Nestled between Cannes and Juan-les-Pins is a delightful seaside resort called Golfe-Juan. It lies at the foot of the Vallauris hills, in the centre of a large natural harbour stretching from Cap d'Antibes to the East, to the Cap de la Croisette to the West, on the outskirts of Cannes. It boasts roughly 1km of narrow sandy beach extending in a shallow curve and lined with tall elegant palms.

My initial introduction to Golfe-Juan occurred in 2001 when, after arriving on the Cote d'Azur and spending a couple of weeks in a hotel, I managed to rent a small holiday apartment for a few months. Consequently my stay in such a lovely seaside resort biaised me somewhat towards the many other ones found along the coast. Even today I still enjoy showing it off to family and friends or simply driving down there with Freddy in tow to walk along its harbour when Nigel is away on a business trip and stopping for a croissant and a coffee at one of the friendly restaurants located on the promenade.

As luck would have it my holiday apartment came with a rather large sea-front terrace. Once settled in my new abode, my great friend Ineke came to stay for a few days. While day time would be spent visiting St Paul de Vence, Gourdon, Vallauris or Nice, the evenings were spent on the terrace, sipping chilled glasses of rosé long after the sun had set and watching beautiful sleek yachts return to harbour. As night life in Cannes, Juan-les-Pin and Antibes began hotting up, so peace and serenity befell Golfe-Juan and this, more than the charming restaurants, pretty boutiques and historic background, endeared this place to me.

Since living there Golfe-Juan has changed somewhat due to its growing popularity. Additional apartment complexes have been built to home the growing number of residents as well as extra hotels to cater for the many tourists who are slowly discovering this charming seaside resort. In essence the town is made up of three main streets; Avenue de Liberté (N7) which is the main road linking Cannes and Antibes, Avenue de la Gare (that takes you down to the port) and Boulevard des Frères Roustan (N98) that hugs the old port and coastline into Juan-les-Pins.

A visit to Golfe-Juan at the height of summer is now fraught with traffic congestion and crowds. Yet it wasn't always so. This was once a sleepy little fishing port, numbering only 180 inhabitants in the early 1900’s. Small fishing boats would be tied to wooden posts on the sandy beach, at the foot of olive trees and blackberry bushes that grew alongside.

Once again, the advent of the railway was to herald a dramatic change of pace and lifestyle along the Cote d’Azur as Paris became only 22 hours away. It also led to the beginning of a new industry: tourism. Much in the way that Cannes was “discoverd” by Lord Brougham, Golfe-Juan was equally “discovered” by Juliette Adam (1836-1936).

From humble beginnings, Juliette Adam slowly imposed her name in the world of French literature, founding “La Nouvelle Revue” in 1869 and becoming the oracle of Léon Gambetta. She had a sharp political mind and her entourage comprised many literary and political people (George Sand, Prosper Mérimée, Adolphe Thiers to name a few).

Ill-health brought her to Cannes in 1858 where she hears that the municipality of Vallauris are distributing land in Golfe-Juan and thus decided to buy a plot upon which to build a villa. As a passing anecdote - custom had it that, in those days, women could only inherit land from Golfe-Juan as it was considered totally unusable. Men, however, automatically inherited the rich and fertile land of Vallauris as it was naturally taken for granted they were far more capable of exploiting it.

Juliette Adam’s presence in Golfe-Juan, along with the new railway, inspired more people to visit and enjoy the peace and tranquility of this charming fishing port.

Nowadays it’s a thriving resort, catering not just for local residents but holiday makers too. There's a fairly modern railway station linking the town to Antibes and Cannes and situated just off Avenue de la Gare, as well as an excellent and frequent bus service.

A range of truly excellent little specialist shops selling superb cheeses, excellent wine, wonderful bread, quality fresh salads, vegetables, and succulent roast chickens make it a pleasure to shop here.

If you feel your French too rusty to deal with these individual shops, there are a number of medium-sized supermarkets that will make life easier for you. And with a variety of boutiques, hotels, tea-rooms, and the inevitable estate agents (around thirty-three at our last reckoning) as well as a bustling provencal market every Friday around Square Nabonnand you’ll find everything you need here to make life very pleasant.

There is also no lack of restauraunts in Golfe-Juan. At our last count there were fifty-five. Most are located along the Vieux Port and across to Port Camille Rayon and the Théâtre de la Mer Jean Marais (exhibiting the artist’s many excellent paintings and sculptures). Others can be found more inland and along the main road. But whatever your taste and budget you’ll find something to please you.

You may now be wondering about the price of houses here. As for most homes, location is everything and Golfe-Juan is no exception to the rule. For example, a modern flat with one bedroom, a bathroom and reception room would be priced around €128,000 whereas a French Bourgeois style apartment within walking distance to the beach, with a 19m² terrace, one bedroom, a bathroom and a separate furnished kitchen would be priced around €260,000.

On the other hand, a four bedroom house with about 200m² of living space, two bathrooms, three shower rooms, two dining rooms and a fitted kitchen would set you back by €1,000,000. You will need to count more if you want a swimming pool and parking facilities.

As Golfe-Juan is a seaside resort, you'll find the accent firmly placed on water sports. There are two beaches; “Plages du Soleil” and “Plages du Midi”. Here you can rent pedalos and take swimming lessons too. There are also three scuba-diving clubs, a water-skiing school and ascensional parachuting club.

Fishing enthusiasts are more than provided for as there’s a rather nifty fishing shop in Port Camille Rayon, and good fishing spots along the harbour. Notably the small green-painted light tower called “La Fourmigue” in the middle of Golfe-Juan’s bay, marks the position of a dangerous and rocky reef, but is equally home to a rich variety of fish. You can also rent a broad spectrum of boats, ranging from bareboat, dinghies, catamarans, sailboats or high-powered yachts, for a day or for longer - with or without a crew.

Finally, Golfe-Juan is closely related to Napoleon Bonaparte. And perhaps this, more than anything else, has put Golfe-Juan firmly in the spotlight. For it is here, on the afternoon of March 1, 1815 that Napoleon landed with over 800 of his men and French history was again made.

As a byline, every year in March Golfe-Juan commemorates Bonaparte's historic landing. You can read more about this special weekend by clicking here.