Toulon Panorama

A Taste of Paris in the South of France:

Admire this elegant city built by Baron Haussmann, Napoleon’s celebrated city planner, who designed central Paris. Meet your guide and begin your panoramic drive in the pleasant district of Le Mourillon, once a tiny fishing village. Stop at the Tour Royale, a stout 16th-century fortress, for exceptional views of the inner bay, the first military harbor of France. Today, pleasure boats dominate the docks, blending with the charming Old Town and the rising mountain slopes to create a distinct canvas. Continue past golden sand beaches and take in the tree-lined vistas of Corniche du Cap Brun, then drive along Corniche Marius Escartefigue on the breathtaking southern slopes of Mt. Faron. Downtown, admire some of Haussmann’s contributions including the grand Opéra de Toulon, France’s second largest opera house, the graceful Place de la Liberté and the walls of the Old Town, from where Napoleon departed for his successful Italian campaign.

It was a beautiful, calm morning as we sailed into Toulon, France. I found it amusing to look at the Ship Tracker this morning, see our route, and observe how the Captain had sailed around to “kill time” last night due to the sea day.

An Interesting Route to Toulon

It was amazing how quickly the crew had been able to clean the windows this morning after every surface on the ship had been coated with salt spray from yesterday and last night. The view from the World Café was bright and clear at breakfast. When I commented on my surprise, I learned that many of the crew had started cleaning windows at 3:00 am. Wow!

Views of Toulon as We Docked at the Port

Toulon is a large port city on the Mediterranean coast and is France’s principle naval base. Our ship docked right in town among the sailboats. Tim and I elected to take the included excursion today, a panoramic motorcoach tour, and we set out towards Le Mourillon.

Here, we stopped at the National Monument of Submariners and were treated to a wonderful view across the bay. We could see the Charles de Gaulle, the flagship of the French Navy and its sole aircraft carrier, as well as other ships in the French Navy in the distance.

The National Monument of Submariners, the Charles de Gaulle, and Part of the French Fleet

We climbed the hills above the bay and saw where the wealthy live, with their expansive views of the sea. Unfortunately, it was impossible to take photographs of either the houses or the view from our motorcoach.

We returned to the central city and passed by Liberty Square, which was now the site of the local Christmas market. The wide boulevards were lined with elegant buildings, and we were able to catch a quick glimpse of many of Toulon’s most significant structures and monuments.

Liberty Square

Several of Toulon's Most Significant Historic Monuments

We had been able to see one of Toulon’s favorite structures, the Mayol Rugby Stadium, from our ship, and were reminded how important rugby is to the French.

The Mayol Rugby Stadium, a Very Important Monument!

I knew that we would only get a “taste” of the city on a quick motorcoach tour, but that was fine with me today. I was not familiar with Toulon before today’s tour, and this was a very good introduction.