La Garde-Freinet is the closest village. There is a charming twice weekly market and numerous restaurants, bars and café’s.

There is also a boulangerie, a butcher, a traiteur selling homemade quiches, patés etc, two little supermarkets selling fresh fruit and veg and local produce such as truffles.

There are also art galleries, gift shops, a fantastic pharmacy, 2 doctors and a post office.

The wine shop is superb run by Hervé and his son Roman who are full of great advice on interesting wines from near and far and often do tastings accompanied by bread and their delicious local cheeses.

There is a thriving local community with festivals, dance shows and theatre productions laid on in the summer and a locally popular chestnut festival in the Autumn.

The beautiful hilltop villages of Grimaud, Gassin and Ramatuelle are within a 30-minute drive (Grimaud is a 10 minute drive). Likewise Plan de la Tour, Gassin and Bormes les Mimosas. Each have charming little winding streets to explore, fabulous restaurants and panoramic views.

Saint Tropez feels like it’s hardly changed since the days of Brigitte Bardot although the superyachts in the harbour are ever more jawdropping! The backstreets are full of chic boutiques, little squares, bars and restaurants and of course a limitless choice of restaurants, cafe’s and bars on the harbour front from which the passing scene can be gently observed.

All the local villages have weekly markets, some of them twice weekly. The market in St Tropez (Tuesdays and Saturdays) is particularly good with everything from clothes, jewellery, steaming pans of paella, cheese, fruit and vegetables, etc all on offer. There is also a wonderful fish market in St Tropez.

The world-famous Pampelonne beach is a must if you like to be seen in the chicest beach clubs and restaurants. Club 55 is located here which is still full of charm having started in the 1950’s. St Maxime has many beaches and beach clubs too. Gigaro is more low key but again with some stylish beach restaurants. If you prefer something quieter head west along the coast towards Brégançon. No restaurants or beach clubs are allowed on the beaches around there so they are much quieter and very beautiful.

There are two tennis clubs in Grimaud where courts can be booked:

Tennis Municipal de Grimaud – Complexe Sportif des Blaquières, 834 Route des Blaquières, 83310 Grimaud

There are Padel Courts available to book just outside La Garde-Freinet:

There is a tourist office in La Garde Freinet. We highly recommend a visit. They will have all the information on local things to do and what is going on during the week you are there.

During August the whole of the Var is “en fête”. This can be most exhilarating, with concerts, fireworks, folkloric events and special markets for local pottery and handicrafts. Visit the Tourist Office to find out what is happening.

You are spoilt for choice. Starting with a lovely selection in La Garde Freinet there are endless options further afield.

A number of local vineyards encourage visits aswell as tastings and purchases. Peyrassol is a vineyard which you can wander around and spot extraordinary sculptures then eat in the small but exquisite restaurant and sample the wine of course!

There are regular boat trips to the Isles d’Hyeres (Porquerolles being the largest of these islands) No cars are allowed on the islands so you can hire bikes or venture on foot. There are also boat services across the Bay of St Tropez from Port Grimaud – and this is a handy trip if traffic is an issue.

Port Grimaud offers children friendly sailing, waterskiing and wind surfing lessons as elsewhere along the coast.

The Cross and Roman Fort above La Garde-Freinet from where you get 360 degree views all the way from the Alps to the sea is a great local walk. Located on the edge of the Massif des Maures National Park, there are endless tracks to explore. There is also a beautiful coastal path which starts from St Tropez and goes all the way to Toulon.

Historic and beautiful monasteries and convents at Le Thoronet and Chartreuse de La Verne are well worth visiting. Art lovers will be astounded at the quality of the art on display at the newly opened Foundation Carmignac on the island of Porquerolles. There is everything from Botticelli to Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol in this very impressive gallery which is surrounded by vineyards, views of the sea and intriguing sculptures in the grounds.