Saint-Tropez

The Place des Lices market and the Canebiers coves in a day

One day in Saint-Tropez works best on a Tuesday or Saturday, when the Place des Lices market is on. Arrive by Bateaux Verts boat from Sainte-Maxime, see the Signac and Matisse canvases at the Musée de l'Annonciade, then walk the coastal path through La Ponche to the Canebiers coves and climb to the Citadel for sunset.

Morning. Catch an early Bateaux Verts boat from Sainte-Maxime, ideally on a Tuesday or Saturday, and watch the bell tower and pastel houses of the port grow as you cross. Go straight to Place des Lices while the market is still fresh: olives, cheeses, Provençal fabrics and antiques under the plane trees. Then take a coffee on Sénéquier's red terrace and let the yachts reverse into their berths in front of you.

Late morning. The Musée de l'Annonciade, in a former chapel on the quay, needs about an hour for its Signac, Matisse and Bonnard canvases, many of them painted around this gulf. Behind the harbour, the fish market under the arches of Place aux Herbes is worth a quick look before it closes at lunchtime.

Afternoon. Walk through La Ponche, past its little beach under the old walls, and pick up the coastal path east. The Graniers beach comes first, then the quieter coves of the Canebiers bay; stop at whichever has room on the rocks and swim.

Evening. Climb to the Citadel for the light over the gulf and the Maures hills, then come down for dinner in the port. If you are staying on, the beach clubs of Pampelonne are the next day's business. Otherwise, take the last boat back across the water.

Tarte tropézienne, fresh fish and peninsula rosé

The tarte tropézienne, a cream-filled brioche created by Alexandre Micka in 1955, is Saint-Tropez's own pastry, still sold at his bakery on Place des Lices. Fish comes from the Place aux Herbes market, and the wine is Côtes de Provence rosé from Gassin and Ramatuelle. Eat a few streets back from the quay.

The town's own invention is the tarte tropézienne, a round of soft brioche topped with pearl sugar and filled with a light mix of pastry cream and buttercream. A Polish-born baker, Alexandre Micka, created it in 1955, and Brigitte Bardot, filming nearby, is said to have suggested the name. His bakery still sells it on Place des Lices, and every other pâtisserie in town makes its own version.

For everything else, think Provençal coast. The small fish market at Place aux Herbes, behind the harbour, sells the morning's catch, and the better restaurants in town build their menus around it: grilled sea bream or red mullet, soupe de poissons with garlicky rouille and croutons, and in spring a plate of petits farcis, vegetables stuffed with herbs and meat. Market stalls on Place des Lices sell tapenade, olives and goat cheeses for a picnic on the coastal path.

The wine is rosé. The vineyards of Gassin and Ramatuelle, a few kilometres inland, produce some of the best-known Côtes de Provence labels, and several estates on the peninsula open for tastings. Drink it cold at lunch, as everyone else does.

Eating well here is mostly about avoiding the obvious. Quayside terraces charge for the view of the boats. Walk a few streets into La Ponche or towards Place des Lices for simpler bistros, or drive up to Ramatuelle or Gassin, both hilltop villages with terraces and views over the vines.

The Bravade, June beach days and Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez

Early summer is the sweet spot in Saint-Tropez: June brings highs of 23C, little rain and fewer crowds than July and August. The Bravade honouring Saint Tropez runs from 16 to 18 May, a second Bravade falls on 15 June, and Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez fills the harbour in late September and early October.

Saint-Tropez's weather is classic Mediterranean: mild, damp winters, long dry summers. January averages highs of about 12C with around 80 mm of rain, and the town is quiet, many hotels and beach clubs closed. Spring warms quickly, reaching 17C in April and 20C in May, and that is when the town shows its local face.

Each year from 16 to 18 May, the Bravade honours Saint Tropez, the martyr who gave the town his name. Townspeople in old military uniforms parade his bust through the streets to the sound of musket fire, a tradition that goes back centuries. A second, smaller Bravade on 15 June commemorates the defeat of a Spanish fleet in 1637. Both are taken seriously by locals and are a world away from the beach clubs.

June brings highs of 23C and only about 26 mm of rain, the best month for the sea without the crowds. July and August average 27C with barely any rain, and the gulf road jams daily.

The season's finale is Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez in late September and early October, when classic schooners and modern racing yachts fill the harbour and race across the gulf. September stays warm at around 24C. October then turns to rain, the wettest month at about 105 mm, and the town winds down for winter.