Starting points
Photo: Mmullie (WMF) ↗ · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Calanques National Park
Limestone cliffs, turquoise coves and a marine area that makes up nine tenths of the park – on the edge of Marseille.
National Parks Atlas · Country · checked 5 Oct 2026
National Parks in France
Eleven national parks, three of them overseas. Our first French park guide takes you to the Calanques between Marseille and Cassis.
1Park guide
Calanques in full, with Sugiton reservations, En-Vau and wildfire closures
32Official sources
park authorities, operators and transport providers
11National parks
according to Parcs nationaux de France and OFB
FreeEntry
in every French national park
Last checked: 5 Oct 2026
France has eleven national parks, together almost 8 per cent of its territory: from Vanoise, the oldest, founded in 1963, through the Pyrenees and the Cévennes to three parks overseas and the youngest, the Forests National Park of 2019. None charges an entrance fee. This atlas covers Calanques National Park in full, with the Calanque de Sugiton reservation and the hike to the Calanque d’En-Vau.
All 11 parks are listed in the directory with their founding year and official page.
01 · Park guides
Park guide: Calanques
Free entry, the Sugiton reservation, red days with wildfire closures, En-Vau from Cassis and boat tours in the marine part of the park.
02 · Directory
All 11 national parks in France
Founding years according to the portal of Parcs nationaux de France, areas according to the park authorities, as of 5 October 2026.
France has eleven national parks, covering almost 8 per cent of its territory; they belong to the French Biodiversity Agency (OFB). Each has a strictly regulated core zone and usually a partner zone around it.
| National park | Location | Founded | Area | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanoise | Savoie, Alps | 1963 | core zone 53,300 ha | Official page |
| Port-Cros | Var, islands of Port-Cros and Porquerolles | 1963 | – | Official page |
| Pyrénées | Hautes-Pyrénées and Pyrénées-Atlantiques | 1967 | – | Official page |
| Cévennes | Lozère, Gard and Ardèche | 1970 | – | Official page |
| Écrins | Hautes-Alpes and Isère | 1973 | core zone 93,000 ha | Official page |
| Mercantour | Alpes-Maritimes and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence | 1979 | 1,891 km² | Official page |
| Guadeloupe | Guadeloupe, Caribbean | 1989 | – | Official page |
| La Réunion | La Réunion, Indian Ocean | 2007 | – | Official page |
| Guiana Amazonian Park | French Guiana | 2007 | 3.4 million ha | Official page |
| Calanques | Bouches-du-Rhône, Marseille, Cassis, La Ciotat | 2012 | 8,500 ha land, 43,500 ha sea | Official page |
| Forests | Haute-Marne and Côte-d’Or | 2019 | 2,180 km² | Official page |
On Porquerolles, part of Port-Cros National Park, a cap of 6,000 ferry passengers a day has applied in summer since 2021.
03 · Good to know
Good to know
Free entry, a reservation for one calanque and closures on days of high wildfire risk.
Free entry
According to the French Biodiversity Agency, the national parks are open to all and free. You pay for car parks, buses and boats. Details for the Calanques.
Sugiton: reservation in high summer
In the Calanques you need a free reservation for Sugiton and the Pierres Tombées on peak summer days, bookable from three days ahead. Details on the Sugiton page.
Red days for wildfire risk
From 1 June to 30 September the prefecture of Bouches-du-Rhône closes massifs with high wildfire risk for the following day. In the Calanques that happened on 11 days in 2026.
04 · Editorial
Sources and last checked
Every fee, date and rule on this page comes from the park guides below, each linked to the official source.
- Calanques National Park: checked 5 Oct 2026, 32 sources in the park guide · Park authority ↗
- Parcs nationaux de France: the eleven national parks with founding year ↗
- OFB: the national parks of France – free and open to all ↗
- Calanques National Park: identity of the park ↗
- Calanques National Park: Sugiton reservation ↗
- Prefecture of Bouches-du-Rhône: access to the massifs – daily closures for wildfire risk ↗
- Port-Cros National Park: Porquerolles, cap of 6,000 ferry passengers a day ↗
Fees, opening times and reservation rules change. Check the official page before you travel.