Revel in the pleasures of the Bay's most beautiful beaches

on the Maison de la Mer promenade

This is a white penitent’s chapel built in the XIXth century (about 1830), near the Place Bellevue, overlooking the Golfe de St Tropez. The barn situated right is the chapel from XVIIth century, sold as national property during the French Revolution. In 1790, she was used many times as meeting place in order to elect the first republican council from the commune.

This is an old building, from middle XVth century, renovated in the XVIth century, she may cover an older building which she keeps some roman vestiges (chapelle de la Vierge). In 1550, she is etablished Saint Sauveur Etienne by Frejus’s bishop. Since 1984, contemporaries and locals artists as De Kock, Biabaud, Vento and Lemarquis make the building more attractive. A lot of elements come from La Chartreuse de la Verne.

Located at the entrance to the fortified 14th century walls. The ramparts surrounded part of the village and castle.

The Marines de Cogolin, complex, situated 5 km from the village going towards Saint-Tropez on the RN 98 road, is built between the right bank of the Giscle river and the beach. It includes a 56-acre port, sandy beach and sailing centre. Port Cogolin, is a residential complex built around a marina, offering evening entertainment, restaurants and piano-bars.

This small Romanesque chapel set in the middle of the woods was a parish church up to the mid-16th century. Located 500 metres to the North of the village, it is said to have been built after the Plague hit the area. There are 3 or 4 classical music concerts (piano, chorale society, etc)in july and august in this idyllic and rustic place.

Notre Dame de l’Assomption church, on the village square, was comple ted in 1558. The bell tower, which was built separately from the rest of the church, is probably the oldest section. The church formerly bore battlements, which were destroyed in 1793. It is home to the shrine of Saint-Laurent, the village's Patron Saint, a golden virgin and many paintings. A 16th century white marble font, decorated with 4 angel heads, plus a fragment of a Christ by the Spanish school can be admired in the sacristy. The modern cross was designed by Roger Roux in 1968.

Set in the plain, in a quarter bearing the same name, this windmill was built in the 19th century. The tower is still standing. Access: Take the Route du Brost from the village - the windmill is located inside Verdagne campsite. Open all year round.

Situated less than 300 metres from Cavalaire town centre, in a little lane situated between the top of the cemetery and the road leading to Saint-Tropez, this ancient mill, still sporting its original tower, offers splendid views over the village.

Located at Montée Saint-Joseph, in the village, to the left of the car park.

Houses the shrines of Saint Théodore. A vault has been annexed as the burial place for the Penitent brothers. On the left-hand side, a 16th century inscription written in Provençal dialect and only deciphered in 1966 bears the words: Monseigneur de Fréjus granted 40 days of forgiveness.

Quartier Bagatin. Place of pilgrimage in August, this chapel, first mentioned in an early 11th-century charter, is home to a fine Louis XIV retable. The gold-leafed altarpiece and articulated statue of the Virgin have now been relocated to the parish church. The stolen statue was found in a well in 1900 - horses, donkeys and mules were traditionally blessed at the site on August 16th.

Listed monument dating back to the 11th century. The late 13th century fortified walls encircled part of the village and castle. Reworked in the 15th century, the castle was then destroyed during the Religious Wars. Rebuilt in the mid-17th century, it was abandoned after the French Revolution. Comprising a main building flagged by two towers, whose ruins reveal the three inner floors, this highly-fortified castle was protected by two walls, the largest of which was seven metres high. Today, just one more-or-less intact vaulted room remains.

A waterside village which emerged from the marshes in 1966, Port-Grimaud is a genuine architectural tour de force, signed by the famous 20th century architect François Spoerry. This Neo-Provençal style complex, with its Mediterranean atmosphere, stretches over 220 acres and includes about 2 000 houses. Visitors must leave their car at one of the fortified gates at the villages entrances and explore on foot or by boat. The village's tiny islands are linked by Venetian-style bridges, decorated with columns, old-fashioned lamp posts, trompel'oeil and a maze of arcades - especially around the more recent Place du Sud. A real aesthetic success which has since been reproduced in the United States.

You can climb to the top of the church to enjoy fine views over the waterside village, the Bay of Saint-Tropez and the Maures Hills.

late 12th - early 13th centuries Restored in 1964, the austerity and Medieval style of the chapel's central knave have now been restored. The inside of the chapel is shaped like a Latin cross. In the side chapel, the 16th century Carrara marble font bearing the inscription Presbit Monachus de Grimaldi, according to the legende, is said to have been offered by King René. The stained-glass windows are by Jacques Gautier (1975). Square bell tower, topped by an arrow and a lightning conductor (lightning has already fallen here twice...). Today's bells date back to 1866 and 1786.

Modern time aqueduct (XVIth or XVIIth century) which allowed, with a main and a siphon, to bring the Pancaou spring water, at about 3 km, until a fountain in the fairground. Exceptional work, unique of its kind in PACA region, to discover.

Built in the 17th century, this was the village's largest oil mill. Its remains can now be seen at the Musée des Arts et Traditions Populaires (folk museum).

Built in the 17th century, the flour mill was formerly called the Moulin de la Gardiole. It was fully restored and returned to full working order in 1990 by the architect Hubert Lemonier and the Compagnons du Tour de France. Access: from the castle car park (open in summer).

Situated on the road leading to Grimaud, this chapel was rebuilt in the 19th century and contains an interesting collec- tion of ex-votos reproductions proffered by followers whose lives are said to have been saved by divine intervention. Magnificent panoramic views over the Maures Hills and the sea.

You will discover this chapel on the way to the village from Grimaud. Take the small road winding down to the bottom of the hill, on the right just before La Garde-Freinet. The chapel, which combines simple Romanesque and contemporary styles, is known to date back to the Middle Ages. It was beautiful restored by the sculptor Di Teana.

The church is home to a very curious bust of a pope's reliquary, an 18th century baldachin polychrome marble altar and a listed painting (dated 1702), representing Saint-Bernard and Saint Jeanne de France kneeling at the feet of the Virgin Mary. The porch was reworked in 1789 in Renaissance style. The clock tower's superb ironwork dates back to 1875.

A listed monument, this stone settlement was built in the late 12th century; the inhabitants deserted it later for the current village of La Garde. In Medieval times, men carved houses, a chapel, a seigneurial residence and a wide moat in the rock an impressive show of skill. Legend tells that Fort Freinet was inhabited by Saracens, who were present in the region in the 10th century. However, archaeological digs undertaken in 1980 revealed no traces of these Spanish-Arab warriors. Access: either from the Tourist Office, Place de la Mairie car park, towards Aire de La Planète - signposted footpath, length 60 mins return. Or from La Croix des Maures car park - signposted footpath, length 40 mins return.