10 Best Beaches in France

La Grande Plage (the Big Beach) is one of the most famous beaches in Biarritz. Close to the town centre, it runs between Casino Barrière and the upscale Hôtel du Palais for about 500 metres. Biarritz’s Big Beach is divided between swimming areas and surfing zones. It has all the facilities required to spend a fun lazy day on the sand: beach clubs and surf schools line the promenade, striped beach tents and parasols are available for rent, and there's a host of bars and restaurants nearby. 

Pampelonne Beach geographically belongs to the village of Ramatuelle, but it’s closely associated to Saint-Tropez, one of the most glamourous resort towns on the French Riviera. Stretching between the Cap du Pinet and the Pointe de la Bonne Terrasse, Pampelonne Beach is almost 4-kilometre-long. Large and spacious, the beach is divided by sections, each of them features a parking lot and is named after the main beach club or restaurant on site. Note that Tahiti zone, to the north of the beach, is a nudist section.

The Prado Beaches are part of a seaside park located between the Roucas Nautic Center and the Pointe Rouge Old Port in the south of Marseille. Covering an area of over 40 hectares, mostly reclaimed from the sea, Prado seaside park features 7 sand-and-shingle beaches protected from the swell by breakwaters. The park is public and features a great choice of activities including a skate park, a climbing wall, first-aid posts on each beach and plenty of refreshment stands and restaurants.  In terms of accommodation, many hotels are available near the Prado Beach and its surrounding parks.

Located 12 km south of Porto Vecchio on the southeastern coast of Corsica Island, Palombaggia Beach is a picturesque 2-kilometre-long strip of sand famed for its crystal-clear waters and umbrella-shaped pines. Bars and restaurants, sun loungers and parasols as well as water activities such as jet-skiing, scuba diving, windsurfing and pedal boats are at hand. Snorkelling is also great at both rocky ends of the beach. A large car park is available just north of the beach, and you can enjoy cool strolls to the tip of the Acciaju Cape which marks the eastern end of the beach. 

Located in Loire Atlantique in south Brittany, La Baule-Escoublac is a famous resort town teeming with prestige hotels, stylish vintage villas, and fancy casinos. Running almost 9 km between Pornichet and Le Pouliguen, La Baule hosts one of the longest beaches in Europe. La Baule Beach is wide and bordered by a promenade that offers a cool place to stroll and jog. Beach clubs, restaurants, sailing schools and children playgrounds dot the beach which also features public toilets. 

Get away from it all at Petit Sperone Beach. Located in the scrubland, toward the southeastern tip of Corsica, this roughly 100-metre-long beach is one of the most picturesque strips of sand on the island. It has white powdery sand and turquoise waters. We know it sounds like a cliché, but Petit Sperone looks like a Caribbean beach. You have to walk for 1 km on a rocky trail along Piantarella Beach to enjoy it all. Getting there is a bit demanding, but it’s definitely worth the effort as the beach is stunning. For a bite to eat, you'll find a few bars and restaurants near the parking lot.

Located just south of Grau-du-Roi, 40 km southeast of Montpellier, l’Espiguette Beach is an unspoilt patch of sand that stretches for 3 km along the Mediterranean Sea. Backed by dunes and scrubland, l’Espiguette feels like you're in the middle of nowhere. Its large size helps the secluded feel, and it's a perfect spot for long meditative strolls. As for facilities, you’ll find a pleasant restaurant named Le Petit Mazet on the road that leads to the beach, and one beach restaurant named l’Oyat-Plage near the Baronnet car park. There's also snack-carts that go up and down the beach. Wild and off the beaten track, l’Espiguette is the perfect beach to break free.

Saint-Guirec Beach is a splendid cove located just north of the village port of Ploumanac’h in Brittany. Framed by large pink granite boulders and flanked on one side by the majestic Castel Beau Site, a castle-like hotel, the least we can say about Saint-Guirec Beach is that it’s picturesque. Just adjacent to the village, you can find a good range of lunch options nearby. In summer, a kid’s club permits you to leave your children in safe hands while you take a stroll along the coastal path that leads to the Men Ruz lighthouse and further.

Deauville is nicknamed the ‘Parisian Riviera’ due to its relative proximity to the French capital city (a 2-hour-drive away by car). With a length of almost 3 km and a maximum width of 300 metres, Deauville Beach is a pretty large patch of sand bordered by a promenade named Les Planches. Cleaned every morning, the beach is spotless. Restaurants, bars, children’s clubs and toilets can be found along the beach, and you can rent sun-loungers and parasols. Deauville Beach has a vintage feel in line with the architecture of the splendid villas and hotels that line the seafront.

The Grande Plage (the Big Beach) in les Sables d’Olonne is a 1.5-kilometre-long crescent-shaped bay framed by a breakwater to the west and a rocky headland to the east. Bordered by the Georges Clemenceau Promenade, it’s dotted with beach bars and restaurants, and it offers a pleasant place for a stroll. Children’s clubs are at hand to take care of your little ones, while beach cabanas are available for you to rent. You can enjoy nautical activities such as windsurfing and kitesurfing in the east part of the beach.