Visiting Saint Tropez
Saint Tropez has no gate and no ticket office. The port, the old lanes and the market cost nothing, so a fare here buys something else: a boat, a guide or a day on the gulf. If you are weighing up Saint Tropez guided tours, start with what each one buys and where it starts.
The town is free: what your fare buys
You can walk the whole of Saint Tropez without paying anyone. The quays, the fishermen's quarter of La Ponche and the market on Place des Lices are open to all. What costs money is the sea beyond the harbour, a guide who drives you up to the hill villages, or a paid door such as the Citadelle de Saint-Tropez.
So the first question for any tour is what it buys, and the second is where it starts. Every tour card answers both, in that order.
| What your fare buys | What it is | What it costs | Where it starts |
|---|---|---|---|
| A seat on a scheduled boat | The Trans Côte d'Azur boat from Nice or Cannes and back, with five hours ashore | $93 to $112 per person | Quai Lunel in Nice, or Quai Saint-Pierre in Cannes |
| A place on a shared catamaran | Three hours under sail with a swim stop, or a sail that follows the regatta for a week each autumn | $74 to $85 per person | Marines de Cogolin, Cavalaire-sur-Mer or Le Lavandou |
| The whole boat | A sports boat or a motor yacht with a skipper, from two hours to a full day | $435 to $3,019 per group, plus fuel: €90 to €120 on the bay boat, €100 on the sunset boat, an amount not published on the Pershings | Mostly Marines de Cogolin; the sunset boat from the port |
| Your own van and guide | The town and the hill villages, a day to Bormes, or the wine estates, 3 hours 40 minutes to 7 hours | $170 to $487 per person; tasting fees extra on the wine day | Pickup where you are staying |
| A seat in a shared van | The town and the hill villages, or a road day from Nice with the ferry across the gulf | $145 per person | The Hôtel de Paris, or a hotel pickup in Nice |
Fares are shown in US dollars, as each operator lists them. Every motor charter adds a fuel surcharge on top, and that surcharge is printed beside its price every time the price appears. Where the operator does not publish the amount, ask for it before you book.
Getting in without a car
There is no railway station in town. You take the train to Saint-Raphaël and the ZOU! 876 bus from there, about 1 hour 15 minutes for a fare from €3. From Toulon, the ZOU! 878 runs along the coast, also from €3. Check the timetable for your day: the current 876 timetable runs to 25 October 2026.
The nearest airport is Toulon-Hyères, about 49 km away, and Nice Côte d'Azur is about 91 km. From May to October you can also come by sea: the Trans Côte d'Azur boats leave Nice at 09:00 and Cannes at 10:15, land at 11:30 and leave again at 16:30.
By car, expect slow traffic on the one road in during July and August. The big car parks are Parking du Nouveau Port, with 1,477 spaces, Parking des Lices with 307 and Parking Foch with 100. On the street, a meter charges €3 for an hour and climbs steeply after three.
Getting around town
You will walk almost everything: the port, the old town and the Citadelle hill sit within a few minutes of each other. When you would rather ride, the small electric Saint Tropez bus runs from Place des Lices, Monday to Saturday, for €0.50 a trip.
Across the gulf, Les Bateaux Verts cross from Sainte-Maxime in about 15 minutes, from Port Grimaud in 20 to 25 and from Marines de Cogolin in about 25. Buy your ticket at the quay, and check the fare there: it changes with the season.
Not sure which kind of tour suits you?
A seat on a boat, a place on a catamaran or the whole boat, a van through the villages or a day from Nice: compare every Saint Tropez tour side by side, with what each price leaves out and where each one starts.
What costs, and what is free
Most of what you came for costs nothing:
- The port and its quays, and the lanes of the old town.
- The market on Place des Lices, Tuesdays and Saturdays from 8:00 to 13:00, all year.
- The racing in regatta week, which you can watch from the shore.
- The beaches, though the beach clubs charge for a lounger.
Three museums charge at the door, €5 each for an adult and free under 12. The Citadelle opens 10:00 to 18:30 from April to September and 10:00 to 17:30 from October to March, and your ticket covers the maritime museum in the keep and the ramparts. The Musée de l'Annonciade, the town's art museum, closes on Mondays outside July to September. No tour listed here includes a museum ticket, and none needs one.
The rest of the list, place by place, is on things to do in Saint Tropez.
Where the tours start
This is the part people get wrong. Most boats do not leave from the town: the charters and the catamarans berth at Marines de Cogolin, round the head of the gulf, and the scheduled boats start in Nice or Cannes. A boat leaves on time and does not wait for you at the wrong harbour, so read the start on your card before you plan the morning.
| Where you meet | Where it is | What starts there |
|---|---|---|
| The Port de Saint-Tropez | The Capitainerie, on the Allée du Quai de l'Épi | The sunset boat and a Pershing half day; several charters collect you here on request |
| In town | Quai Suffren, or wherever you are staying | The private van tours of the town and the villages |
| The Hôtel de Paris | Traverse de la Gendarmerie, two minutes from the tender pier | The shared van tour |
| Marines de Cogolin | The Capitainerie of the marina at the head of the gulf | The bay boat, the full-day Pershings, the half-day catamaran and the regatta sail |
| Cavalaire-sur-Mer and Le Lavandou | The harbours further west along the coast | The half-day catamaran, by the option you book |
| Sainte-Maxime and Port Grimaud | Across the gulf | Collection for some charters |
| Nice | Quai Lunel in the port, or your hotel | The scheduled boat, and the road day with the ferry |
| Cannes | Quai Saint-Pierre in the Old Port | The scheduled boat from Cannes |
Every meeting point is plotted on the Saint Tropez tours map, with the drive or the ferry to each one.
Who each tour suits
The rules come from the listings. Infants ride on a lap on the boats, and the catamaran takes children from one year. The bay boat carries buoyancy aids for anyone who swims badly, but it is not for you if you are pregnant or have a heart condition.
No boat listed here is wheelchair accessible, and every one warns off anyone with back problems. The shared van tour is the one that says its vehicle and its surfaces are accessible. If you cannot swim, the scheduled boats and the sunset boat ask nothing of you in the water.
Cancellations and the weather
Every tour listed here refunds in full if you cancel at least 24 hours before it starts. Cancel later, or miss the start, and the operator's terms give no refund.
The weather decides the rest. If an operator cancels a boat for wind, you are offered another date or a refund, so keep a free morning later in your stay. The catamaran needs eight people per boat and may move you to another sailing. How the months compare is on the best time to visit Saint Tropez.
The tourist office
Saint-Tropez Tourisme is on the quay at 11 Quai de l'Épi, telephone +33 (0)4 94 97 45 21. It opens at least 305 days a year, weekends included in the season; check its hours before you go. It has maps and the town's own events calendar, but it does not sell or answer for the tours listed here.
Asked before you go
Can I get to Saint Tropez by boat from Nice or Cannes?
Is there a railway station in town?
Do the boats leave from the town itself?
Can cruise passengers join a tour?
Is there a ferry across the gulf?
Can I cancel?
Next: read what travellers said, see the gallery, or compare every tour on Saint Tropez Tours.