Swimming on the French Riviera
Also spelled Côte d'Azur
Beaches and coves along the coast from Menton on the Italian border to the Port d'Alon calanque near Bandol, by way of Nice, Cap Ferrat, Antibes, Cannes, the red rock of the Estérel, the Saint-Tropez peninsula and the Îles d'Hyères. The sea is typically 23 to 25 °C in August and about 19 or 20 °C in October. Cap Taillat is reached only on foot, there's no road down to Plage du Golfe Bleu, and Porquerolles, Port-Cros and Île Sainte-Marguerite are ferry crossings.
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Every spot on the French Riviera
Typical water temperature in November.
Txllxt TxllxT, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SACalanque d'Anthéor
Calanque, Saint-Raphaël · Dogs not allowed.
Calanque d'Anthéor is a 100 m sand beach directly below the arches of the Anthéor railway viaduct, where about 850 Allied troops came ashore on 15 August 1944.
17°NovFreeCalanque du Port d'Alon
Calanque, Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer · No fires or camping; dogs off the beach in season; closed on extreme fire-risk days
Port d'Alon is a pebble calanque between Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer and Bandol, ringed by pines and cliffs, with no concrete buildings and no developed beach.
17°NovFreeCap Taillat
Beach, Ramatuelle · Protected site; the massif closes on top fire-risk days, June to September
Cap Taillat is a wooded rocky headland tied to the shore by a narrow sand tombolo, with the Baie de Briande on one side and the Baie de Bonporteau on the other.
17°NovFreeCoco Beach
Cove, Nice · Diving and jumping from the rocks are banned by the city
Rock ledges east of Nice's port, below the Cap de Nice coastal path, where locals swim off the rocks and call it "the pool".
17°NovFreeGrande Plage de Juan-les-Pins
Beach, Juan-les-Pins
The main sand beach of Juan-les-Pins, with public stretches between private beach concessions.
18°NovFree
Tangopaso, Wikimedia Commons · CC0Île Sainte-Marguerite
Beach, Cannes · Protected site (site classé): any fire is banned, dogs on a lead, stay on marked paths, take your rubbish back to the mainland
The larger Lérins island, 15 minutes by ferry from Cannes, with 22 km of paths through state forest and Sainte-Anne beach five minutes from the landing stage.
18°NovFreePlage d'Agay
Beach, Saint-Raphaël · Dogs not allowed. Part of the bay is private beach concessions.
Plage d'Agay is the main sandy beach of Agay's harbour bay, with the Estérel massif behind it and restaurants and bars along the back.
17°NovFree
Remi Jouan, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SAPlage d'Argent
Beach, Porquerolles · Port-Cros National Park core area: dogs banned from beaches, no fires or smoking outside the village, no camping. Summer visitor numbers are capped, with booked crossings from La Tour Fondue.
Plage d'Argent is a white-sand beach west of Porquerolles village, sheltered from the mistral with pine woods behind it, and it can get busy in summer.
17°NovFreePlage d'Èze-sur-Mer
Beach, Èze
The pebble beach of Èze-sur-Mer runs along Avenue de la Liberté on the Basse Corniche, between Cap Roux and Cap d'Estel, below the hilltop village of Èze.
17°NovFreePlage de Cabasson
Beach, Bormes-les-Mimosas · Dogs allowed on the beach November to March only; in summer they may use the small Plage de Brégançon beside the fort.
Cabasson is a 375 m beach beside the Fort de Brégançon, the summer residence of French presidents since 1968, with Porquerolles and the Giens peninsula in view offshore.
17°NovFree
dronepicr, Wikimedia Commons · CC BYPlage de Gigaro
Beach, La Croix-Valmer · Entrance to the Domaine du Cap Lardier, a protected area managed by Port-Cros National Park. Dogs are banned from La Croix-Valmer's beaches in the daytime.
Gigaro is a sandy family beach at the gate of the Domaine du Cap Lardier, a protected stretch of coast managed by Port-Cros National Park.
17°NovFreePlage de l'Almanarre
Beach, Hyères · Dogs not allowed (tourist office). The Route du Sel along the beach is closed to cars in winter.
L'Almanarre is a beach of nearly 5 km along the Route du Sel, one of the two sand tombolos that join the Giens peninsula to the mainland, with the old salt pans and their flamingos across the road.
17°NovFree
Lucas Mevius, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SAPlage de l'Escalet
Beach, Ramatuelle · Dogs on a leash only. The commune publishes a beach police bylaw and a naturism order for L'Escalet.
