Because of the beautiful boulevard with cozy shops and restaurants, the many sandy beaches with water sports facilities and quiet bays, the coastal towns of Fréjus and Saint-Raphaël are a popular holiday destination on the Côte d'Azur.
Less well known is that these two places are located in a beautiful nature area where many sporting activities are possible. For anyone who wants to explore the impressive Massif de l'Esterel, the coastal towns of Fréjus and Saint-Raphaël are an ideal starting point.
The Esterel Mountains are located in the departments of Var and the Alpes-Maritimes. To the east, the nature reserve borders the towns of Mandelieu and Cannes, in the west to Saint-Raphaël and Fréjus. The mountain range is 320 km² long of which 130 km² is a protected nature reserve: the Forêt domaniale de l'Estérel nature park.
Corniche de l'Estérel
You get a good impression of the breathtaking nature by driving the Corniche de l'Estérel by car. During the car ride you will be amazed by the contrast of the red volcanic mountain landscape with the azure blue sea.
The journey is about 30 kilometers long and runs from Saint-Raphaël via Agay, Antheor, Le Trayas, Theoule sur Mer, Mandelieu La Napoule to Cannes. The most spectacular places to stop are Pointe de l'Esquillon and Cap Roux. There the red rocks literally disappear into the sea. Do not forget to bring bathing gear on sunny days, it is great to take a swim in one of the bays of the calanques on the coast.
Walking and cycling in the Esterel mountains
The Forêt Domaniale de l'Estérel nature park is an exceptionally attractive area for walking and cycling. The beautiful nature with many colorful and scented plants, herbs, different tree species and the evergreen shrubs form a beautiful contrast with the reddish brown rocks of the mountains.
The Esterel mountains offer no less than 100 kilometers of prepared circuits for mountain bikers and about 40 kilometers of hiking trails. The real athletic hikers can walk to Cap Roux, this walk takes about 4 hours so know where you start! At several places along the RN 98 you can park your car and start hiking trails that take you to the Pic du Cap Roux at 450 meters altitude. Once up, you can look miles over the Esterel mountains.
If a walk of more than 4 hours is too long, we advise you to walk to Cap du Dramont near Saint-Raphaël. In about one and a half hours you are up and you have a nice view of Ile d'Or. This islet of about 200 meters length changed ownership around 1900 by winning a game of cards. The new owner founded his own kingdom, had a tower built in Medieval style, held parties for the jet-set of the Côte d'Azur and ... was finally buried there.
Also fun, and certainly achievable with smaller children, is a walk to Mont Vinaigre. This mountain near Fréjus is with 641 meters the highest mountain of the Esterel mountains. The walk (back and forth) takes about 2 hours with children and offers a beautiful view of the entire Esterel mountain range at the highest point.
The beaches around Saint-Raphaël
Saint-Raphaël and the surrounding area are popular holiday resorts because of the beautiful, wide sandy beaches in the area. Worthwhile are for example plage du Viaduc at Antheor and the beach of Agay. Along the way you can often park for free, near the beach. The beach at St. Aygulf is also beautiful and very suitable for children. Because of the breakwaters, the water is a bit warmer and the soil is slowly coming off.
Also a nice beach is the plage du Debarquement at Dramont, between Saint-Raphaël and Agay. This wide beach owes its name to the Allies who landed there in August 1944. The beach consists on the high part of sand and on the lower part of white and gray boulders. This is striking because most of the rocks in this area are red in color.
From Plage du Debarquement you have a beautiful view of Ile d'Or. From this beach you can also walk along the coastal path Sentier du Littoral, to the beach of Camp Long d'Agay, a beautiful beach in a sheltered bay. It is clear, whether you like cycling or walking in nature or want to enjoy a beach holiday, a holiday in the vicinity of the Esterel mountains just offers it all!
