With more than 560 miles of coastline bordered by the Mediterranean Sea, South France is home to a great diversity in marine environments. From rocky bottoms and sandy slopes to Posidonia meadows and brackish lagoons, there are many fascinating snorkeling sites to be explored. When you snorkel in South France, particularly in reserves and National Parks, you’ll have the chance to swim and explore alongside a wide range of fish species including seabream, groupers, wrasse, meagre, sea horses, and several different kinds of marine life.
There are hundreds of snorkeling spots in Southern France’s coastal waters. There are rocky creeks, Calanques, rocky islets, Posidonia meadows and lagoons. In addition, there are more atypical locations such as shipwrecks, Roman ruins, and underwater sculptures.
If you are fascinated by marine fauna and flora, you will undoubtedly enjoy the reserves and National Parks, with their colorful backgrounds and abundance of marine life. Continue reading for the places to find the best snorkeling in South France.
Off Hyeres, the Port Cros and Porquerolles National Park, is one of the most beautiful marine protected areas in Europe, and it offers the best snorkeling in all of Southern France. The best spots are found around Port Cros Island, which is in the heart of the National Park.
The bay of Plage de la Palud, which can be reached in about 45 minutes on foot from the port, is considered to be Southern France’s greatest place for snorkeling. You will encounter in its seagrass beds and along its rocky ridges large common dentex, greater amberjack, brown meagre, gilt-head bream and dusky groupers. No other snorkeling location in mainland France allows for observing so many rare species in such a small area.
Anse de la Fausse Monnaie is another must-visit spot for Port Cros snorkeling enthusiasts. Here too, there are large sargo, gilt-head bream and schools of salema laze in the translucent water.
Neighboring Plage du Sud, popular with beach lovers, has less spectacular underwater life. On the east coast of the island, the Bay of Port Man and Calanque Longue are remote but stunning snorkeling spots.
Although also located in the Port Cros National Park through an extension in 2012, the island of Porquerolles has poor marine life, as fishing is still allowed on large sections of its coastline.
If you still choose to go to the island, some of the best snorkeling spots include Calanque du Brégançonnet, Plage du Langoustier and Cap des Mèdes, but you can also explore the rocky edges of Plage Notre-Dame and Plage d’Argent.
Between Cavalaire-sur-Mer and Hyeres, the coast has numerous small coves lying amid rock points. Among them, from east to west, you will find Plage de Jean-Blanc, Plage de Bregançon, Plage de l’Estagnol, Plage du Pellegrin and Plage de l’Argentière, the latter being equipped with a snorkel trail.
On Giens Peninsula, the best spot is Calanque du Four à Chaux, from which you can snorkel over shallow seagrass beds to the island of La Redonne. To the north of Almanarre Beach, you can also discover the Archaeological Site of Olbia, where an ancient Roman quay and a 19th-century shipwreck sit in a few feet of water.
A few minutes from Toulon city center, Anse Magaud, is the best spot in town. With its protected rocky beds there are fish, octopus and starfish.
A legendary destination in the Côte d’Azur, Saint-Tropez is world-famous for its smooth golden beaches, sparkling seas, and cloudless blue skies
In the northern extension of the famous Pampelonne Beach, Tahiti Beach has shallow rocky beds where you can see fish and octopus. Further south, Plage de l’Escalet and Plage de la Douane also lend themselves to fair snorkeling.
Cap Lardier, in La Croix Valmer, is one of Southern France’s signature undeveloped shorelines, a perfect option for those seeking a secluded beach escape near Saint-Tropez. It features Plage de Jovat, a small protected area where you can explore a rocky islet with Posidonia seagrass beds and a wreck in which groupers and morays hide.
The coastline that stretches between Cannes, Nice and Antibes is heavily urbanized. The best snorkeling in this region is found on the few capes and small islands which are still relatively untouched. If you are staying near Nice, head to the Cap Ferrat peninsula, where nice spots, such as Anse des Fossés, Anse des Fossettes or Paloma Beach, are located.
If you are looking for a more unusual environment, head to the Lerins Islands, less than 2 miles off La Croisette. It features the Cannes Underwater Museum, a series of six monumental portraits sited near the shore, at a depth of 10 to 15ft/3 to 5m.
On the Cap d’Antibes, there are a few options are available to snorkeling enthusiasts, who can get into the water at Baie des Milliardaires or at Plage de la Garoupe.
If you want to get away from the hustle and bustle then the Massif de l’Estérel, a nature haven, should be your top pick. This coast of red rocks extends for almost 18 miles between Théoule-sur-Mer and Saint-Raphael.
