BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide
Renting a Boat in Collioure, on the Côte Vermeille
The village that inspired the Fauvist painters, rocky coves down to the Spanish border: renting a boat in Collioure.
By Clément Lacaille, editor of Boat-Comparator · updated
The last stretch of French coastline before Spain, the Côte Vermeille (Vermilion Coast) looks nothing like the sandy beaches of neighbouring Languedoc: here, the foothills of the Pyrenees drop straight into the Mediterranean, and Collioure is its best-known gateway.
A village that inspired painters
In 1905, Henri Matisse and André Derain set up their easels in Collioure and gave birth to Fauvism, drawn in by the light on the harbour, its bell tower at the water's edge and the Catalan boats drawn up on the sand. The village has kept that backdrop almost intact, now seen from the quay as much as from a boat at anchor.
The Côte Vermeille by water
South of Collioure, the coast rises into rocky cliffs up to Cap Béar and its lighthouse, then on towards Port-Vendres and Banyuls, before the Spanish border at Cerbère. Small sheltered coves punctuate this steep coastline, reachable mostly by sea.
Which boat for this coast
A RIB (€200-600/day) suits this rocky coast of tight coves well; check the forecast before setting out, as the tramontane wind can rise quickly here as elsewhere on the Languedoc-Roussillon coast — see our Mediterranean winds guide.
Comparing offers
The Collioure listing on Boat-Comparator gathers the available offers to help plan your outing on the Côte Vermeille. Our platform comparison guide helps decide which one to check first.
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