The French coast runs for some 5,500 kilometres. The landscape is incredibly varied; there are the sandy beaches of the Languedoc, the rocky shores of Normandy and Brittany, the cliffs of the Riviera and the marshes of the Camargue. Each region ha
The French coast runs for some 5,500 kilometres. The landscape is incredibly varied; there are the sandy beaches of the Languedoc, the rocky shores of Normandy and Brittany, the cliffs of the Riviera and the marshes of the Camargue. Each region has its own traditions, climate, food and culture. To help you choose the right spot for you, I have compiled a guide to the best of the French coast. It is in two parts, starting with the south (Bordeaux and below) and continuing with the northern coast.
St Tropez
No investigation of the French coast would be complete without St Tropez where Brigitte Bardot pranced on the beach in a bikini and a legend was born. Despite the fact that it is the most famous place on the French coast, St Tropez retains some of its old style charm. Unlike other Riviera towns, it still has a village feel to it in parts. According to Bernard Desterac from the estate agency Goldo International prices have increased dramatically in and around St Tropez since 1998 when the pound was at its strongest against the franc. “It was the arrival of British people which originally pushed the prices up,” he says. “We have seen increases of as much as six times in some areas within seven years. Now of course the prices are being sustained by a Russian clientele.” Basic villas in or around St Tropez start at €2 million. If you want a place on the water’s edge you’ll pay between €10 and €20 million. A more manageable option is to buy into a new development such as the Le Roc Golf and Spa Resort where three-bedroom apartments start at €530,000.
Ratings out of 10
(note: 1 is bad 10 is good on all ratings)
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 7
Property Prices: 1
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 4
Sports: 8
Culture: 4
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 7 (note on this rating: 1 means there are no Brits, 10 means the place is crawling with people wearing knotted handkerchiefs on their heads.)
Sanary-Sur-Mer
Sanary-Sur-Mer probably hasn’t changed that much since writers Sybille Bedford and Aldous Huxley hung out there in the 1930s. It has escaped much of the British influx to France as it was traditionally a town full of Germans. Not of the ‘first on the sun-lounger’ type, but the literary kind. During Hitler’s ascent, Sanary was the capital of German literature in exile. It is extremely accessible, just off the motorway and within easy reach of airports at Marseille, Toulon and Nice. According to Christian Gambarutti who runs the Agence Gambarutti in Sanary the Brits prefer to be in British ghettos like Le Lavandou, a few miles up the road towards St Tropez. “The handful that has bought here has chosen properties around the expensive area of Portisol,” he says. “It’s very pretty but if you buy on the wrong side you can’t open your windows when the mistral is in full force.” A decent sized house in Sanary will cost you around £500,000. A small apartment with a sea view will start at £200,000. It is not a cheap place to buy property but in my opinion it is the most charming and unspoilt town on the French coast. Though like anywhere in Provence, it is best avoided in August.
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 9
Property Prices: 4
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 6
Sports: 7
Culture: 7
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 1
Cassis
Cassis, or Cassi as the locals pronounce it, is almost as charming as Sanary and shares, according to a local restaurateur, a great literary tradition. “We have lots of intellectuals here,” he told me. “Joanna Trollope for example.” Moving swiftly on, Cassis has one big disadvantage. Rather like St Tropez, you can only get reach it from one tiny windy road, so getting to and from town during July and August becomes difficult without a helicopter. But it has the same charming old-style port as Sanary (bar the horrible tourist information office which one wonders how they ever got permission to build). Traditional fishing boats mix with the luxury yachts and the waves crash against the lighthouse. Prices are a little less than Sanary due to the road issue. Villas in and around Cassis start at around £400,000, an apartment in town with a sea view will set you back around £150,000.
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 6
Property Prices: 7
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 8
Sports: 7
Culture: 7
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 4 (mainly intellectuals)
Sète
Thierry Cazin who runs the Abessan estate agency in the Languedoc, says the coastal town of Sète in the Languedoc is as good an investment as you’re likely to find on the French coast. “It is easily accessible, only 25 minutes from Montpellier airport, has a very pretty centre and sandy beaches, it is perfect for second home owners,” he says. Sète is France’s principal fishing port on the Mediterranean so if it is an authentic town you’re looking for, this could be it. There is nothing poncy about Sète. It is not as picture perfect as Sanary or Cassis, but it is has a rustic charm which rubs off on most visitors. Locals call it the Venice of the Languedoc, which is an exaggeration, even if there is plenty of water. The best place to buy in Sète is on the Mont Saint-Clair which rises 183 metres above the town with views towards the Mediterranean, the Pyrenees, the Cevennes and the Thau lagoon. Property prices on the peak are around 20% higher than they are in the town. Cazin has a five-bedroom villa for sale with a living space of 210 square metres and a garden of over 2000 square metres for £555,000. Agde and Cap d’Agde are other coastal towns in the Languedoc. They should be avoided. Unless you like house hunting in the nude, in which case head for the nudist colony at Cap d’Agde where you can pick up a small apartment for less than €80,000, among other things.
