Whether you prefer stretching out in the sun with a chilled glass of wine or charging across the sand on a go-kart with a sail, there’s a beach in France for everyone, writes Anna Richards. France isn’t like the Seychelles. Its beaches don’t dominate the window displays of high street travel agents, or take over every Windows screensaver.
There aren’t (many) swaying palms; you won’t be diving with manta rays. However, they’re spectacularly varied. Subtropical archipelagos, goat tracks down limestone cliffs and sunset surfs before tucking into a hefty marmite (casserole) of moules frites – it’s all here.
Beaches in France often give the impression of being extremely polished. The best-known are often synonymous with celebrities. Brigitte Bardot dancing topless at Pampelonne Beach in Saint-Tropez.
The star-studded boardwalk of Deauville, where Coco Chanel owned a boutique. Cannes, where the red carpet is graced by anyone who is anyone in the film industry each May. READ MORE: 5 best beach towns in France for summer holidays Always a beach bum at heart, I spent much of the past two years writing a watersports guide to France, which lumbered me with the onerous task of visiting many of France’s most fabulous beaches.
These aren’t the beaches you’ll have seen on TV. These are the beaches the French would rather you didn’t know about..
