Côte d'Azur & Corsica

📍 Île Sainte-Marguerite, off Cannes (Lérins archipelago)

Six giant submerged sculpted heads lie on the sandy seabed in shallow water off the western shore of Île Sainte-Marguerite, where they grow into an artificial reef for local marine life. They're intentionally snorkelable from shore — a short swim out, a calm, mind-occupying drift between the faces.

Free to view — just swim out; the island is reached by passenger boat from Cannes. Check the current sculpture layout and seasonal conditions locally before you go.

📍 Off Cannes

The sister island's rocky shelves drop into clear water with fish, small reefs and seagrass — a quieter, less-art-directed snorkel than Sainte-Marguerite, still just a short boat hop from Cannes.

📍 Calanques National Park, west of the Côte d'Azur proper

Dramatic white limestone inlets with turquoise water, rock arches and shallow rocky reefs — the Med at its most cinematic and a protected national park where you should respect marked swimming areas.

Calanques access and boating are regulated — check visitor rules with the park before your trip.

📍 Île de Port-Cros, off Hyères

One of the Mediterranean's oldest marine reserves and the region's finest for fish life: grouper, barracuda and healthy posidonia in famously clear water. Snorkeling is done from marked coves and a short trail of sites around the island.

No-take reserve — follow the park's marked snorkeling areas and rules.

📍 North-west Corsica, UNESCO site

Rugged volcanic cliffs and a strictly protected marine area of exceptional water clarity and rich fish life — classic Corsica snorkeling that's best reached by permitted guided boat.

Access is by licensed boat only; anchoring is restricted in the core reserve.

Hidden up Le Suquet's steep lanes, small family kitchens dish up the Riviera's honest classics — daube niçoise, panisses and a house socca — without the portside markup. Candle-lit stone walls and locals who've eaten there for decades.

Tip: Order the daube, the slow-braised beef that takes all day and can't be rushed.

In the island interior, farmhouse tables pile high with Corsica's charcuterie — figatellu, coppa and lonzu — and brocciu fresh from the morning's milking, with chestnut bread from the surrounding groves. Rustic, generous and a world away from the coast.

Tip: Save room for fiadone, the island's brocciu-and-lemon cheesecake.

Around Cannes' working ports, a handful of veteran kitchens serve whatever the nets brought in — often a whole fish of the day — with a carafe of local rosé on a terrace that's more shed than salon. Perfect after snorkeling the Lérins islands.

Tip: Order the catch 'à la plancha', grilled on the griddle, not the fried menu.