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 8
Property Prices: 6
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 6
Sports: 7
Culture: 5
Scenic beauty: 7
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 7
Marseillan Ville
Just down the road from Sète is Marseillan Ville. It looks like St Tropez probably looked before Brigitte Bardot decided to grace the beach there. It is staggeringly pretty, with one of the most unspoiled ports in France. You can while away many an afternoon at the Château du Port restaurant, drinking wine and watching the boats go by. Do not confuse it with Marseillan Plage, which is worse than Margate. There is a beautiful stretch of beach that goes on for seven kilometres, all the way to Sète. Marseillan is extremely easy to get to as its only 40 minutes away from Montpellier airport. There is also a nearby TGV station at Agde. “It’s the perfect place to buy a holiday home,” says Alex Charles who runs a website dedicated to the region. “And with effective marketing you can easily rent property out. Expect to pay around €160,000 for a two-bedroom apartment and €200,000 for a three-bedroom villa.”
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 7
Property Prices: 8
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 8
Sports: 7
Culture: 6
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 8
Collioure
Collioure in French Catalonia is known as the city of painters and attracted some of the best, including Matisse who invented modern painting there in 1907. There is evidence of painters all around; from the romantic Les Templiers bar and hotel where painters exchange their goods for beer to the Fauvism walk along the coast. Collioure is relatively easy to get to, with regular flights to Perpignan and Gerona just over the border in Spain. The Collioure real estate market remains bouyant with a strong demand for correctly priced properties. Demand is truly international with French , Scandanavian , Irish and of course British buyers. Prices start at around €120,000 for a studio and from €150,000 for a one-bedroom flat. You’ll pay around €230,000 for a two-bedroom flat with garden in the old town. ”
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 8
Accessibility: 7
Property Prices: 7
Food: 7
Scope for value increases: 6
Sports: 5
Culture: 7
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 7
Brit-alert: 7
Biarritz and St Jean-de-Luz
Old world charm and exclusive designer shops meet in Biarritz to create a luxurious and cosmopolitan environment which is reflected in the property prices. Apartments in town with a sea view start at €6,000 a square metre. A small modern house without a sea view that needs renovating will cost you at least £250,000. But Biarritz is expensive with good reason. It is a magnificent town, reminiscent of a grander version of Brighton in the nineteenth century with glorious buildings and grand walkways. The Atlantic Ocean crashes onto the beach in the middle of town and you can watch the surfers do battle with the waves from any number of bars along the front. If you can’t afford a house within sound of the surf go half an hour inland where property is half the price. Alternatively rent room 702 in the Hotel Windsor and go for the weekend. It is a basic room but the view is one of the best along the French coast.
A few miles down the road is St Jean-de-Luz. With its half-timbered chalet-style houses it looks like a ski resort that’s been washed up on the beach. There is a horseshoe-shaped bay where the water is calmer than in Biarritz so better for children. Much of the centre of town is pedestrianised and the streets are lined with plane trees that provide shade in the summer. Property prices are not much lower than in neighbouring Biarritz.
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 7
Accessibility: 9
Property Prices: 2
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 3
Sports: 10
Culture: 8
Scenic beauty: 8
Quality of housing: 9
Brit-alert: 6
Arcachon
If you like sandy beaches this is the place for you. Head for the highest sand dune in Europe the Dune de Pyla. On a windy day as you clamber up to the top you can feel like an extra in Lawrence of Arabia. The view from the peak is breathtaking. Some property in Arcachon is marginally less expensive than it is in Biarritz. Possibly because you don’t have designer shops or the crashing waves of the Atlantic as it is on an oyster-shaped bay. But it has plenty to recommend it. A beach in the middle of town, two piers and plenty of good restaurants. Villas in and around the town start at €450,000 for a 100 square metres of living space with little or practically no garden. For a large house with a sea view you’re going to pay at least €1 million. According to Caroline Berg at CBI Immobilier prices have been rising steadily for the past six years and will continue to do so. “People are prepared to pay almost anything for the right property,” she says. She says there is increasing interest from Brits in the Atlantic coast of France. “They used to buy old farms inland, but now they’re beginning to be interested in the coast.” Some people will suggest you head for Hossegor, down the coast towards Biarritz for the great outdoors. Don’t. It is an ugly little place with a beach surrounded by housing estates. The surf may be great, but for most people that’s not enough. Although I guess if you spend most of the day with your head under water it’s immaterial what your surroundings look like.
Ratings out of 10
Weather: 7
Accessibility: 7
Property Prices: 7
Food: 8
Scope for value increases: 6
Sports: 9
Culture: 5
Scenic beauty: 7
Quality of housing: 8
Brit-alert: 5