L'Escalet is a 350 m family beach between Cap Camarat and Cap Taillat, where the sand breaks up into small coves and polished rocks.
17°NovFreePlage de l'Estagnol
Beach, Bormes-les-Mimosas · Road access only through the paid Estagnol park in season. Out of season the beach is reached only on foot by the coastal path.
L'Estagnol is 475 m of very fine white sand on a private estate shaded by umbrella pines.
17°NovPlage de la Courtade
Beach, Porquerolles · National park core: no dogs on the beaches, no fires, smoking or camping
La Courtade is about 1 km of sand and pebbles 800 m east of Porquerolles village, with eucalyptus and pine shade behind it, and the tourist office calls it the island's longest beach.
17°NovFreePlage de la Garoupe
Beach, Antibes · Part private beach restaurants (Le Rocher, La Petite Garoupe, Keller), part public
A sand beach in a bay on the east side of Cap d'Antibes, rebuilt with a planted promenade above the beach restaurants.
18°NovFree
VManteuffel, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SAPlage de la Paloma
Cove, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat · Public beach with a private part (Paloma Beach); no dogs
A small gravel beach on the east side of Cap Ferrat, looking across to the cliffs of Beaulieu and Èze, with the Paloma Beach restaurant on part of it since 1948.
17°NovFreePlage de la Palud
Beach, Port-Cros · National park core: no dogs, fires, smoking or camping; the massif closes on top fire-risk days
La Palud is a small coarse-sand beach on the north shore of Port-Cros, shaded by tamarisks and backed by a reed bed, about 30 minutes on foot from the harbour.
17°NovFreePlage de la Petite Afrique
Beach, Beaulieu-sur-Mer · Part private beaches (Baïa Bella, La Javanaise) in season, part public
A 400 m gravel beach under the cliffs on the Monaco side of Beaulieu, shaded by umbrella pines, with a playground and a beach-volley court.
17°NovFreePlage de la Salis
Beach, Antibes
A sand beach along Boulevard James Wyllie on the east side of Antibes, at the start of Cap d'Antibes, beside the small fishing port of La Salis.
18°NovFree
dronepicr, Wikimedia Commons · CC BYPlage de Pampelonne
Beach, Ramatuelle · Beach clubs along much of the bay. Naturism is authorised on the Gros Vallat and La Mataranne sections. Dogs on a leash only.
Pampelonne is 4.5 km of fine sand where Tahiti Plage opened in 1946 and Club 55 followed in 1955, and beach clubs still line much of the bay.
17°NovFreePlage de Passable
Beach, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat · Public beach with a private part (Plage de Passable, open Easter to end of September); no dogs
A gravel beach on the west side of Cap Ferrat facing across the bay to Villefranche, with its own car park.
17°NovFreePlage de Saint-Clair
Beach, Le Lavandou · Dogs allowed on Le Lavandou's beaches November to March only.
Saint-Clair is an east-facing fine-sand beach 1.5 km from Le Lavandou, looking out to Le Levant and Port-Cros, with the rocks of La Baleine just off it for mask and snorkel.
17°NovFreePlage des Fossettes
Beach, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat · Dogs not allowed (in Saint-Jean they are allowed only on part of the port beach).
A small gravel beach below the Jardin de la Paix on Pointe Saint-Hospice, about 2 km from Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat village.
17°NovFreePlage des Marinières
Beach, Villefranche-sur-Mer · Part beach restaurants with mattress and parasol hire, part public
Villefranche's largest beach: 700 m of gravel along the bay, with the train station just above its west end.
17°NovFreePlage des Ponchettes
Beach, Nice · Dogs not allowed. No smoking on Nice beaches since 2024.
A public pebble beach on the seafront facing Nice's old town, with a beach volleyball area.
17°NovFreePlage des Sablettes
Beach, Menton · Dogs not allowed. Non-smoking beach.
About 350 m of very fine gravel below Menton's old town, between the Old Port and Garavan, looking across to the Italian mountains.
17°NovFreePlage des Salins
Beach, Saint-Tropez · Dogs not allowed.
Les Salins is a sand family beach at the end of the route des Salins on the Saint-Tropez peninsula, where currents sometimes leave dry posidonia on part of the sand.
17°NovFreePlage du Débarquement (Le Dramont)
Beach, Saint-Raphaël · Dogs not allowed.
Plage du Débarquement is a 500 m beach of sand and pebbles at Le Dramont, where more than 20,000 GIs of the US 36th Division came ashore on 15 August 1944; a landing barge and a memorial stand on the esplanade above.
