Must-see attractions in Var

A 1975 mosaic by Marc Chagall illuminates this 13th-century Romanesque chapel, 4.5km east of Les Arcs-sur-Argens. The church contains a crystal shrine…

France’s first marine national park, dating to 1963, Port-Cros boasts exceptional marine fauna and flora, which makes it a snorkelling paradise. It…

The majestic 12th-century Monastère de la Verne sits on a forested ridge in the Massif des Maures, rising like an island of honeyed stone in a sea of…

The simplest but most beautiful of 'The Sisters' (a trio of great Provençal Cistercian abbeys including Silvacane and Notre-Dame de Sénanque), Thoronet,…

Growing continuously since its conception in 1910, this stunning garden, with plants from all Mediterranean climates, is wonderful for a stroll or a…

The protected Vallon Sourn, where the swift waters of the Argens have cut a picturesque canyon from the soft rock, is a haven for for walking, cycling,…

Over 2000 years of human habitation are layered in Hyères’ attractive old town, which begins on the western side of place Georges Clemenceau at the 13th…

A 40-minute forest trail leads from La Ste-Baume to the Grotte de Ste-Madeleine (950m), a mountain cave where Mary Magdalene is said to have spent the…

Toulon has a long naval history, and remains an important commercial and military port. This historic portside building holds a very good, modern…

This sanctuary protects one of France’s most endangered species, the Hermann tortoise (Testudo hermanni) today found only in the Massif des Maures and on…

This 16th-century fortification contains historical and natural-history exhibits, and its tower has lovely island views. Much of the building dates from…

A private residence of the president from 1968 to 2013, the Fort de Brégançon is now an accessible national monument. Located on a scenic peninsula 20…

North of the city, Mont Faron (589m) towers over Toulon, and the views are, as you would expect, epic. Near the summit the Mémorial du Débarquement de…

Built over an earlier Christian structure (itself sitting on the foundations of a Roman villa), this 12th-century Benedictine Romanesque abbey has been…

Picturesque plantations spread out around this farm at the foot of Callas, where Andrew, Mathieu and Anthony Bérenguier are the fourth generation of an…

Attached to Aups tourist office you'll find this shop selling the 'black diamond' of Aups in various forms (whole, in pastes and pastas). It's also home…

Sharing the Maison Waldberg with the Seillans tourist office is this gallery of work by Dorothea Tanning and surrealist Max Ernst, who lived in Seillans…

Côtes de Provence and La Londe Appellation rosés, reds and whites can be tasted at this winery with a view of the sea. Technically it's in Bormes-les…

Excellent wines are produced using traditional methods, in vineyards originally cultivated by monks in the 12th century. Ring the bell if it seems no one…

Scenic, with a cellar located under a former Carthusian monastery, des Bormettes is also ancient, with evidence of wine-production in the area going to…