February 2014… The preservation of natural but accessible landscapes is a main foundation of sustainable tourism. Both Le Var and La Côte d’Azur are active in working to preserve the endangered animal species in the area, as well as the vast array of plant life, much of which is found only here. At the same time they have worked towards offering the visitor activities that allow them to experience the beauty, but not harm the natural environment.
Le Var
COUNTRYSIDE
Le Var in the south of France, stretching between Saint Cyr and Saint-Raphael, is home to a million acres of woodland, 3,000 plant species, 350 different types of bird…all bathed in 300 days of sunshine a year – a glorious backcloth to explore – walking, hiking, riding and biking, all carefully managed with the preservation of the landscape and wildlife very much in mind.
The Verdon Regional Nature Reserve
The Verdon Regional Nature Reserve covers an area of 445,000 acres and attracts many visitors due to its exceptional scenery and rich heritage. The Reserve is committed to water management, accompanying agricultural and tourist activities and preserving the natural heritage and landscapes. The Reserve is home to the Sainte-Croix Lake and the Verdon Grand Canyon, two of the most spectacular and beautiful sites in the area. The river takes its name from the turquoise and azur colour of the water that winds 170 kilometres through stunning countryside affording wonderful views over the area. It is a playground for kayakers, canoers, and climbers in particular.
The Sainte Baume Forest is set at the foot of the “Massif de la Sainte-Baume”; A chalky barrier rising to over 1,100 meters stretching from East to West over a length of 14 km. Home to a rare ecosystem recounting a major chapter in Provence’s history, the protected forest is managed by the French Forestry Commission
The rocky barrier takes its name from a grotto (“baumo” in Provencal dialect) said to have sheltered Mary Magdalene. Sacred site in the 13th century it remains one of the Western world’s most-visited places of pilgrimage: 8 popes and 18 sovereigns have visited it since the Middle Ages.
The Maures Plain
The Maures Plain is situated at the northern foot of the Maures Massif. Major agricultural and forestry area in the early nineteenth century, it was bought by the Coastal & Lakeside Conservatory in 1996 and has been returned to its original wild state.The plain is the remains of an ancient continental area that once included what is now Corsica and Sardinia. It is dark in colour (Lei Mauro in Provencal dialect means Black Mountain) due to the rocks and forests of pines and oaks; sweet chestnuts are a specialty.
The Esterel Hills
The Esterel Hills are a complete contrast in colour to the Maures. The red porphyry rock makes a striking contrast to the blue of the Mediterranean. They are of volcanic origin and form a dramatic succession of gorges, passes and craggy cliffs harboring a wide variety of flora and fauna including agaves, eucalyptus, palms, fig and olive trees, chestnuts and hornbeams. The Esterel, like the Maures, is extremely popular with horse riders with major growth to above the national average.
SEASIDE
Le Var coastline has many protected sites owned by the French Coastal and Lakeside Conservatory which aims to provide protection for natural coastal and lakeside areas buying up fragile or threatened land. There are twenty of these sites in Le Var. The area along the coast is renowned for walking and diving.
The Port-Cros National Park was the first national marine park founded in 1963 on Port-Cros Island facing the coast of Hyères. It is also part of the Mediterranean Sanctuaire Pelagos – a sanctuary founded by Italy, Monaco and France to protect marine mammals. A Scientific Committee directs its annual research programme on land biology, marine biology and human sciences. Port-Cros is the smallest of the Golden Islands archipelago as well as the wildest and most mountainous; a rare example of a preserved Mediterranean forest. Many migrating birds stop over here, especially since the island was returned to its wild state after many years of cultivation. It has exceptional underwater fauna.
Diving
The Port-Cros National Park, Porquerolles Islands…and in fact all the way from Saint-Cyr-Sur-Mer to Saint Raphael, the coast of Le Var is a diver’s paradise. Diving here is one of top leisure activities, balancing between economic development and natural heritage. With over 60,000 dives in 2012 for example, the underwater environment is under considerable pressure but regulations and partnerships with divers for sustainable management of this very popular leisure activity have helped prevent great damage. There is for example a Diving Charter that divers may sign at the Maison du Parc on the Port-Cros Island, before they take the plunge.
