Photo : Richard Gertis / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.5)
Parc National de Port Cros
Port-Cros National Park, created in 1963, is a Mediterranean national park off the Var coast, between Hyères and Le Lavandou. It protects the island of Port-Cros, the islets of Bagaud, La Gabinière and Le Rascas, as well as a vast marine area around them. At Porquerolles, about 1,000 hectares acquired by the State in 1971 are entrusted to the park's management.
The islets of Bagaud, Le Rascas and La Gabinière are strict reserves, closed to the public. On Port-Cros, coastal and forest paths let you explore the maquis, the holm oak forests and the coastal seabed.
The underwater trail of La Palud, the first trail of this type equipped with educational buoys in France, lets you observe fauna and flora below the surface. The island is reached by boat from the coast, after about an hour's crossing, and the park's regulations strictly protect the natural environment there.