17°NovFreePlage du Golfe Bleu
Beach, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin · Landing site for paragliders taking off from Mont Gros.
A pebble beach in the Anse de Cabbé on Cap Martin, between cliffs, with no direct road access: you arrive on foot by the Sentier Le Corbusier or down steps.
17°NovFreePlage du Midi
Beach, Cannes · Portable barbecues banned on Cannes beaches in the summer season.
One of the public sand beaches along the Boulevard du Midi west of Cannes's Old Port, with views of the Esterel and the Lérins Islands.
18°NovFree
Jon Mountjoy, Wikimedia Commons · CC BYPlage Mala
Cove, Cap-d'Ail · Non-smoking beach; beach operated under a municipal concession for eight months a year
A cove of fine sand and small round pebbles set in the rocks at the west end of Cap-d'Ail's coastal path, reached on foot by the path or the Mala stairs beside the Belle Époque 'Eden' residence.
17°NovFreePlage Marquet
Beach, Cap-d'Ail · Non-smoking beach
A pebble beach beside Cap-d'Ail port, right on the Monaco border, where the 3.6 km coastal path from Plage Mala ends.
17°NovFree
Jean-pierre olivier, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SAPlage Notre-Dame
Beach, Porquerolles · Port-Cros National Park core area: dogs banned from beaches, no fires or smoking outside the village, no camping. Summer visitor numbers are capped, with booked crossings from La Tour Fondue.
Notre-Dame is a fine-sand beach at the east end of Porquerolles, the farthest from the village, with pine and oak woods right behind the sand.
17°NovFreePointe de l'Aiguille
Cove, Théoule-sur-Mer · Estérel fire risk: in summer (mid-June to late September) the prefecture bans access to forest massifs on red-risk days.
Four small coved beaches in the 7 ha Pointe de l'Aiguille departmental park at Théoule-sur-Mer, where the red rock of the Estérel drops into the sea.
17°NovFree
Nothing here for that filter.
Questions about the French Riviera
Can you still swim on the French Riviera in October?
Yes. The sea is typically about 20 °C in October from Menton to the Estérel, at Hyères and on Porquerolles, and about 19 °C on the Saint-Tropez peninsula, at Bormes-les-Mimosas, Le Lavandou, Port-Cros and the Port d'Alon, after 21 to 23 °C in September. By November it drops to 17 or 18 °C. Most lifeguard posts close between the end of August and the end of September; one of the two posts at Juan-les-Pins stays open at weekends until early October.
Are the beaches on the French Riviera free?
Yes: none of the Riviera beaches listed here charges entry, though at L'Estagnol the road in passes through a paid park in season. Beach clubs and private concessions rent out part of the sand at Pampelonne, Juan-les-Pins, the Plage du Midi in Cannes, La Garoupe, Agay, Passable, La Paloma, Les Marinières and La Petite Afrique, and the rest is free to use. Plage Mala is run under a municipal concession for eight months of the year.
Which Riviera beaches can you reach by train?
Plage des Marinières is just below Villefranche-sur-Mer station, and Plage d'Èze-sur-Mer has a station on the Nice to Monaco line. Plage d'Agay is about 150 m from Agay station and the Calanque d'Anthéor about 250 m from the Anthéor-Cap-Roux halt, both on the line between Les Arcs-Draguignan and Nice. From Roquebrune-Cap-Martin station the Sentier Le Corbusier leads down to Plage du Golfe Bleu, and from Théoule-sur-Mer station it's about 20 minutes on foot along the sea to the Pointe de l'Aiguille.
How do you get to the beaches on Porquerolles?
By ferry, since there are no visitor cars on the island: boats run from La Tour Fondue on the Giens peninsula to Porquerolles harbour in about 15 minutes, and booking is strongly advised in July and August. Plage de la Courtade is 800 m east of the harbour village, 15 to 20 minutes on foot; Plage d'Argent is 1.8 km west, about 35 minutes; and Plage Notre-Dame is 3.2 km east, about an hour. The island is in Port-Cros National Park: dogs aren't allowed on the beaches, and visitor numbers are capped in summer.
What is the water quality like on the French Riviera?
In the 2025 EEA bathing season, 26 of the 34 places listed here with a monitoring site were classified excellent. Coco Beach, Grande Plage de Juan-les-Pins, Plage de la Courtade, Plage de Passable, Plage des Marinières, Plage des Sablettes, Plage Marquet and Plage Notre-Dame were classified good.