My time in Hyeres, France

I’d never heard of Hyeres, France until I read a New York Times travel article about it. The article raved about it being a hidden gem, few and far between tourists and a thriving local scene. There was also the fact that it was in the South of France but without the IG influencers and noise. All of these things made it compelling so I booked a stay.

We took the train from Paris to Hyeres. It took about 4 hours. As soon as we arrived at the station, I was underwhelmed and felt a bit of disappointment. If you’ve ever been to Virginia Beach in Virginia, it was giving that vibe. A beach town with rundown looking areas, a bit of hustle to it and no softness around the edges. We took a 15 min Uber ride to our hotel which was quite nice facing the beach. We quickly learned it was a public access beach (which didn’t bother me) but it was advertised online to look like a secluded beach. I learned quickly it was very much a local beach and a very local beach town.

Hyeres felt like a beach town for working class French families. There was diversity all over the town. I did not get a hint of snottiness or second glances. No one stared at me as compared to my time in Norway.

I wrote in my travel journal that Hyères wasn’t very charming. It had pockets of beauty here and there, especially in its old town, where narrow lanes and faded pastel walls reminded me a little of Italy, but overall, the same underwhelming feeling I had stepping off the train lingered.

I can’t fully explain what Hyères was missing, but I suppose it’s that mix of quaintness, character, and atmosphere that gives a town its sense of place. The kind of ineffable something that makes you want to wander aimlessly, to sit for hours in a café simply because the place draws you in. Hyères had the sunshine, the palm trees, the sea nearby, but somehow, not the soul. Not the soul that connected with me anyhow.

There were two moments I truly enjoyed. The first was taking a ferry to Île de Porquerolles, one of the remote islands off the coast of Hyères. From there, we biked to a quiet stretch that felt secluded. It was a cloudy day, so we didn’t get the full, postcard view of the turquoise waters we’d seen in photos, but it was a memorable day nevertheless. The second is a charming restaurant called Restaurant La Jeannette that’s known for its local food and wine from winemakers based in or around Hyeres. The food and wine were ridiculously good.

If I had to sum up what I mostly did in Hyères, it would be sketching and people-watching from a lounge chair while a bit bored and at the same time grateful I was slowing down and sketching/painting.

It was peaceful in its own way, though nothing particularly memorable stood out. Hyères ended up being my first “meh” travel choice—pleasant enough, but not the kind of place that makes me want to return.