Introduction  |  General Info  |  Diving Info Saint Raphaël is a charming but less well known resort town approximately another 40 minutes down the coast from Antibes. St Raph for short, and its adjoining “sister” town, Frejus have a strong roman history and jointly formed an important stop on the Roman trading routes. It is rumoured that many of the initial commercial diving centres where started from the illicit gains of divers looking for Roman artefacts, particularly vases and jugs! (“amphores” in French). From a military perspective, a little further down the road was the site for one of the main allied landing beaches for the liberation of France during the second world war. The most commonly dived wreck in this area is a pair of large canal barges transporting armaments that were sunk by British torpedoes. Saint Raphaël has a thriving casino, a lively nightlife during the high season, and beaches that stretch round the bay almost into the town centre. The town centre itself has a nice atmosphere and parts are pedestrianised, with a thriving mix of shops, bars and restaurants. It is also home to a museum on the history of scuba diving. As for the diving, the sites vary from three to 40 metres plus depending on experience levels. It is here in Saint Raphaël that the first tests on the first prototype of the modern day scuba regulator were undertaken by Commandant Yves Le Prieur at the “Ile du Lion de Mer”, a prominent “seamark” and popular diving spot in the Bay of Saint Raphaël. Again, as is typical of our accommodation choices, we have handpicked a charming converted villa in peaceful gardens for the two star accommodation. One star or budget accommodation is provided where possible by a large and idyllic French government sports facility in the area which has huge grounds and good quality half board accommodation. Introduction  |  General Info  |  Diving Info Between the Mediterranean and the Provence, the Esterel Mountains are 32,000 hectares of volcanic rock of which 13,000 are classified and protected. This area is a perfect home to many sports including hiking, horseback riding, climbing, and mountain biking. More appropriately, with 5 different harbours, St. Raphaël the sailing resort is the ideal place for boating, and of course scuba diving enthusiasts. Along its 42km of coastline you can discover sandy beaches, creeks, and inlets, all carved out of the famous red rock of the Esterel Mountains. St. Raphaël is also a city that combines tourism and business. There are seven reception areas and a municipal conference hall (Palais des Congres) which frequently hosts a huge variety of different types of functions such as seminars, conferences and gala evenings. You will be able to discover traditional festivities in every season. There are joust tournaments, celebrations of St. Baume and St. Pierre, Mimosa Week, Jazz festivals and other typical live music events. Town centre A good explore and walk can be taken by exploring the narrow, shady alleys of the old town village district, which historically was the peasants’ quarter. Every day there is a typical Provencale flower and vegetable market. The San Raféu church (also called the Templars or Saint Pierre church) dates from the 12th century and was modernised in the 18th. The Presbytery houses an Archeological Museum. You can enjoy a panoramic view of the bay at the top of the watchtower which was built in the 13th century. The “Quartier de la Marine”, was originally a fishing settlement, becoming a well known seaside resort in the 19th century when the casino and numerous villas were built. Today this area is the town centre which is the hub of activity, being the home to many bars, restaurants and shops. Ile D’Or and Dramont The Ile D’Or is a famous local landmark and is also home to many of the areas’ dive sites. It was privatised in 1897 and it used to be the arena for sumptuous receptions when the owner at the time declared he was king of the island. Its square and imposing watchtower was built with red rock from the Esterel. The island was immortalised by Herge, the creator of Tintin in L’Ile Noire. The main Dramont beach was one of the principal points for the Allied landings in Provence. On 15 August 1944, 20,000 GIs from the 36th Texas regiment landed on the pebbled beach in less than 10 hours with tanks and heavy artillery. At the foot of the Cap is the very picturesque fishing harbour of Poussai. Cap Dramont is part of the state-owned Esterel forest. This is home to one of the most beautiful and the most accessible parts of the Coastal Path. Introduction  |  General Info  |  Diving Info Ile du Lion de Mer (Sea Lion Island) A great site and something of an institution on the Med diving scene, this island always provides protected diving regardless of the wind direction. It is a short boat ride from the dive centre and is a notable feature to be seen from all along the shores of Saint Raphaël Bay and down the coast towards Sainte Maxime. The southern side of the island has a stunning drop off that is rich in gorgonian coral growth carpeting the crevices and cracks to a depth of 40 metres. In one area (La Grotte du Corail – the Coral Cave) there is a great concentration of red coral, lobsters and nudibranches. The north eastern side of the island is home to two statues, La Vierge (The Virgin Mary) and La Sirene (The Mermaid) and provides a number of safe dives for new and relatively inexperienced divers. There is a beautiful natural archway just after a creek that traverses the island underwater between the East and West sides. Captured in the right light this feature is stunning. The Ile du Lion de Mer now also has it’s own wreck, a sunken pedalo! Dramont Clustered around L’Ile D’Or, these sites are a succession of rocks that come up to fairly shallow depths, making them accessible to both beginner divers and those used to diving in depths of anything from 3 to 50 m. Currents are possible here and occasionally they can be relatively strong but this is quite rare. As the rocks are side by side with large areas of sand there is a fantastic biodiversity and a lot of underwater life. The visibility is often stunning, with a large population of Grouper plus occasional schools of Barracuda offering some of the highlights. This combined with the topography of many of the sites combines to produce some very interesting diving. Nearly all of the dive sites are equipped with iron rings implanted in the rocks to enable protection of the sites from anchors. The Christian Beacon (Balise de la Chretienne) This is a former archaeological sanctuary and the site of the sinking of twelve ancient ships, a large percentage from Roman times. This shelf, which has now been marked with a beacon, was obviously a major navigational hazard in the past. The site has a very interesting topography and the view of the lighthouse from underwater in stunning. The Antheor Barges (Les Peniches D’Antheor) A dive only accessible to relatively experienced Advanced Open Water Divers and above, The Jean-Suzon and the Saint-Antoine were two Belgian river barges crewed by the Germans during the Second World War, shipping armaments to Marseilles. They were sunk by an English torpedo just off the coast, in July 1944 in 28 metres of water. Today the wrecks present a home to many Merou, Congers, and most noticeably a stunning population of large Morays. Barracuda are a common siting and Rays are not unknown. Back to top