Five-star hotels in Le Lavandou, facing the Îles d'Or

A fishing port that drew the painters

Le Lavandou covers just under 30 square kilometres of Mediterranean shore in the Var and had 6,646 inhabitants in 2023. It began as a fishing village and only became a commune in its own right in 1913, when it split from its neighbour, Bormes-les-Mimosas.

The hamlet of Saint-Clair, just east of the port, has a place in art history. The Neo-Impressionist Henri-Edmond Cross settled on this coast for good in 1891, first at Cabasson and then at Saint-Clair, where he died in May 1910. His friend Théo van Rysselberghe built a villa at Saint-Clair in 1910, and André Gide, Matisse and Jean Cocteau were among the artists and writers who came to see him there.

That house is now Villa Théo, an art centre at 265 Avenue Van Rysselberghe that stages several exhibitions a year, both permanent and temporary. The writer Joseph Kessel also stayed in Le Lavandou and wrote two novels there, among them Les Enfants de la chance, published in 1933.

Twelve beaches, west to east

The tourist office counts 12 sandy beaches along 12 kilometres of coastline. East of the centre, the D559 towards Saint-Tropez threads through five hamlets in turn: Saint-Clair, La Fossette, Aiguebelle, Cavalière and Pramousquier. The tourist office gives most beaches a nickname, which is a quick guide to their character.

Nearest the centre, L'Anglade and the palm-lined Grande Plage face south-east, with beach restaurants, lounger hire and water sports; a wooden promenade runs from L'Anglade towards the Port de Bormes. Saint-Clair faces east towards Levant and Port-Cros, and windsurfers gather there when the wind comes from the east. Beyond Aiguebelle the beaches become harder to reach: Jean Blanc lies about 100 steps below the road, and L'Éléphant is reached on foot from Jean Blanc, behind rocks that run out into the sea.

Cavalière, a large beach between the Pointe du Layet and Cap Nègre, has a sailing school, parasailing and water-skiing. Since 2013 an artificial reef has protected its sand from erosion, and in antiquity the Greeks kept a station here called Alconis. Le Layet, also called Buccaneer's Cove, is where naturism is tolerated. Pramousquier closes the series at the eastern boundary and is shared with the neighbouring commune of Rayol-Canadel-sur-Mer.

Le Lavandou hotels: Les Roches on the bay of Aiguebelle

Hôtel Les Roches stands at 1 Avenue des 3 Dauphins, the street the tourist office gives as the way down to Aiguebelle beach, about 4 km east of the town centre. The hotel describes the bay of Aiguebelle as calm and preserved, and every room and suite faces the sea.

The rooms sit just above the water and are likened to boat cabins, finished with boiseries and terrazzo. The suites are spacious and full of natural light, with sea views, and most rooms are modular and connecting, which helps families or friends travelling together. Original works by contemporary artists hang around the hotel, a fitting echo of the painters who worked a few kilometres west at Saint-Clair.

L'Oursin is the gastronomic restaurant, serving the cooking of chef Antoine Gras, built on local and seasonal produce, and there is a bar by the pool. Spa L'Oiseau Bleu offers treatments and massages, with an indoor pool, a jacuzzi and a fitness area. Room service, breakfast in the room and a valet-baggage service are listed among the stay benefits.

The Atout France register lists 39 rooms, and the hotel's five-star classification dates from 13 August 2025.

Along the Corniche des Maures

East of the centre, the D559 follows the shore as the Corniche des Maures, the name the tourist office and the Var fire-risk map both use for this stretch of coast and wooded hillside. Cavalaire-sur-Mer is about 20 km east of Le Lavandou by road, and on the way the road passes into Rayol-Canadel-sur-Mer, which lies between Cavalière and Cavalaire.

At Rayol-Canadel, the Domaine du Rayol, known as the Jardin des Méditerranées, has gardens of plants from around the world and a Jardin marin, a marine garden given over to the underwater life of the Mediterranean.

Beyond Cavalaire the same coast leads to the Saint-Tropez area. Listed five-star hotels there are covered on the pages for La Croix-Valmer, on the D559 cycle route, Gassin, a perched village about 2 km off the D559, and Ramatuelle, near Saint-Tropez and Gassin. Our French Riviera overview gathers the listed hotels of the whole coast, from the Var to the Alpes-Maritimes.

The hills behind the corniche are forest, and fire risk shapes summer plans. A prefecture map, updated daily at 18:00, shows which of the Var's nine forest massifs are open, the Corniche des Maures among them, and coastal walks here may be closed when the risk is high.

Boats to Port-Cros, Porquerolles and the Levant

Le Lavandou looks out on the Îles d'Or: the Île du Levant, Port-Cros and the islet of Bagaud lie offshore. Boats of the Vedettes Îles d'Or et Le Corsaire leave from the gare maritime on the Quai des Îles d'Or, beside the tourist office, and crossings to Port-Cros and the Levant run all year, weather permitting.

Port-Cros is the heart of the Port-Cros National Park, created on 14 December 1963 and described by France's national parks as the first marine park created in Europe. Its core zones, on Port-Cros and part of Porquerolles, cover about 1,670 hectares of land and 2,950 hectares of sea. The tourist office calls Port-Cros the wildest island of the archipelago, crossed by marked trails and suited to snorkelling.

Porquerolles is known for beaches such as Notre-Dame, for the Fort Sainte-Agathe and for its vineyards, with trails for walking or cycling. The Île du Levant is known for its naturist area and its nature reserve.

Getting to Le Lavandou and moving along the coast

Of the main airports, Toulon-Hyères is by far the closest, and the nearest railway stations are Toulon and Hyères; from either, regional Zou! buses, taxis or a hire car cover the last stretch. By road, drivers come off the A8, A57 or A50 motorways near Hyères, Le Muy or Brignoles, according to the tourist office.

Once here, distance along the shore matters more than distance from the airport. Because the beaches and hamlets are strung out along the D559, a car or taxi is useful for reaching Aiguebelle and the beaches beyond it, and at several eastern beaches parking is along the roadside, in permitted spaces. Our guide to checking a hotel's location and transport before booking sets out what to confirm in advance.

Markets and seasons

Le Lavandou's Provençal market takes place every Thursday morning, all year round, and the tourist office describes it as one of the most beautiful in the Var. Stalls on the Place du Marché sell local wines, flowers, fruit, vegetables and Provençal specialities alongside crafts and clothing, with tomatoes, peppers and peaches in summer and chestnuts and mushrooms in autumn. An organic market is held in front of the town hall every Sunday in season and on the first Sunday of the month out of season, and from June to September Cavalière has its own market on Monday mornings.

The islands set the rhythm of the year. In the operator's 2026 timetable, boats to Port-Cros and the Levant sail from January to December, several times on most days in season, with a thinner winter timetable that leaves some days without a boat. The Porquerolles service runs only from February to October, usually as a morning departure with an afternoon return. Outside that period, Porquerolles is reached from Hyères, where TLV boats cross from La Tour Fondue in about 15 to 20 minutes.

Summer brings the forest-fire rules on the hills, while the Thursday market and the Villa Théo exhibitions continue outside the beach season.