L'Esquinade Plage

L'Esquinade has been on Chemin Garonne at Pampelonne for more than forty years, run as a family beach, and it is one of the few addresses on this sand that has not been reinvented as a lifestyle brand. The pitch is straightforward: mattresses on fine sand, lifeguard cover, showers and changing cabins, and a kitchen built around grilled fish and meat rather than a concept menu, with main courses in the twenty to thirty-five euro range that reads as modest for Pampelonne. The atmosphere is correspondingly relaxed and noticeably more mixed in age than the clubs either side. Practical details are handled properly for a beach of this size: there is wifi, wheelchair access with assistance, water sports on site, and a boat shuttle for anyone arriving from Saint-Tropez by sea. Dogs are accepted, which rules out fewer visitors than you might expect on this stretch. It stays open into the evening, so a long lunch can extend into drinks without moving. Anyone researching online should note that the club's own domain is not currently resolving, so booking is best done by phone.