Calanque du Mugel
The Calanque du Mugel has two pebble beaches, Grand Mugel and Petit Mugel, below the Bec de l'Aigle headland at La Ciotat. Behind them the Parc du Mugel, a garden of about 17 hectares listed as a Jardin Remarquable, grows cactus, bamboo and strelitzias.
WhatCalanque, La CiotatCalanques
WhenJune to October17° in Nov
Getting there Bus On foot30 min walk-in
CostPublic shoreFree
AccessDogs not allowed; the hills close on red fire-risk days, June to September
- 14°J
- 13°F
- 13°M
- 14°A
- 17°M
- 20°J
- 22°J
- 23°A
- 21°S
- 19°O
- 17°N
- 15°D
Expect the sea at about 23 °C in August and 13 °C in February, going by the 1991 to 2020 averages. The swimming season runs from June to October.
Getting in
- Access
- The park and the town give under 30 minutes on foot from La Ciotat town centre, with Ciotabus line 30 serving the Mugel. The town says cars cannot reach the calanque and parking nearby is paid; the park adds that car parks are often full and that the Mugel is overcrowded in summer. The Parc du Mugel behind the beaches opens 08:00 to 20:00 from 1 April to 30 September and 09:00 to 18:00 from 1 October to 31 March. Dogs not allowed on the beaches; non-smoking site. Inside the Calanques National Park; the surrounding hills close on fire-danger days. From 1 June to 30 September the Bouches-du-Rhône prefecture sets access to the forest massifs day by day (order of 22 April 2025, partly revised 9 July 2026): green allows access, red bans it, and the map for the next day is published around 18:00.
- Parking
- No car access to the calanque; paid parking nearby, including the unguarded Mugel car park, often full in summer.
- Public transport
- Ciotabus line 30 to the Mugel and Figuerolles calanques; the park and town give about 30 minutes on foot from the town centre.
- Also here
- Coastal walk
Cost and facilities
- Entry
- Free, public shore
- Official site
- calanques-parcnational.fr
- Facilities
- RestaurantToilets