Porquerolles : the scuba diving gem of the French Riviera

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There is an island in the south of France that seems to be much further away than Europe. Its turquoise waters feel like being a part of the Caribbean. Only the ancient olive trees and the singing cicadas will remind you that you are still in Provence, where the French Riviera starts. Just off the shores of Hyères Peninsula, Porquerolles is far from the VIP parties of St Tropez. The island is an authentic piece of Provence in the Mediterranean Sea and is now an official part of the Port-Cros National Park. I just can’t believe I had hardly heard of it before going to Toulon on a regular basis. Now I know how beautiful Porquerolles Island is, one day, I would love to spend a full week of holidays there.

Exploring Porquerolles underwater

Diving in Porquerolles Island

For French scuba divers, the National Marine Park of Port-Cros has been a long time favourite as its rich marine fauna has been protected since 1963. 75% of Porquerolles was managed by the national park organisation since 1971, but it is only in 2012 that the maritime area around the island was added to the national park. While most of the local divers only talk about Port-Cros Island and its famous dive site “La Gabinière” thanks to its many groupers, for me it was love at first sight with Porquerolles and its colourful dive sites.


Best dive sites around Porquerolles Island

“Le Grec” shipwreck

It is one of the most famous shipwrecks of the Var region. At the depth of 40 m, “Le Grec” remains accessible within the limits of recreational diving for those who have the deep diving specialty. The shipwreck’s hull is entirely covered with bright red and yellow gorgonians. We often see a large school of sargo, pink anthias are flitting all around, dentex hunt above the ship and groupers take a nap on the deck. For now, this is my favourite dive site in France. I had the opportunity to scuba dive there twice to take pictures. At this depth, the time of non-decompression is limited so I will need a few more dives to get a nice video. Divers trained in France from level N3 (PA60) or tech divers, can also enjoy its twin ship, the “Donator”, lying at 52 meters deep.


Le Rocher des Mèdes

This rock located at the northeast tip of Porquerolles Island is a double dive site. There is a shallow one use for try dives and open water training, called the pool of the Mèdes, and a deeper site on the opposite site. Thanks to the shape of the rock above the surface, there is always an interesting light during the dive. Make sure you carefully look at the cracks of the wall, on your left side when you are facing the rock, to find nudibranchs and tiny hermit crab hiding in sponges. The wall which going quite deep is the most interesting part of the dive but there is no point to go deeper than 25 m. It is an excellent dive site for both beginners and advanced divers.


Le sec de la Jeaune Garde

This rocky pinnacle located near the lighthouse of the same name at the north-west tip of Porquerolles Island, is my favourite for underwater photography. In the cracks of the rocks or between the red gorgonians, there is always plenty of marine species to find: groupers, moray eels, nudibranchs, octopus, and schools of barracudas. This is also where I found my first slipper lobster (called a sea cicada in French, “cigale de mer“) and the egg of a catshark! The depth of this dive site ranges between 15 and 25 m. It is an excellent dive site for both beginners and advanced divers.


Le Cimentier” shipwreck

I often heard that this site was not worth a dive. I have to disagree. It might be only 10 to 12 m deep and hence a perfect dive site for beginners, I love the atmosphere of this small shipwreck in the middle of the Posidonia seagrass. You can easily enter the wreck, there is absolutely no danger, to check if some fish are hiding inside (usually they are). The Posidonia grass-wrack is also the home of many Doris and Flabellina nudibranchs. It is a great dive site for beginners who prefer shallower depths to build confidence.


Which dive centres go scuba diving in Porquerolles?

scuba diving centre in Hyères

While there is a dive centre on the island itself, usually scuba divers use the services of scuba diving centres of Hyères or La Londe.

In my case, I usually go on a 2-tank day trip including lunch on Porquerolles from Hyères. In this case, it takes about 50 minutes to reach Porquerolles Island on a semi-rigid boat.

Exploring Porquerolles above the water

St Agathe Fortress Porquerolles Island French Riviera

For a year, I dived all around Porquerolles Island but never had the opportunity to see the Island as we would to Port-Cros for lunch. Finally, during my Bastille Day holidays mid-Jul, I joined a 14 km guided hike to explore some of its most beautiful spots. The island might be only 7 km by 3 km, we focused only on the north coast from 11 am to 5 pm.

At the arrival of our boat, we made a short stop in the village of Porquerolles to buy water. It was more than 30°C that day, so walking so much makes you really thirsty. It’s important to note that in summertime Porquerolles is usually facing a critical drought situation so you won’t find any freshwater fountain in the village, so you need to bring or buy water.


We started the tour with St Agathe Fortress which is also the highest point of the island. The view on the beach of La Courtade is stunning. The colours made me think I was in the Carribean and not in Europe anymore. This ancient fort from the 16th Century shows how much strategy place Porquerolles is since a very long time. We took the time to visit the exhibition inside about the history of the island and the creation of the first marine national park in France.


The walk took us from a windmill on a hill to the rocky shores of the Langoustier Peninsula, while crossing pine tree forests, olive tree fields and vineyards. The landscapes were breathtaking, and I was surprised to see how easy it was to get away from the crowd which mainly stays on the Silver Beach (Plage d’Argent), the only one with a restaurant nearby. For sure our guide knew perfectly the side pathway to show its secret spots. This is how we got a beautiful tiny creek just for ourselves for our picnic lunch.

The protection of the island is taken extremely seriously in Porquerolles. Beyond the water restrictions, it is entirely forbidden to smoke outside of the centre of the village, the risk of fire is way too high on the island. You will barely see a vehicle on the island, everyone is either walking or riding a bicycle (you can easily rent one at the village for 15€ a day, don’t bother bringing one, renting is the same price as bringing one on the boat). Overall, while wandering around Porquerolles, you can appreciate a clean environment with only the sounds of the wind and your steps.

How to go to Porquerolles Island?

Port of Porquerolles Island French Riviera

You can take the boat to Porquerolles Island from Hyères Peninsula, at the Tour-Fondue Port, or from the main port of Toulon. The boat ride from Toulon with Bateliers de la Côte d’ Azur takes about an hour and is a bit more expensive, but considering the crazy traffic on the roads around Hyères in peak season, this is by far the most relaxing option, and you get a tour in Toulon Bay at the same time. Make sure to arrive 15 minutes before departure time to choose the best seats at the front of the boat to enjoy the best view!

  • Return trip from Toulon with Batelier de la Côte d’ Azur is 28€
  • Return trip from La Tour-Fondue in Hyères with TLV is 19,50€ (take into account 10€ for car parking for the day)

Do you want to discover the other dive sites in the Var prefecture? Have a look at these articles:

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Posted by Florine

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