48 hours in Bandol
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur - Corsica - Monaco/2026
Bandol, 15 km from Toulon, is a chic resort with many attractions. It's almost symbolic that it can be reached from Toulon after the first toll barrier. You've got to earn it! For Toulon residents, Bandol is a little like Versailles for Parisians. Equivalent distance, already different atmosphere, almost a style. At weekends, people come from Toulon or even Marseille, Ollioules or Aubagne to stroll along the harbor, have an ice cream or a cocktail.
The tip of the town, with the port on one side and the cove and beach of Renécros on the other, resembles a slightly truncated sea anchor, or a puzzle piece. At the end of this point was Antoine Boyer's château, built in 1610 on the site of an earlier fort, where only a tower, curtain wall and well remain.
Opposite the peninsula, the small, seven-hectare private island of Bendor has been owned by Paul Ricard since the 1950s. Today, the Zannier Group, as concessionaire, is building a luxury hotel on the island. In the spring of 2026, after five years of work, the hotel will welcome a privileged few in a dream setting. Lionel Lévy, a well-known figure on the Marseilles restaurant scene, has been entrusted with the four tables, having won the Grand de Demain Gault&Millau award in 2002 for his restaurant Une Table au Sud.
The commercial life of Bandol is concentrated in the streets just above the port, in a narrow grid around the Saint-François de Sales church: rue Jean-Moulin, Rue de la République, Rue de la Paroisse, Rue Courbet and Rue Vincent-Allègre, framed by Place de la Liberté and Rue Voltaire. All along the quays are terraces of bars and restaurants, all the way to the casino and beyond.
However, haute gastronomy has never really found a home here. In the 1990s, there was a three-toque restaurant at the Hôtel Île Rousse. Nowadays, you have to go closer to the Castellet racetrack, or go as far as Cassis to find the highest toques. Nonetheless, with the intense tourist activity in the area, there are enough good restaurants, both established and new, to multiply the number of gourmet experiences. Above all, Bandol is more than just a name; it's also an appellation and a great wine.
Bandol wines are renowned for their high quality, thanks to two factors: the terroir, blessed with a fine climate, and the use of Mourvèdre grapes (50-95%), a magical, organic, earthy variety that combines finesse and complexity. Long-ageing wines from certain plots, such as those of the famous Tempier estate (la migoua, cabassaou...), are legendary. Production is mainly rosé (70%) and red, with a small proportion of whites. Lovers of fine wine tasting should visit one of the leading winegrowers, or the Maison des vins de Bandol, l'Œnothèque.
