© Michel Dubois
© Michel Dubois
Plage de la Gallice Beach, Juan les Pins
Great little beach: sandy, protected and completely public
This little local’s hangout is found just next to Port Gallice, at the very start of the Cap d’Antibes. It’s a pretty peaceful place as is a long way from the road, with a more secluded feel than the open Juan les Pins beaches.
It’s also a lot more casual than those popular beaches with their buzzing watersports and posh beach clubs, making it a great place to relax with a picnic and a good book. This charming, low-key beach is completely public, without a glamorous beach club to be seen.
It’s a relaxed and pleasant place to spend a day, far from the noise and pretention you find at some nearby beaches. Soft sand, calm waters, lovely view, what’s not to like?
Like almost all Riviera beaches, dogs are ostensibly forbidden between mid-April and the end of September because of the crowds. However, I’ve been there on a sunny day in early September and there were several happy hounds running about and no-one made a fuss. However, keep your eye out for inspectors and be aware that you could cop a fine. Pick up after your dogs, don’t let them be a pest to others and don’t take them when it’s really crowded and there’s a good chance you’ll be fine.
Beach Bars & Beachclubs in Antibes
Your choices here are extremely limited, but just off the beach there is a little snack bar/restaurant offering burgers, ice cream and general beach food.
There are park bench tables out the back of the snack bar and even ping pong tables, a great spot for a cheap day out with the family and it’s open from April to November. A picnic bought from one of the supermarkets in town is a great choice for this beach.
For something fancy, head to nearby Le Cap Beach restaurant on Plage du Crouton or, fancier still, to the famed Hotel du Cap Eden Roc on Cap d’Antibes.
Setting & Location
Plage de la Gallice is protected at its back with a high wall of pale stone and pine trees, and the harbour shelters it on one side. It offers a lovely view across the bay and generally calm, clear waters.
Water Safety & Clarity
Juan les Pins (JLP for short) beaches often have clearer waters in midsummer than their Antibes counterparts but in high summer they will still sometimes get that miasma of sunscreen and boat run-off that plagues the Riviera beaches as millions of tourists descend on the coast. Gallice Beach, being next to the harbour, can suffer this murkiness sometimes.
The sand slopes gently down into the water, which tends to be calm because of the shelter provided by the neighbouring harbour to the west. This makes it a fairly good choice for the kids to swim, although there isn’t a lifeguard on this beach so always be vigilant.
Stingers do sometimes plague Riviera beaches, but luckily some lovely soul maintains a jellyfish alert website, updating recent sightings of jellyfish along the Côte d’Azur. Check it out here, it’s in French, but it’s pretty easy to understand: it has big red jellyfish marked on the map, or green flags where it’s good to swim.
Beach Quality
This beach is only about 100m long and has lovely soft, deep white sand.
Watersports Nearby
Unusually for the Riviera, there are no watersports rentals at all at this small protected beach, which makes it rather peaceful. For those wanting some adrenaline-filled watersports action, head to Plage du Pont Dulys instead.
Because there’s parking in the port, you can always buy beach balls or inflatables at a store in JLP and bring them along in the car.
Directions
Entrance to Plage de la Gallice is reached through the Port du Gallice, which is probably why so few tourists know it’s there. Head along Boulevard Edouard Badouin away from JLP as if driving towards the Cap d’Antibes, and take the turning for Port Gallice. There is paid parking in the Port.