In this area, don’t miss the Pointe de l’Aiguille snorkeling spot, where brown meagre, two-banded seabream and dusky groupers are sometimes seen around the pinnacle that emerges into the bay. Other popular snorkeling locations in Massif de l’Estérel include Calanque d’Anthéor and Calanque de Maubois.
In the heart of the Massif des Calanques, between Marseille and Cassis, 27 creeks follow one another along the coastline. Surrounding limestone cliffs shelter the Calanques from high winds and offer serene waters for snorkeling.
However, the Calanques support relatively little underwater life. Indeed, although its coastline has been protected by a National Park since 2012, fishing is unfortunately still authorized in most of the area.
On the Marseille side, Calanque de Sormiou, Calanque de Morgiou and Calanque de Sugiton, all three with shore access, allow for the observing of starfish, seabream and salema in a crystal-clear sea. There are fewer fish in Cassis, especially in Calanque de Port-Pin and Calanque d’En Vau, areas which are overcrowded in summer. Many other Calanques make good snorkeling spots, but many of them are remote and a boat is usually required to reach them.
At the eastern end of the National Park, the ocher Calanques of La Ciotat offers different scenery. Anse du Petit Mugel and Anse du Sec, also popular with divers and free divers, are some of South France’s greatest snorkeling locations.
Caves lined with zoanthids and yellow gorgonians await the most seasoned snorkelers, who will also spot blennies, scorpionfish, moray eels and nudibranchs. Calanque de Figuerolles, further west, has fair snorkeling too.
If Pointe d’Endoume and the Frioul Islands are some of Marseille’s decent snorkeling locations, you will find better options in Carry-le-Rouet, especially in Cap Rousset Beach and Anse des Bouchons. These spots are part of Parc Marin de la Côte Bleue, an aquatic life conservation district located on Marseille Bay’s northern shore.
In Languedoc, where the long sandy beaches follow one another, the snorkeling opportunities are rarer. In Le Grau-du-Roi, Palavas-les-Flots or La Grande Motte, if you may want to explore, choose a calm day to snorkel the surrounding breakwaters where you might see some fish.
If you can, head to the rocky shores of Cap d’Agde and Sète instead, which are home to more decent snorkeling than in Languedoc. In Sète, there is fair snorkeling at Plage du Lazaret as well as at Crique de l’Anau, both nestled at the foot of Mont Saint-Clair.
About twelve miles further south, Cap d’Agde is also home to some nice spots. La Plagette, where a snorkeling trail has been installed, is the best known, but the neighboring Plage de la Conque, as well as the rocks that extend south from the Plage du Mole, can also be snorkeled. Fort de Brescou, located on a small rocky island off the port, is also a recommended location.
If the Languedoc spots at sea are relatively poor in fish, the Etang de Thau, a 12 mile-long lagoon separated from the sea by coastal dunes, boasts one of the most fascinating aquatic environments.
Ponton de la Bordelaise, in Balaruc, is the best snorkeling spot in the lagoon: it has the most marine life, including seahorses, pipefish and nudis that make their home in the shallows. This area provides the perfect opportunity for even beginner snorkelers to witness the mysterious underwater life.
At the western end of the French Mediterranean coast, the Côte Vermeille, between Argelès-sur-Mer and the Spanish border, is a gorgeous rocky shore and a must-experience snorkeling area in mainland France. These few miles of rocky coastline are home to the oldest marine reserve in the country, the Cerbère-Banyuls National Nature Reserve, established in 1974.
Plage de Peyrefite, halfway between Banyuls and Cerbère, is the most popular snorkeling location in the reserve. Gilt-head bream, sargo and octopus live in its shallow rocky scree. This area can be explored freely or you can follow the buoys on the snorkel trail. Plage du Troc and Plage de Taillelauque, which are part of the marine reserve, are also worth a visit.
Outside the reserve, Plage des Batteries and Plage de l’Huile (in Collioure), Anse de Thil and Plage de Bernardi (in Port-Vendres) or Anse de Terrimbo and Plage d’El Canu (in Cerbère) are good alternatives spots, however, you will see less fish there.
About fifteen underwater trails have been installed on the French coast. Equipped with underwater educational panels attached to buoys, they are a unique way to explore the seabed and discover the biodiversity of the Mediterranean.
Beginner snorkelers, who get to know the fascinating inhabitants of the shallows thanks to the panels, usually enjoy the snorkel trails. Among the most popular are the snorkel trails of Plage de la Palud in Port Cros, Plage de Peyrefite in Cerbère and La Plagette in Cap d’Agde. There is also Pointe de l’Aiguille in Théoule-sur-Mer, Plage de Jovat in La Croix-Valmer and Anse Magaud in Toulon.
