, not a very frequent line but convenient for access to lots of beaches) or of course by car (park in the Boulouris "Parking de la Gare" open lot)
Crithmum maritimum, also known as samphire, rock samphire, or sea fennel loves the rocky coastline between Saint-Raphael and Cannes, on the Western French Riviera.
If you're ever on hike #4 of 26 Gorgeous Hikes on the Western Cote d'Azur, you'll see it in every little crevasse of the Esterel's emblematic red volcanic rocks.
They pick the tiniest of cracks on the best rock on the most picturesque bend in the path to grow and stare out to sea.
Smart pickle, that maritime fennel.
The lovely Port-Cros National Park online pamphlet about plants tells us that it's forbidden to pick the plant here, but its leaves are edible. Some describe their taste as a cross between "celery and kerosene"... I find them bitter, and not anything like fennel, so I leave them alone to glow all over our seaside hiking paths.
Plants for A Future ranks them as "reasonably useful" medicinal plant as a diuretic and for digestive issues (consult a health pro before using).
I find it an incredibly uplifting plant just to look at in its natural habitat.
