Nans-les-Pins
Practical information
Getting to Nans-les-Pins and the massif, parking, taking the bus, finding the tourist office, knowing the market days and checking access to the forests in summer.
Getting there
Nans-les-Pins is in the Var, at the northern foot of the Sainte-Baume. By car, the Saint-Maximin exit of the A8 motorway then the D560 and the D80 lead to the village in a dozen kilometres; from Aubagne, allow 25 km via the D96 and the D560, from Brignoles 28 km via the DN7, the D1 and the D80. Marseille and Aix-en-Provence are about forty minutes away, Toulon less than an hour.
By public transport, line 92 of the regional Zou network links Aubagne to Brignoles with a La Ferrage stop in the centre of Nans-les-Pins, at the start of the Huveaune hikes. Another line links Plan-d'Aups to Saint-Maximin. Timetables and routes on the Zou network website.
Parking
The parking de la Ferrage and the town hall car park are the two car parks in the centre, recommended by the town on market days. The parking des Sources de l'Huveaune, on the way out of the village, also serves as a start. On the plateau, the car parks of the Hostellerie de la Sainte-Baume (east and west), the parking des Trois Chênes at the junction of the Nans and Mazaugues roads, and the "le Village" car park in the centre of Plan-d'Aups serve the trails of the massif.
Finding out more
The Nans-les-Pins tourist office, a branch of Provence Verte & Verdon Tourisme, is at 2 cours Général-de-Gaulle, Nans-les-Pins (83860). Telephone: +33 4 94 78 95 91. E-mail: [email protected]. On the plateau, the Espace Tourisme et Découverte de la Sainte-Baume, run by the regional nature park, welcomes visitors next to the Hostellerie.
The market and the shops
The big market is held on Sunday mornings on the cours Général-de-Gaulle; smaller markets take place on Wednesday and Friday mornings, subject to availability. On those days the town hall recommends the Ferrage car park or the one at the town hall.
Outside market days the village can still fill a rucksack: two small supermarkets, bakeries, a butcher and a greengrocer are spread between the cours Général-de-Gaulle and place Victor-Dedieu. Wine is bought at the cellar door of the Domaine de Triennes, on the RD 560 towards Saint-Maximin. Up on the plateau, the shops are in the centre of Plan-d'Aups.
The forest in summer
From 21 June to 20 September, access to the forested massifs of the Var is regulated by prefectoral order according to the fire risk, with a map updated every day: check it the day before and on the morning of your outing on the risque-prevention-incendie.fr website, Var section. The routes on the south slope also concern the Bouches-du-Rhône. Fires and smoking are forbidden in the forest in every season. In the Sainte-Baume biological reserve, dogs must be kept on a lead; in the bed of the Huveaune they are forbidden, as are swimming and mountain biking.
The grotto
The Sainte-Baume sanctuary is open from 8.30 am to 5 pm in winter time and from 7.30 am to 6.30 pm in summer time. It is reached on foot from the Hostellerie in about three quarters of an hour. Silence is requested inside.
Emergencies
European emergency number: 112. Fire brigade: 18. Mobile coverage is patchy on the massif: tell someone your route and carry plenty of water.