The Mediterranean Sea is a relatively small and enclosed sea, teeming with biodiversity rarely seen elsewhere. It is estimated that it is home to 8% of the world’s marine fauna, with nearly 30% of endemic species.
Snorkeling in South France allows you to observe the bustling sea life. The Posidonia meadows, in particular, are a specific marine environment that is easily explored from the shore. They host red starfish, pen shells, cuttlefish, ornate wrasse, pointed-snout wrasse and small conger eels. These meadows play a crucial role as a nursery for many of the fish species.
Ornate wrasse, rainbow wrasse, two-banded seabream, salema and saddled seabream can be spotted almost everywhere in the shallows. You may also be lucky enough to encounter a moray eel, a broadnosed pipefish or a scorpionfish.
However, you will have to reach the marine reserves and National Parks to encounter more emblematic species such as gilthead seabream, brown meagre, greater amberjack or common dentex. To spot the dusky grouper, which is the flagship species of the Mediterranean, head for Plage de la Palud in Port Cros, where it can be seen less than 15 ft/5 m deep.
The coastal lagoons, in particular the Etang de Thau, are home to very specific biodiversity. Sabella, sea hares, shrimps, peacock blenny, cuttlefish, pipefish, but also two species of seahorse, which is a magical marine creature.
If you are planning a snorkeling trip to Southern France, we recommend you take with you the Europe and Mediterranean Marine Fish identification guide, an invaluable and comprehensive guide that includes all the marine fish species that may be encountered in the Mediterranean up to 54 yards deep.
Check this video 👇 to discover Plage de la Palud underwater world with us! Huge gilt-head bream, greater amberjack, dusky grouper, brown meagre… you never know what shows up! More than 15 distinct marine species can be seen in this short video shot with a GoPro.
The Mediterranean climate is mild and sunny, and the temperatures are generally clement. On the coast, average temperatures range between 70 to 80°F (20 to 25°C) from June to September, and from 55 to 70°F (14 to 20°C) the rest of the year. July/August is the peak period for tourists in the region, and you can expect high visitor numbers on some parts of the coast.
Water temperature varies between 65 to 75°F (18 to 24°C) from July to October and around 60°F (15°C) in May/June. Outside these months, snorkeling is limited by cooler water temperatures, unless you have an adapted wetsuit.
Even during summer, we recommend wearing a rashguard, which will protect your back and shoulders from the strong UV radiations that occur in the Mediterranean.
The wind, blowing in gusts over some parts of the coast, should be taken into account before a snorkeling trip in the Mediterranean. It can lead to dangerous conditions in the sea (waves), but which are also less pleasant (cold).
This page covers the continental Mediterranean French coast. For Corsica, see the special page. The French overseas departments and territories also have dedicated pages: Réunion Island, Mayotte, Guadeloupe, St Martin, St Barthélemy, Martinique, French Guiana, French Polynesia and New Caledonia. You can also check our pages about snorkeling in Brittany and freshwater snorkeling in the French Alps lakes.
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Frequently spotted at Plage de la Palud in Port Cros, frequent in Plage de Jovat and Pointe de l’Aiguille; very rare elsewhere.
Common in rocky areas, especially in Port Cros and Porquerolles islands
Often spotted in Plage de la Palud, Anse de la Fausse Monnaie and Pointe de l’Aiguille. Very rare elsewhere.
Common in the Etang de Thau, at Ponton de la Bordelaise spot. Rare sightings at Anse du Petit Mugel
Common during mating season (April to June) in rocky areas and seagrass meadows, even at shallow depths.
Common in protected areas, especially in Plage de la Palud; but also in Anse Magaud and Plage du Cap Rousset. Rare elsewhere
Common in rocky areas
Found on all spots; abundant at Plage de la Palud, Calanque de Sugiton, Anse Magaud and Calanque du Four à Chaux
On all spots; in impressive shoals (sometimes more than 100 individuals) in Plage de la Palud
One of the most common sights in the Mediterranean; frequently schooling in Neptune grass meadows
Occasional sightings in rocky areas
More common in protected areas, notably in Port Cros National Park and Anse Magaud.
National Park with vibrant marine life and snorkel trail
Level: Free shore access
Small cove with rocky drop offs and caves
Marine reserve with rocky beds and snorkel trail
Shallow rocky beds and seagrass meadows
Small marine reserve with a snorkel trail and many fish
Marine reserve with shallow rocky seabed and a snorkel trail
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