This small but delightful town sits on the north shore of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, 90 km from Nice and 130km from Marseille, facing south and sheltered by the Massif des Maures mountain range. Sainte Maxime was founded around 1000 AD by monks from the Lérins Islands outside Cannes. They built a monastery and named the village after one of the Saints of their order. Fishing was the mainstay for the inhabitants but during the early 19th century increasing amounts of lumber, cork, olive oil ...
This small but delightful town sits on the north shore of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, 90 km from Nice and 130km from Marseille, facing south and sheltered by the Massif des Maures mountain range. Sainte Maxime was founded around 1000 AD by monks from the Lérins Islands outside Cannes. They built a monastery and named the village after one of the Saints of their order. Fishing was the mainstay for the inhabitants but during the early 19th century increasing amounts of lumber, cork, olive oil and wine were shipped to Marseille and to Italy. As a result the village grew and in the 20th century it started to attract artists, poets and writers, drawn in by St Maxime’s sunny climate, beautiful surroundings and azure waters. In front of the old town is La Tour Carrée, a distinctive tower built by the monks to protect the village from invaders – nowadays a museum detailing the fascinating history of this small and picturesque village.