Var Tourisme issued recently a specific press pack “Le Var a diving destination” and a map “Le Var best dive sites” showing the waters off the coast of Le Var are home to over 50 wrecks, some lying at a depth of just five metres.
The Oceanographic Insitute of Paul Ricard
Located on Embiez Island, near the Brusc lagoon at the west side of Toulon, the Oceanographic Insitute of Paul Ricard was one of the most important forerunners of today’s environmental protection institutions. The mission of the organisation was to improve awareness and protection of the sea. Nowadays its scientific projects relate to coastal ecology, marine macro-biology and fish farming, as well as the fight against pollution and preservation of marine biodiversity.
La Côte d’Azur
COUNTRYSIDE
The importance of nature, its protection and preservation is equally important on La Côte d’Azur. This has recently been recognized by UNESCO, probably the greatest compliment to the local authorities after years of hard work keeping the landscape so unspoilt but making it accessible to the public.
Grasse
Grasse, the centre of not just the French, but the world’s perfume industry, has taken the lead in bringing the area to the notice of the French Cultural Heritage Committee to be classified by them, as well as UNESCO, for its unique savoir-faire of the perfume industry. Grasse is surrounded by fields of flowers, many of which are distributed around the world for the cut-flower industry, whilst many tons are taken to the thirty or so perfume factories situated around Grasse. All the major perfume houses have outlets here where the finest ‘noses’ or ‘nes’ are employed to design the most exquisite scents.
Another candidate for the honour of being recognised by UNESCO is the national park of the Alpi Marittime –Mecantour–which covers the border area between France and Italy, and Les Alpes de la Mer. The Alpi Marittime – Mercantour area has been put forward to UNESCO because of its great geological originality which has led to the diversity and quantity of flora and fauna. Candidature takes quite some time but it is supported here by all the local authorities.
Parc National de Mercantour
The Mercantour National Park was named in 1979 and is the only national French Park in the high mountains. It is unique as it has three climatic influences – Mediterranean, Alpine and Continental. The Park also is the only one where the mountains of the Southern Alps come down to the sea.
This means the Park is rich in varied flora and fauna and is renowned for its biodiversity. There are all types of vegetation represented here from the green lower hills and pastures, wooded slopes to snowy summits. The Park has several glacial lakes and comprises in total of six main valleys. It is world famous for the rich quality of the local culture and history, as well as for how seriously the area is protected.
The Prealpes d’Azur Regional Natural Park
Created in 2012, The Prealpes d’Azur is the 48th Regional Natural Park in France. This is a rare honour attributed to only 14% of French territory, exceptional places that incorporate nationally and internationally recognised heritage sites. The Prealpes d’Azur sit between the sea and the high mountains. It runs from the countryside area behind Nice to that around Grasse. It incorporates 45 communes and over 31,000 inhabitants. The Prealpes d’Azur has the most amazing biodiversity with over 2,000 different species of plant found only here, nowhere else in the world. Two thirds of French flora is found in the Park. The variety of scenery is staggering too – everything from karst scenery to gorges, terraced hillsides and perched villages.
La Vallee de Merveilles
The Valley of Marvels is one of the most important prehistoric sites in Europe. It is home to more than 100,000 engravings that date back to the Bronze Age. The drawings were found at the foot of Mount Bego (2,872metres) on slabs of coloured stone – ‘ciappe’. This is one enormous open air museum and is augmented by The Departmental Museum of Marvels in Tende which highlights the exceptional archeological wealth of this part of the Alpes-Maritimes. There is a super walk here, which is best to undertake in the summer months, that goes from Saint-Dalmas-de-Tende into the mountains, home to chamois, mountain goats and high altitude lakes
SEASIDE
The coast of the French Riviera is world renowned for its coastline. What is less well known is that some of the most beautiful walks, hikes and rides can also be had on less famous parts of the coastline.
‘Les Caps’
Along the coast of La Côte d’Azur there are series of lovely peninsulas that not only have some stunning views toward the mountains of the Alpes-Maritimes, but provide walking tours that shed another light on the French Riviera.
