Along the coast, you will find a wide range of dive sites – from Marseille and the Calanques to Hyères, Porquerolles, Corsica, Nice and Cerbère-Banyuls. Here you can experience everything from colourful shoals of fish and steep reefs to underwater caves, canyons and historic wrecks that make every dive different.
This page brings together a guide to diving in France, with suggestions for some of the most exciting areas for both beginners and experienced divers. Whether you dream of calm dives in nature reserves, spectacular wall dives or places with especially good visibility and rich marine life, you will find inspiration and practical ideas for where to go next.
Diving in France can also be combined with sun, boating, small coastal towns and memorable food experiences. In many places, dive centres are close to harbours, beaches and pleasant holiday areas, making it easy to build a trip around both underwater experiences and relaxed days on land.
Along the French Mediterranean coast, you will find everything from marine reserves and islands to wreck dives, walls and gentle introductory dives in clear water. Here are six areas that work especially well, whether you want to try diving for the first time or build an entire holiday around life below the surface.
Marseille is one of the strongest places to start if you want to experience diving in France. The Calanques lie just outside the city, with cliffs, caves, posidonia seagrass meadows and an underwater landscape that feels both wild and easy to reach. This is a perfect base if you want to combine a city break, harbour life, boat trips and spectacular nature in the same holiday.
Hyères is a classic diving holiday base if you want short boat trips to some of the best-known areas in the South of France. From here, you can head towards Port-Cros, Porquerolles and several of the wrecks that have made the area famous among divers. The town and the Giens peninsula have a holiday atmosphere that makes it easy to combine diving with sun, beaches and good food.
Porquerolles is the place for the more postcard-perfect version of diving in France. The island lies within Port-Cros National Park and offers access to clear water, fish-rich areas and well-known dive sites that are often combined with a boat day, a bike ride and beach time. This is a place that suits couples, families and experienced divers who want beautiful surroundings around the diving itself.
Near the Spanish border, you will find one of the most exciting marine reserves in France. Cerbère-Banyuls is a strong choice if you want more nature, more quiet and a more authentic coastal experience. Here, the focus is less on beach life and more on the underwater world, with rich marine life, good visibility and the feeling of diving in an area where protection has genuinely made a difference.
If you want to combine Riviera city life with good diving opportunities, Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer are excellent choices. Here you get easily accessible dive sites, beautiful bays, walls and caves, while promenades, restaurants and small-town life are right nearby. This area works especially well if you want a comfortable base with short distances and plenty to do above the water as well.
Corsica is a natural choice on a page about diving in France. The island offers clear water, marine reserves, dramatic cliffs and several strong bases such as Bonifacio, Porto-Vecchio, Ajaccio and Calvi. This is the place for travellers who want to combine diving with beautiful beaches, boat trips and a more distinctive Mediterranean atmosphere. We have created a guide with strong suggestions for diving in one of the most beautiful places in France.
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See diving in CorsicaFrance is a good country to choose when you want to combine a holiday with diving without making everything about logistics. Many places are very suitable for beginners, while others offer reserves, wrecks and more pronounced underwater topography if you want greater variety below the surface.
Nice, Porquerolles, Hyères and Corsica are well suited to anyone who wants to try diving for the first time. Here it is easy to find discovery dives, good boat trips and places where the holiday around the diving is just as enjoyable as the hours in the water.
Marseille, Corsica and Cerbère-Banyuls are good choices when you want to move on from the simplest trips and experience more character in the underwater landscape. Here you get everything from cliffs and caves to reserves with more visible marine life.
The Hyères area, with Port-Cros and Porquerolles, is especially exciting for experienced divers, particularly if you want to combine several days of diving with famous wrecks and more rewarding boat trips. Marseille and Corsica also offer a wilder feel for those who enjoy cliff dives and underwater scenery with a distinctive character.
Diving is often at its best when it is combined with places that also have something to offer before and after the boat trip. That is why these four experiences work especially well as a natural extension of a diving holiday along the French Mediterranean coast.
Marseille is perfect if you want to alternate between the harbour, old neighbourhoods, restaurants, boat trips and diving in the Calanques.
Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer give you a comfortable base where it is easy to combine diving with beach life, city walks and long lunches.
When you want to move on from the mainland, Corsica is a natural next step with clear water, marine reserves and several strong bases for a diving holiday.
Combine the diving with markets, small harbour towns, viewpoints and the bright Mediterranean atmosphere that makes Provence so easy to return to.