Discover
Port Barcarès
Discover some of the most beautiful beaches in Roussillon, lively markets and a wide choice of tourist activities at Port-Barcarès, between the lake and the Mediterranean.
Where is Port Barcarès?
Port Barcarès is the seaside resort of the village of Barcarès, located on the Catalan coast between Torreilles to the south and Port-Leucate to the north.
Just 25 km from Argelès, 35 km from the Spanish border, and less than 15 km from Perpignan, it stretches across a thin strip of land between the Mediterranean Sea and the étang de Salses-Leucate, the southernmost lagoon on the Languedoc coast and the second largest in Roussillon. Like Banyuls and Port Vendres, it is a marina in the Catalan region of Occitanie.
At the gateway to the Narbonnaise en Méditerranée regional nature park, Barcarès is an area dominated by water, with numerous islands and peninsulas, stretching over 8 km from north to south and less than 2 km from east to west.
What to see and do in Port Barcarès?
A multi-faceted destination, Port-Barcarès is at once a paradise for water sports and seaside activities, water-based nature outings and festive evenings.
Just a stone’s throw from the Albères massif, the resort opens up new horizons with its large expanses of calm water, unspoilt islets, marinas and channel.
Interpretation trails on the unspoilt Dosses site will delight wilderness enthusiasts and budding biodiversity observers. The 54 km² of the large marine pond is ideal for a wide range of aquatic and nautical activities, from fishing and paddling to sailing and kitesurfing.
There’s also an incredible 850-metre-long water-ski lift.
On the north side, the pond is the kingdom of shellfish farmers, who raise oysters, mussels and clams, to be enjoyed overlooking the water with a glass of Leucate white wine.
Le Barcarès seduces visitors with its distinctive neighborhoods: the charm of its fishing port, the exceptionally well-preserved fishermen’s village with its thatched huts, the listed natural area of the pond and pine forest, and its long beaches, including the one famous for the sunken ocean liner Lydia, which hosts open-air contemporary art exhibitions.
The entire area, from Barcarès village to the tourist resort of Port-Barcarès, is criss-crossed by a signposted cycle path linking all the districts.
The route continues along the voie verte de l’Agly, a 14 km itinerary entirely dedicated to bicycles, leading to the orchards of Rivesaltes and offering sublime views of Mont Canigou.
Tourism in Barcarès thrives on both tradition and modernity, with a rich, preserved cultural heritage and an openness to current trends: every July, the resort hosts Electrobeach, France’s biggest electronic music festival.
Discover Barcarès: the must-sees
- The Lydia: a sunken liner dating from 1930, installed in the late 60s on the Grande Plage in the tourist resort of Port-Barcarès. Emblematic of the destination and, beyond that, of the entire Languedoc coastline!
- The fishermen’s village: a hamlet made up of typical wooden and reed barraques, partly preserved and partly restored as a tribute to the past of Barcarès and its first inhabitants. Many exhibitions to discover.
- The beaches: 8 km of fine sand on the Mediterranean, dotted with beach clubs, lined with works of art, lively markets and unspoilt natural areas.
- Markets: in the village of Barcarès, they gather every day in season in a friendly, festive atmosphere. An opportunity to discover local products and Catalan specialities, between sea and pond.
- Bicycle rentals: An integral part of tourism in Barcarès, bicycles are the ideal way to discover the unspoilt countryside of Barcarès and beyond.
Coastline and beaches in Barcarès
From the Village Sud beach above the mouth of the Agly, to the Argonautes beach bordered by the Allee des Arts and its open-air artworks, 8 km of fine sand stretch along the Barcarès coastline, on either side of the Port de Saint-Ange. The resort offers the perfect backdrop for a lazy, relaxing vacation.
It has all the advantages of the Catalan coast: 300 days of sunshine a year, warm water with perfect swells, miles of sand to play and relax on, sublime landscapes and unspoilt natural areas.
Numerous beach clubs offer the ultimate relaxation experience, with cocktails to enjoy with your feet in the sand or deckchairs to rent by the water’s edge.
The Lydia beach, with its sunken liner, is emblematic of the resort: the driving force behind tourism in Barcarès when it was first installed, this land-based vessel is absolutely unprecedented in the Mediterranean.
