Learn French in France - Provence is an ideal location for a French language course in the South of France.

Hyères

Hyères is an ideal-sized town for a linguistic stay: with its 56 000 inhabitants, it is big enough to provide all the services and entertainments you would expect, yet small enough to have a soul and enable you to know all the best places and to meet local people easily. An ideal place to learn French in France.

Hyères has a heart and a history dating back to the XII century, of which the old town bears witness, with its picturesque winding streets, small shops and traditional markets.

Of course Hyères has developed and grown, but always harmoniously: interesting shopping precincts, affluent residential areas, parks and flower gardens everywhere. A theatre, an auditorium seating 3000, a gambling Casino, cinemas, discotheques, restaurants etc.... are all to be found in the lively town centre.

However, one mustn't neglect Hyères tie to the sea, with 20 klms of sandy pollution-free beaches basking in the sun on both sides of a peninsula, so that you can always find a sheltered beach for swimming and sun-bathing or alternatively a beach "in the wind" to practice windsurfing. Ideal for relaxing after your French language course.

Hyères has also one of the biggest pleasure ports in the South of France. You can walk along its many quays, admiring the superb yachts and cabin-cruisers, and spend memorable evenings at the Marina, sitting on the terrace of one of the many coffee-bars or restaurants.

The Golden Islands

During your stay, you must visit our "Golden Islands": 3 privileged sites, just a few miles off our coast, each having its own particular charm:

Port-Cros is a protected National Park and its sea bed is worth an unforgettable underwater visit.

Le Levant is a paradise for naturists, one of the first to exist and the most famous in France.

Porquerolles, the nearest, only 15 minutes by boat, offers magnificent white sandy beaches, a typical fishing port, wild coves, and beautiful long walks meandering through the pine-woods.

Sports

• Swimming and water sports: sailing, diving and of course windsurfing. During the past years, Hyères has become the meeting point of top-class windsurfers from all over the world. Pre-olympic sailing regattas are organized each year together with many other international events.
• Tennis - many municipal courts and private clubs in town.
• Horse-riding: a choice of riding schools for lessons and promenades.
• Golf: Valcros golf course, in the Forêt des Maures, 16 klms from Hyères, its fairways lined with oak and olive-trees or Valgarde golf course, nearer to Hyères -9 klms- and only 2 minutes from the large GRAND-VAR shopping centre.
• Cycling and jogging: along the beach or in the countryside, a wide range of sceneries to discover.
• Gymnastic, dancing, aerobic, body-building, yoga, steps, squash etc. with the local people, in one of the numerous clubs in town.
• Team sports or athletics, with the local associations.
• and finally, la pétanque, this typical Provençal boule game, which one plays with friends on any type of ground and on any occasion.