Route of the Corniche in Sète

Car park: Rue Pasteur Lucien Benoit

(S/E) Head to Rue du Périgord at the bottom of the car park. Turn left to reach the Corniche de Neubourg, cross at the pedestrian crossing and go up the stairs. Go down and turn left onto the path that runs along the sea to Lazaret Beach.
Pass the first aid station and refreshment bar and you will come to a wide path. Take it on the right to walk along the rocky cliff of Cap de Sète with the small Crique de la Tortue. You will arrive above Plage de la Vigie.

(1) Turn left onto the stairs under a porch between two buildings. Then follow Rue de Savoie to the right until it joins Promenade Maréchal Leclerc.
Follow it to the right along the rocky cliff. At Crique de la Nau, leave the promenade and take the coastal path that descends towards the cove and then climbs back up (eroded path). You can avoid this by staying on the promenade.
The path and the promenade lead to the Bois de Mon Cœur (dear to Georges Brassens), topped by the monument dedicated to the Resistance and the Maquis Jean-Pierre.

(2) Stay on the path along the rocky coast and rejoin the promenade a little further on. It passes near the fresco dedicated to the Mediterranean Sea (Mare Nostrum of the Romans, on the left on the other side of the street). Continue to the Théâtre de la Mer car park.
Pass to the right of the war memorial, still following the rocky coastline, to reach the entrance to the Théâtre de la Mer, which is located in Fort Saint-Pierre (sign about the history of the fort).
Enter the fort and climb the stairs to a small esplanade overlooking the marina, the Môle Saint-Louis and the breakwater.

(3) Above you on the left: the marine cemetery and the Musée de la Mer. Retrace your steps along the promenade to the Chant des Vagues pedestrian crossing.

(4) Cross it and go up the alley opposite to reach Rue Jean Vilar (formerly Route d'Agde). Turn left onto this street, don't miss the entrance to No. 58 decorated with a fresco, and follow it to its intersection with Rue René Cassin. Continue straight ahead at the roundabout and go up the street until you reach the intersection with Rue de la Butte Ronde.

(5) Go down this street to Place Édouard Herriot. Turn right, pass in front of the casino and cross at the car park (shops and toilets).

(6) As you pass, note the mosaic fresco by Christophe Cosentino, then turn right down Rue du Pasteur Lucien Benoît until you reach the car park (S/E).

Bring a bottle of water for the walk.
On the way back: Place Édouard Herriot: bars, restaurants, shops and public toilets

Le Bois de mon cœur, monument to the Resistance.
Fresco depicting the Mediterranean Sea.
Théâtre de la Mer (Fort Saint-Pierre). Viewpoint overlooking the harbour entrance and the marine cemetery.
58 Rue Jean Vilar Mural on the wall and entrance gate.
Parking de la Corniche: Mosaic mural by Christophe Cosentino.

Lazaret Beach: at the end of the^16th century, this was the site chosen by Henry IV to establish the first port, a project that was abandoned in 1603. During the plague epidemic of 1721, a lazaretto was erected to quarantine ships coming from the East. The name has remained.

(5) Rue de la Butte Ronde: when the port of Lazaret was built, the Butte Ronde was topped by a small fort equipped with a battery of cannons to defend the port.