Saint-Tropez is a boat town pretending to be a village. The day charter out to Pampelonne — daybeds held, lunch booked, tender waiting — is the single most-requested booking of our Riviera summer.
*High-season guide for a 20–25 m day boat, plus fuel and APA — your dates quoted exactly.
The Pampelonne run
Anchor off the beach by late morning and the day arranges itself:
Club 55 or
Loulou for lunch,
Nikki Beach when the afternoon
turns up the volume, and the swim between courses that no road-bound table can offer.
August needs the boat and the table booked together — that is precisely what one
desk is for.
Beyond the bay
A fuller day loops the Golfe: Port Grimaud’s canals from the water, a quiet
cove on Cap Taillat, and back past the citadel as the light goes gold — with
Les Caves du Roy held for
midnight.
Berths in the port and the anchoring rules off Pampelonne
Saint-Tropez harbour is small for the number of yachts that want it in summer. It has three basins, each with its own size limit.
The three basins
- Bassin Jean Lescudier: boats up to 25 metres.
- The Vieux Port: yachts of 25 to 50 metres, stern-to on the quay in front of the cafés.
- Môle d'Estienne d'Orves: yachts up to 90 metres, with a maximum draught of four metres.
Boats under 18 metres book through Navily. Larger yachts book through the port's own system, and a booking is confirmed only when a deposit of half the stay is paid.
The port's summer season runs from 1 May to the start of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez regatta in autumn.
Pampelonne for larger yachts
Since June 2023 a prefectoral order has governed yachts of 24 metres and more across the bay. It runs from Pointe de Bonne Terrasse to Cap du Pinet. It draws a line beyond which they may not anchor, to protect the Posidonia seagrass.
It sets mandatory anchoring zones by length, and separate drop-off zones where tenders land guests. Holding position on dynamic positioning is regulated too.
In practice a large yacht lies further off than it once did, and the tender takes you in to Club 55 or Loulou. A day boat under 24 metres has more choice, though it may still not anchor on seagrass.
The village is a slow drive in August, so many guests arrive by helicopter from Nice. For a two-night plan around the boat, see the Saint-Tropez yacht weekend.
How much does yacht hire in Saint-Tropez cost?
High-season guide for a 20–25 m day boat: €5,000–9,000 a day plus fuel and APA. Larger yachts and full weeks are quoted per itinerary — one clear figure, with berthing, fuel and crew gratuity itemised before you commit.
Are the boats crewed?
Always — skipper and crew as standard, chef and hostess on the larger boats. You step on and off; everything in between is handled.
Can you book the tables and beach clubs around the boat?
That is the point of one desk: the daybeds, lunches and nights around your Saint-Tropez charter are held by the same concierge that books the boat — see the venues we cover and ask for the day as one plan.
