The most easily accessible of the Îles d'Hyères is Porquerolles, whose permanent village, also called PORQUEROLLES, has a few hotels and restaurants, plenty of cafés, a market and interminable games of boules. It dates from a nineteenth-century military settlement, and the village still focuses around the central place d'Armes, the erstwhile military exercise ground. In summer its population explodes to over 10,000, but there is some activity all year round. This is the only cultivated island of the three and has its own wine, appellation Côtes des Îles.Porquerolles is big enough to find yourself alone amid its stunning landscapes. The lighthouse due south of the village and the calanques to its east make good destinations for an hour's walk, though don't even think of swimming on this side of the island, unless you fancy cliff diving. The southern shoreline is all cliffs, with scary paths meandering close to the edge through heather and exuberant maquis scrub. The longest beach is the plage de Notre-Dame, 3km northeast of the village just before the terrain militaire on the northern tip. The nearest beach to the village is the plage d'Argent, 1km away (continue west from the port past the Arche de Noë and take the first, well-signed right). This 500-metre strip of white sand fringes a curving bay backed by pine forests, and has a pleasant restaurant, La Plage d'Argent (tel 04.94.58.32.48; closed Oct–March; midday plat du jour €15).
Pages in section ‘Île de Porquerolles’: Practicalities.
Alternate spellings:: France, Īle de Porquerolles, Île de Porquerolles, Ile de Porquerolles
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