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Check out
www.varvillagevoice.com
which provides much useful information on the region.
SHOPPING AND MARKET DAYS: There is a big Geant supermarket en route to St Tropez to stock up. (You can't miss it!). There is also the Le Clerc supermarket in Cogolin and do not miss the local village market days in the area (Details of which are available in the house).
Wine: The local co-operatives in Grimaud and Cogolin both have an excellent selection of local wine. There are several five-litre containers in the house you may use to fill up with wine - but these are available cheaply from the co-op if you forget /need more (!)
Travelling to St Tropez: Although both roads and parking are good in St Tropez, highly recommended is catching the boat
Navettes Maritimes from across the bay at St Maxime quay. (Particularly on market day as it can get busy!) The trip offers a beautiful view of the whole of the bay and the other boats, some of which must be seen to be believed! There are also tours of the coast available from the Quay, fishing tours and excursions to the stunning national parks of Port Cros and Cape Lardier!
Abbey du Thoronet: Is just off the A8 before the turn off to the village. It is a beautiful old restored monastery with is breathtaking in its simplicity and has wonderful acoustics! Lovely gardens too!
Cycling: The French love cycling and many cyclists can be
seen on the beautiful and testing mountain roads and tracks. The house has
a secure gates lobby to stow your bikes. There are many specialist cycling
shops in the region including: Cogolin, Port Grimaud, Ste Maximu and St Tropez.
The Geant supermarket at La Foux (on the road to St Tropez) also carries cycle
accessories and tyres. It is possible to rent bikes from stores at some
SNCF railway stations. There are interesting cycle tours on
www.discoverfrance.com/regions/provence_biking.
Golfing: There are numerous golf courses in the area but as I don't do golf I won't attempt to recommend any. Suggested are the websites www.3dgolf.com or
http://www.pmfgolfguide.com/france/cote-d'azur/index.htm.
Nice and Cap Ferrat are well worth a visit. Walk along the famous
Promenade des Anglais and meander through the alleys of Nice. Cap Ferrat
is just as lovely as you hoped it might be.
PLACES TO GO IN PROVENCE (as well as the beach!)
Beaches - Good Beaches at Ste. Maxime - parking along the beaches west of the town which are particularly good for families with young children - Free public showers are spaced along the extensive beach - same if you go east to La Nartelle. The fashionable beach is Pampellone which is close to St. Tropez -famous for film stars and the glitterati. If you want to push the boat out go to CLUB 55 (cinquante cinq)- for the very famous1 But you must book Tel: No. 04 94 55 55 55 - The last time friends went there they saw Bono and the time before that they sat near Joan Collins, and Irvana Trump!!
Pampellone can be reached by taking the Ramatuelle road from the roundabout after La Foux (big Geant Casino hypermarche) and then heading back towards St. Tropez - sounds odd but avoids traffic going in direct to St. Tropez from La Foux which can be horrendous in the season. Of course Pampellone beaches offer lots of reasonable restaurants and bars all the way along it and there is a nudist beach should you so wish. Other reasonable restaurants are:- Le Neptune or - Migout at the far end , towards Cap Camaret . Moorea - Expensive . Tahiti - Even More - Bambou - Young and trendy - might even see Robbie Williams but he also goes to Club 55 - so does Jack Nicholson!!
Further west - go to Cigaro Beach or - Plage de Debarquement towards Cavalaire - turn off just past Croix Valmer - try L‘Oasis(on the beach) reasonable. A wild beach at Bastide Blanche - out on Cap Lardier. You will have to park and walk. Look up Cap Lardier on you map which is the southern tip of the presquile de Saint Tropez.
Go to Cavalaire - Along the coast west or to Le Lavandou and take the ferry to Porquerolles - a most fabulous island - no cars - you can hire bikes and cycle all around the island - delightful village and port, good reasonable restaurants - no smoking outside the village - Porquerolles is a MUST.
St. Tropez - Do go and see the hype, but the traffic can be awful during the high season – a good way to get there is to go to Ste Maxime and park in the port/marina and take the ferry across from the end of the jetty. The ferry takes you right into the old port of St. Tropez. There are many restaurants to suit all budgets. Tuesday and Saturday mornings are market days - which are among the best locally. Market is situated in the Place des Lices - have a drink in the Bar Clemenceau at the top of Rue Clemenceau - and watch the world go by. Also recommended is the Le Café Bar and restaurant where one can sit overlooking the Place des Lices and enjoy a ‘plat du jour’. Or a Pizza at Le Rennaisance Café, next to the cinema. Both quite stylish.
Cannes - Busy - pretty, and worth a visit to see the wealthy and also not so wealthy - very affordable restaurants in the back of the old town - there is a good morning market, etc.
Monte Carlo - and perhaps Italy afterwards? Go to Monaco (I personally do not like it but many do) on the Autoroute A8 about 1 hour and a half from here. After seeing Monaco you could go on to Menton, which has some interesting old buildings and a port and then carry on along the coast road to Italy about 45 minutes from Monaco. Into Italy and Ventimiglia (Friday there is a very good market and very cheap), but be careful, there are lots of fake Rolexs, perfume, etc. Some prefer the next town Bordighera - very good food.
The problem is it is lovely everywhere - But the coast roads are very busy in July and August and definitely don’t go on them if it rains - it’s choc a bloc with “tout les monde” - go inland instead.
Gorges du Verdon - For the brave of heart and steady of nerves there are the Gorges du Verdon which run south west from Castellane. I have Vertigo so I avoid it. Go through Draguignan from Le Muy and take the road for Comps sur Artuby; when you get to Comps look for the signs ’rive gauche” or droite (left or right bank) Comps has an excellent restaurant in the Hotel du Bain. The Bain family have owned it for 250 years - highly recommended. If you carry on to Castellane on the D955 - very pretty, wild countryside - you reach another part of the gorge where they do water rafting. Castellane also has reasonable, good restaurants.
Grasse - A very pretty town - quite touristy but, of course, the perfumes and the herbs, for which it is known, surround the town!
Sailing - Diving - Tennis, etc. If you want to go sailing - you can take a course with the “Ecole de voile de France” - there is one in Ste. Maxime on the coast road - another in the Bay de Canebiers at St. Tropez - in fact every town on the coast has one. Diving or “Plongeeing” Schools are everywhere and reasonable - a week’s beginners course is about £150 with a certificate at the end! A medical is needed for the diving courses.
Motor Boats - Day boats can be hired in Ste. Maxime from an office just next to the boatyard.
Walking
Walking is popular throughout the year and there are many walks in the vicinity. For walkers October is an ideal month in which to get out and about, not hot nor yet too cool. In fact the days get very warm. In celebration of which the Var Tourist Department now annually put together a very useful booklet for their (Semaine De La Randonnees) listing loads of walks from practically every village, all celebrating the joys and interest of Var scenery.You can pick up the booklet from the Tourist Office near the Maire. The walks are calibrated as ‘easy’, medium or difficult so there is something for all tastes. The various online tourist website give more details
For more information on all walks check out the Var Tourism website at www.tourismevar.com under the heading "pleine nature". You might also wish to view "Balades accompagnees" and "Randonnee Pedestre". Friends recommend the 4 hour walk to the Monastries of Chatreuse de la Vierne at Collobrieres. Stunning!
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