On the seafront, the beaches of Miramars, Cité du Port, Village Central, Village Sud, Grande Plage and Lydia have lifeguard surveillance, parking, sanitary facilities, beach clubs and restaurants.
The Village Central beach is the most family-friendly, with its beach club, inflatables and proximity to shops, the market and the Barcarès tourist office.
On the marine lake side, the beach is divided into several areas for swimming, pedal-boating, sailing and jet-skiing.
Continuing the Barcarès beaches to the south are the wild beaches of Torreilles and Sainte-Marie.
Leisure and activities in Port Barcarès
The tourist resort of Port Barcarès is an ideal destination for activities for all ages. Whether you’re a couple, a group of friends or a family with young children, you’ll find a wide range of activities to enjoy on land or in the water: sports or leisure activities, quiet or thrilling, to suit all tastes!
Water sports and water-based leisure activities are, of course, the kings of tourism at Le Barcarès: with 7,000 hectares of marine lagoon and an 8-kilometer coastline on the Mediterranean, the resort has everything to seduce water sports enthusiasts! Here you can take part in gentle activities such as swimming, paddling, canoeing, pedal-boating, fishing and sailing, as well as in more sporting activities and activities such as thrills and spillsSome of them promise to fill you up with adrenalin: on the sea or lake side, depending on the activity, you can kite surf, jet ski, ski lift, wakeboard, hydrobike and aquastepper, windsurf, catamaran, not to mention the now inescapable towed buoys.
From Port-Barcarès, you can also take part in sea excursions: to discover the Pyrenees-Orientales coastline, to learn about sea fishing or to try scuba diving: an experience accessible from the age of 8!
Land-based leisure activities also play a part in tourism in Barcarès: the natural areas between sea and lake can be explored by hiking, cycling, quad biking or horseback riding. Discovering Catalan heritage and local traditions is an integral part of these land-based activities: between a visit to the fishermen’s village, a tour of a shellfish farm on the pond and a walk along the Dosses interpretation trail, you can also take lessons in Sardana, the traditional Catalan dance.
Looking for tourist sites and activities in Barcarès for a family with children? The resort of Port-Barcarès offers a wide range of leisure activities for youngsters: numerous playgrounds, dedicated beach clubs and inflatables, as well as several mini-golf courses. Luna Park opens the doors of its fixed funfair every day for the duration of the season. The Sea Jump park, next to the fishermen’s village, offers giant inflatable and floating structures for children aged 6 and over.
With its rich nightlife, culture and festivities , Le Barcarès is an ideal destination for evening entertainment. Discotheques, nightclubs and gourmet restaurants await you for both short and long evenings. In July, the ElectroBeach Festival, the world’s biggest contemporary music festival, takes over the resort.
Gourmet tourism in Port Barcarès: restaurants
- La Playa: on the seafront, facing the Allée des Arts and the Plage des Argonautes, this restaurant favors fresh, local produce for colorful, flavorful dishes. Catalan and Occitan specialties are the order of the day, and the homemade desserts are of the highest quality.
- L’Oriental de Barcarès: on avenue Annibal, l’Oriental offers Mediterranean and Moroccan cuisine in a warm, friendly atmosphere: tajines, vegetarian or meat couscous, and farandoles of Oriental desserts.
- La Mer à Table: on the Quai Alain Gerbault in the harbor, La Mer à Table welcomes you to its colorful dining room or vast terrace overlooking the boats, to enjoy seafood cuisine with influences both local and far-flung. House specialties include Catalan Fideua, vegetarian or with meat, fisherman’s paëlla or farandole de crustacés à la plancha.
- Restaurant Le Pyrénéen: on the Côte Vermeille boulevard, a stone’s throw from the beach, Le Pyrénéen offers typical Mediterranean cuisine featuring seafood. The menu features prawns flambéed with Muscat de Rivesaltes, homemade burgers, oyster platters and homemade desserts.
- La Cabane à Cactus: on avenue Annibal, La Cabane à Cactus is an original establishment with a colorful decor and a very warm atmosphere. The menu includes galettes and crêpes, local speciality boards, and the house signature dish, Camembert roasted in vin jaune.