Cap Martin lies between Menton and Roquebrune. The seaside path here provides a 45 minute walk, a route once enjoyed by Nietzsche when he stayed in the area, and where Le Corbusier’s ‘Cabanon’ concept can be clearly seen.
Cap d’Ail has a path linking Plage de la Mala to Plage Marquet, where, in a walk, lasting approximately one hour, you can experience the geology, flora and Belle Epoque architecture so typical of this part of the world.
Cap Ferrat is a millionaires paradise, but also home to two coastal paths, one linking Anse Lilong to Plage de Passable (about one hour long) and another longer path (about two and a half hours to walk) which takes you past shallow inlets, limestone cliffs, through Aleppo pines and luxuriant vegetation interspersed with sumptuous villas.
Cap d’Antibes, between Antibes and Juan-les-Pins, has a lovely walk of about one and half hours along one of the wildest parts of the coast, wave battered all the way down to the southern tip and the sanctuary of Notre Dame de la Garoupe. From here you have some of the most gorgeous panoramas on La Côte d’Azur.
Les Iles Lerins
Lying just off the coast opposite Cannes, from where it is a 20 minute ferry ride, St.Honorat and the larger Sainte-Marguerite make up the Lerins Islands, separated from each other by a mere 500 metre channel known as the ‘plateau du milieu’ or ‘Friuli’. Sainte-Marguerite covers over 210 hectares, of which 170 hectares is forest. St.Honorat is still home to a monastery originally founded in 410 A.D. by Saint Honorat himself. Nowadays the Cistercian monks produce wine and liqueurs (Lerina). It is possible to take a retreat at the monastry or even just stop to eat dinner if you are on a day trip.
Note to Editors:
Le Var
Sitting on the Mediterranean coast of southern France between the Alpes Maritimes to the east and the Bouches du Rhône to the west, Le Var is where the Côte d’Azur and Provence meet. It is France’s second most forested region with nearly a million acres of woodland. The natural environment is stunning with red porphyry fjords and sandy beaches, discreet coves and islands along the coast then wooded hills, farming plains, lakes, rivers and canyons further inland. A must visit are the Estérel and the Maures Massifs characterised by wild beauty and varied flora and fauna, whilst the spectacular Gorges du Verdon are renowned worldwide. The chalky mountain of the Massif de la Sainte-Baume rises to over 1,200 metres above a remnant of the ‘Millenium Forest’ and the part of the Verdon Regional Natural Reserve here houses the Lake of Sainte-Croix which covers 5,400 acres of almond green waters. Most importantly Le Var is also home to many ‘preserved’ natural sites purchased by the Department, the National Conservatory or Parcs to protect them from disappearing. This mosaic of landscapes offers a plethora of quality leisure activities on offer year round. Le Var is a place to be savoured in every season and easily accessible from the UK by train or plane…
For more information visit: www.visitvar.fr/mimosa. To download a press kit: www.visitvar.fr/en/espace-presse.aspx
La Côte d’Azur
Stretching from the Italian border at Menton to the Esterel peninsula in the south of France, La Côte d’Azur is a Mediterranean destination that enjoys over 300 days of sunshine a year. La Côte d’Azur has a unique natural environment, mild climate and exceptional light. Not only is there the most stunning coastline offering lovely walking paths around the ‘Cap’s but pristine natural landscapes extending all the way to the Southern Alps. The area to the west of the region was declared the 48th France National Regional Park last year thus is protected to ensure the survival of the natural habitat. The high peaks (over 3,000 metres in places) offer ski runs in winter and trekking, mountain biking, rafting, cycling etc in summer – even high altitude golf courses. The Mercantour National Park is a must for nature lovers – a spectacular landscape shaped by glaciers thousands of years ago. A wide range of leisure activities are on offer as one may imagine from extreme sports to the more sedate. Easily accessible from the UK by plane or train…
For more information visit: www.visitcotedazur.travel To download a press kit http://cms.cotedazur-tourisme.com/userfiles/file/presse/2013%20-%20Cote%20d’Azur%20Nature.pdf