Wander & Wonder

When you think of France, you often envision the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Don’t get me wrong, both of these are spectacular and definitely worth seeing at least once in your life. But after visiting the South of France, I can say with certainty that I have never seen a more beautiful place, particularly the Golden Islands, formally known as Îles d’Hyères.

The three islands of Îles d’Hyères are Port Cros, Porquerolles, and Le Levant. All of these islands offer breathtaking views of the Meditteranean Sea, not to mention the spectacular cliffs, natural beaches, and wildlife. And the journey to the islands via ferry boat from the mainland is a wonderful experience itself (especially with a croissant in hand).

Port Cros

Port Cros is definitely the most “untouched” island in the sense that it only has 20 permanent inhabitants. Upon arrival to the small port, you instantly see how intimate it is with a mere handful of restaurants and one hotel. Given that we had taken the earliest ferry boat of the day, many of our fellow passengers turned out to be island employees, namely the grocery store owner, the local beach shop owner, and the police officer on duty. We basically got to see the little village come to life as everyone settled into place and it was a very special start to our day.

From the village, we headed along a lovely trail to Plage du Sud. There we set up our towel for a few hours and enjoyed the sound of the rolling waves on the shore. Unfortunately, the winds were a bit stronger on that side of the island and the waves brought in a lot of small jellyfish. But perhaps it was meant-to-be as it forced us to go explore another beach on the island: Plage de la Palud.

In order to get to Plage de la Palud, you have to walk along a trail that lines the cliffside. While hiking, you smell the unique scent of pine trees mixed with sea salt while enjoying views beyond description. The beach itself was stunning with water so clear that you could see fish swimming from the shore. Given that we had limited time before our ferry boat departure, we dumped our bags on the dock and just jumped right in. The water was the perfect temperature after such a long walk, and looking out in the distance gave the impression that we were the only ones at the beach.

Porquerolles

With it’s rolling vineyards and beautiful turqouise waters, Porquerolles definitely has a similar nature-inspired charm as Port Cros. However, Poquerolles is definitely more touristic given it’s many amenities. But not to worry, you won’t find big hotels or resorts here, just locally-owned restaurants, pastel-colored artisanal shops, and local markets selling fresh produce, honey, lavender, and the island’s own vineyard wine.

We were told that one of the best ways to explore Porquerolles is by bike, given the numerous trails that span the island. Sadly, when we arrived on the island it was raining so we decided to just walk underneath the pine and eucalyptus trees lining the trail to Plage Notre-Dame, the most highly recommended beach. To our joy, the rain subsided after about an hour or so, and we were left with crystal-clear water gleaming in the sun. Once again, the views were stunning and there was a very lively atmosphere as many boats anchored themselves along the beach for the day.

Le Levant

Funny story: we never ended up going to Le Levant, but the reason will surprise you. Prior to boarding the ferry boat, we were reading a pamphlet describing the island. We saw that the island was popular for “naturistes” which we assumed meant “nature-lovers”. We quickly realized our error as we saw multiple photos of nude men in the pamphlet. It turns out that Le Levant is an island for nudists, and not only the beaches but the entire island (including the town)!

Port Cros and Porquerolles are amazing day-trip beach destinations. I think one of my favorite parts was having to walk along the trails to get to the beaches. It made it more special when ultimately reaching the beach and it also allowed us to get some physical activity in a spontaneous, relaxed way.