Plage de Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon
The main beach lies below the hilltop village of Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon at the north-west end of the Lac de Sainte-Croix, with the smaller Grange, Fontaine and Bellevue beaches along the shore around it. A flat promenade follows part of the shore and is laid out for buggies and wheelchairs.
Getting in
- Access
- The beaches below the village have lifeguarded zones in July and August. Besides the main beach there are the Grange, Fontaine and Bellevue beaches around the village, and a flat promenade along part of the shore laid out for buggies and wheelchairs. The Parc du Verdon notes that the reservoir's level varies, so unmarked rocks and shallows can appear, that eroded banks and cliffs can collapse, and that banks are slippery with muddy bottoms. Water-bombing aircraft may scoop water anywhere on the lake; the park asks swimmers to get to the nearest bank when one passes overhead. Jumping from cliffs and bridges is banned, and so are scuba diving and freediving (the water is turbid). Swimming and boating are banned in the buoyed exclusion zones around the dam and the water intake. Thermal-engine boats are banned on the lake. No fires or stoves; no wild camping on the shore.
- Parking
- Dedicated car parks near the beaches, paid in summer (amount not published by the tourist office).
- Also here
- Kayak
Cost and facilities
- Entry
- Free, public shore
- Official site
- stecroixduverdon-tourisme.fr
- Facilities
- Lifeguard in seasonParkingKayak hire
About Plage de Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon
The main beach is below the village and reached on foot from the centre; the tourist office says the water deepens gradually in some parts. Away from the named beaches the village banks are less laid out, with uneven, pebbly ground in places. A picnic area, a children's playground and a pétanque ground sit next to the main beach, and from the banks below the village an electric boat takes about 40 minutes east to the entrance of the Verdon Grand Canyon.
More places near Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon
- Lac de Sainte-Croix at Bauduen
- Plage Margaridon, Les Salles-sur-Verdon
- Pont du Galetas
- Lac d'Esparron at Esparron-de-Verdon
Warm water nearby
Swimming in Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon · Verdon and the Provence lakes · Swimming in France