Welcome to this little corner of paradise, nestled not far from Cannes, on the border of the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var.
Mandelieu-la-Napoule is located just 11 kilometers from Cannes. Capital of the mimosa, this charming city on the Riviera is the result of the merger between Mandelieu and La Napoule (1836). Hence the name of its inhabitants: the Mandolociens and the Napoulois.
Mandelieu-la-Napoule is one of those destinations that have managed to do well after the Covid-19 pandemic, as explained by Sophie Brugerolles, manager at the city’s Tourist Office.
“People were looking for destinations both on the Côte d’Azur, and which at the same time were very family-friendly, protected, preserved. Mandelieu is like an island between the Esterel with these magnificent red rocks that we knows, the largest forest of mimosas which is called the Tanneron and the Mediterranean. And which therefore offers an incredible playground, very easy to access, on foot or by bike. With always this point of view to nature very important.”
A guide also details the 15 most beautiful hikes to do from and around Mandelieu in the heart of the Esterel, on the shores of the Mediterranean or in the famous Massif du Tanneron up to the Mercantour. On sale at the Tourist Office, at the price of 5 euros.
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A seaside and nautical destination, the town has seven fine sandy beaches, including La Rague beach, overlooked by the Château d’Agecroft. Of Scottish inspiration, it was formerly called the miners’ castle, because generations of black mouths from the North of France came there on vacation.
Mandelieu is home to a nautical base “Les voiles de Lérins”. The opportunity to test Wing Foil and Wind Foil, two popular sliding sports where you fly over the water using a board and a wing that catches the wind . A few minutes are enough to reach the Lérins Islands and the Royal Fort on Île Sainte-Marguerite by boat, where the famous Man in the Iron Mask was imprisoned!
On the port, we sit down to taste seafood and pissaladière, “In Mandelieu, we also work with honey. We have 1,000 hives in the town! We also have a small 4-hectare wine estate.”
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Wine bars flourish in the La Napoule district, which is just behind the Château de La Napoule. It was a couple of American artists, the Clews, who bought this building built in the 14th century during the Belle Époque in 1918, and which has its feet in the water.
Today it is an artists’ residence, a kind of Villa Medici of the Côte d’Azur. We also visit its remarkable French garden. And we stroll through the city, along the marinas built on the architectural model of Florida in the 1970s and 80s.
“It’s a city that was developed on the model of Miami, with these large residences, where you could have an apartment, the tennis court, a swimming pool, and a place for the boat. And we still have a lot small houses, it is a territory which is protected on its two thirds. And nature must return to the city.”
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On May 28, Mandelieu will celebrate La Saint Fainéant! This festival was born in 1837, when the master glassmaker, Louis Berthélémy set up his factory in the Château de La Napoule. Once a year, at Pentecost, the ovens of his factory are then cleaned and taken out to the square. The glass workers then take advantage of this “forced” rest to have fun until late on the beach. Which is not to the taste of fishermen who treat them as “lazy”! Aerial dance show, parade of the lazy king, night market, concert and sardinade on the Château beach are on the Saint-Fainéant program.
