Legal framework
Governing: park creation texts and préfet maritime orders, as published by the Parc national des Calanques, the Parc national de Port-Cros and the Parc naturel régional de Corse (Scandola). Builds on: L3.1, L3.2.
National parks and nature reserves add their own rules on top of the general coastal ones. The three below are among the most visited by rental boats. Each park publishes a current map; use it on the day.
Calanques National Park (Marseille – Cassis – La Ciotat)
The park was created in 2012 and has a large marine core (cœur marin). According to the park:
- jet skis and all other motorised water vehicles, and towed activities (water-skiing, parasailing, towed inflatables) are banned in the marine core, and have been since 2012. The park cites fines of up to €1,500;
- 5 knots in the 300 m band;
- drones and model aircraft may not fly over the park;
- noise, waste and feeding or disturbing wildlife are forbidden;
- yellow buoys mark regulated zones, and boats must not tie up to them.
The park's anchoring plan (published December 2020) bans anchoring in the calanques of En Vau and Port Pin, sends yachts over 24 m outside the seagrass, and replaces anchoring on seagrass with mooring buoys at Sormiou, Morgiou, Ouest Pomègues and the bay of La Ciotat, with other anchoring concentrated on sand.
WARNING — jet skis from Marseille A jet ski hired in Marseille or Cassis cannot tour the calanques. The coastline you can see from the base is largely inside the core.
Port-Cros National Park (Hyères islands)
The whole of Port-Cros island is park core, and the marine core extends 600 m from the coast. The park's 2024 leaflet sets:
| Area | Speed |
|---|---|
| Between 300 m and 600 m | 12 knots |
| Within 300 m, and in the mooring field (ZMEL) | 5 knots |
| In the port | 3 knots |
- Jet skis, towed devices, motorised surfboards and underwater scooters are banned in the marine core;
- anchoring is banned for boats over 24 m, and only boats fitted with black-water holding tanks may anchor in Port-Cros waters (préfet maritime order);
- any discharge into park waters is forbidden;
- anchoring is not allowed within 100 m of dive sites; dive buoys are for divers;
- landing on the islets is forbidden except at the quay, and boats may not be pulled up on the shore.
Porquerolles has its own order and map; do not assume Port-Cros rules match.
Scandola Nature Reserve (west Corsica)
Created by décret of 9 December 1975 and managed by the Parc naturel régional de Corse, Scandola is famous for its red cliffs and its restrictions. According to the reserve manager:
- anchoring at night is banned throughout the reserve; by day it is allowed only from sunrise to sunset, and anchoring is regulated by prefectoral order;
- in the integral-reserve area anchoring is banned day and night;
- no recreational fishing of any kind, no scuba diving and no spearfishing;
- the manager recommends DONIA and Nav&Co to avoid seagrass.
CAUTION — Girolata next door Girolata bay, just south of the reserve, is where many boats spend the night. Plan the evening there rather than anywhere inside Scandola.
Before you go
- Ask the rental base whether its contract excludes any park area.
- Download the current park map.
- If the rules differ from what you read here, the park's current order wins.
TIP — the map on the phone Nav&Co gives the local maritime rules and buoyage; DONIA shows the seagrass. Load both before leaving the base, while you still have signal.