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Visit Bandol

Bandol is many things to many people. To the boating crowd, it is a vibrant harbor accommodating about 1500 boats of all sizes at any given time. The streets immediately surrounding the harbor are packed with fine shops and restaurants as well as a casino for those who come ashore.

Back on the water, visitors are within a close sail of the magnificent white chalk calanques that lace the coastline between here and the port of Marseilles some fifty kilometers to the west.

To land-based vacationers it is a beach town and buzzing hub of activity to which they can return each day after exploring the diversity of the Var, the department of France along the Mediterranean coast roughly bordered by the maritime center of Toulon on the east and Marseilles on the west.

The promenade around the harbour is an attractive palm-tree lined walk, backed by some lovely pastel painted houses, and around Bandol port there are also several bars and restaurants, perfect for people watching (and eating!).

Easy access to good beaches, separated by rocky coved sections of coastline, and the hills behind the town, make a very pleasant setting for the resort.

Bandol tourism

As a tourist destination, Bandol is not a newcomer to the scene. Thomas Mann, Aldous Huxley, Marcel Pagnol, and D.H. Lawrence all vacationed here in their time.

Beach lovers can enjoy a leisurely change of scenery from day-to-day between the busy beaches of Bandol and those of Sanary-sur-Mer slightly to the east, and more down-to-earth Saint Cyr sur Mer slightly to the west with it’s charming central market and typical plane tree shaded boules court where locals, mostly men, gather with measuring tapes clipped to their belts for friendly camaraderie and fierce competition on any given afternoon.

Places to visit near Bandol and into the Var

Perhaps the most famous seaside resort in the Var is St-Tropez. The open-air cafés along the waterfront are perfect for people watching and those visitors who can easily afford it may treat themselves to haute couture as well as haute cuisine. For the rest of us, the shopping and dining are, nevertheless, first-class.

Inland, visitors to the Var can enjoy marvels of nature not the least of which are les Gorges du Verdon often referred to as the Grand Canyon of France. North of St-Tropez le massif de la Sainte-Baume, whose natural beauty is memorialized in the paintings of Cézanne. From the plateau one can take in commanding views of the surrounding countryside. A ride through the deep forests of le massif des Maures provides a memorable afternoon as well. While there, sample some of the deeply flavored honey for which the area is known.

There are many small villages in the Bandol area that are worthy of a look around. Fréjus is one steeped in Roman history. The area around the terraced village of Fayence is charming as well. Pay a visit to the lovely chapel Notre Dame-des-cyprès.

In and around the bustling town of Draguignan visitors seek out the open air markets in order to sample local specialties including olive oil, wines, honeys, and cured meats including wild boar prosciutto.

A visit to the Var should not end without a stop in the city of Toulon where Jacques Cousteau set out on a lifelong exploration of the sea and where the military traditions of the sea are everywhere evident.

Less crowded in the high season than its popular neighboring department the Alpes-Maritimes; the Var has every bit as much to offer and may just provide a clearer window into the authentic culture of this wonderful and diverse country.