Island of Sainte-Marguerite outside Cannes

The two islands Ste-Marguerite and St-Honorat, known as Îles de Lérins, are at only 15 and 30 min ferry rides away from Cannes, respectively. Ferries leave from quai Laubeuf in the Old Port. The smaller and quieter St-Honorat has been owned by monks since the foundation of the monastery in 410 AD. Today we visited the larger island Ste-Marguerite (Ferry 13,50 €) and made a two-hour walk also described in the French Randoxygène
guide.


There are some restaurants and snack-bars at the picturesque harbour of Ste-Marguerite. We were informed already when purchasing the ferry tickets that all of them were still closed in early March.  We were prepared for this with some refreshments and opted for a late lunch in Cannes after the visit. This turned out to be a good choice as we found a small
bistro in the old port. They had an excellent three course lunch menu for just under 19 €! In Cannes, you can apparently  have a Sunday lunch as late as 3 pm.


Many French people seemed to bring their picnic to Ste-Marguerite, and there were tables along the path. That would have been another nice option on this sunny albeit a bit windy day.


The walk starts from the harbour following the unpaved road to the western tip of the island. The trail goes around Étang de Batéguier, a brackish water pond surrounded by a wood of Aleppo pines. Continue along the southern shoreline to Maison Forestière. At this intersection, turn left and walk along the allée des Eucalyptus back to the harbour.
The walk is pretty short, but you could continue as far as the eastern point of the island and back along the good network of trails.


The main tourist spot on the island must be the Fort Royal. This is yet another fort improved by Vauban during the reign of Louis XIV. The main attraction here is the maritime museum and the prison cell said to have held the mythical Man in the Iron Mask.