Le Fenouillet - Château de Hyères starting from La Crau

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This hike combines physical activity with culture. It will take us on a journey of discovery through the ruins of Hyères Castle. The local council has installed information panels on the site, allowing us to imagine what life was like in those days. Before that, this beautiful walk will take us to the recently renovated Notre-Dame du Fenouillet Chapel.

Details

n°459847
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.84 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 465 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 461 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 279 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 35 m
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Photos

a trace of the past
mimosa forest
The castle
The gallows.

Description of the walk

Park in the Notre-Dame car park in La Crau.

(S/E) Take the path of the same name, heading south. After the barrier prohibiting vehicle traffic, take the third track on the left until you reach the bend on the right, about 300 metres further on. Leave the track and take the path that goes uphill, then immediately turn right. At the next intersection of paths, 50 metres further on, take the right-hand path again. The slope is quite steep. Join the Chemin du Fenouillet (tarmac road).

(1) Turn left and follow the road/track to an intersection located about 20 metres before a cistern.

(2) Turn right and head for the Notre-Dame du Fenouillet chapel.

(3) Go behind the chapel and climb the path that leads to the cross (be careful as you may need to use your hands to reach the top). Return to the chapel via the same path. Continue to the previous intersection.

(2) Turn right onto the track and continue to the next three-way junction.

(4) Once at the three-way junction, leave the track on your right and continue straight ahead. Pass another cistern.

(5) 600 metres further on, after the barrier, take the track on the left. From there, stay on the road/track until you reach a large crossroads just before Hyères Castle.

(6) Turn right then left to reach the castle entrance.

(7) Once you arrive in front of the castle, you can visit the site at your leisure by following the itineraries suggested by the municipality (the itinerary shown on the map is for information purposes only). Then turn back.

(6) Take the road opposite (ignore the one you came in on). Then turn left off the road and keep left to reach "la Potence" (elevation 190). The name is self-explanatory, but the accuracy of the information remains to be seen.

(8) Continue along the path heading south-west and rejoin the road about a hundred metres before the crossroads (6). Do not follow this road, but turn right onto a path that avoids the crossroads and joins the arrival track. Turn right and follow the outward route in the opposite direction to the starting car park (S/E).

Enjoy your hike.

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 37 m - Car park in the Notre-Dame district - Gapeau (fleuve)
  2. 1 : km 1.14 - alt. 115 m - Chemin du Fenouillet - on the left
  3. 2 : km 2.47 - alt. 229 m - Fork (outward/return to the chapel)
  4. 3 : km 3.12 - alt. 236 m - Round trip to the cross
  5. 4 : km 4.27 - alt. 163 m - Three-way junction - straight ahead
  6. 5 : km 4.73 - alt. 176 m - Junction - track on the left
  7. 6 : km 6.62 - alt. 138 m - Crossroads - right
  8. 7 : km 7.25 - alt. 158 m - Hyères Castle
  9. 8 : km 7.9 - alt. 184 m - La Potence
  10. S/E : km 13.84 - alt. 37 m - Car park in the Notre-Dame district

Notes

No special equipment is required for this walk. A water bottle and a small snack will suffice.

Worth a visit

I suggest you watch this video to accompany the description.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 23 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
User 23996858

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 15, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

Too many tarmac sections. Is there no possibility of a circular? The return journey is not very pleasant.
But of course, the scenery from the cross is magnificent, as is the view from the route.
No difficulty.

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francinejeanclaude
francinejeanclaude

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

beautiful hike without difficulties beautiful views

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Alain Revello
Alain Revello

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike, even though many sections are paved. Between Notre Dame and the castle, you can take the paths that run alongside the road or rejoin it at some very pleasant spots where you can see a large number of mimosa trees. Climb up to the Fenouillet cross for a truly unmissable view. Arriving at the château is also a great reward, and once again, the château's belvedere is well worth a detour.

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Véronik83
Véronik83

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful route. Very nice view as you approach the castle, and especially at the finish line.

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Nicolas83210
Nicolas83210

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The route is easy to follow from start to finish with Viso rando. Just follow the trail, enjoy the beautiful views from above, and have a wonderful day

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Luysse
Luysse

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 14, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

Nice walk, but quite a lot of tarmac and crowds...

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miche83
miche83

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 24, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful view in all directions, plus blue skies and bright sunshine! For the return trip, at the halfway point we decided to take a path towards Les Maurettes, which is a little longer, and towards the end a slightly steeper path that allowed us to avoid the track.

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hjannet
hjannet

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 07, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

the last few metres to reach the Fenouillet cross are difficult to find and (somewhat) challenging.
A pleasant walk with beautiful views. But best avoided as a round trip. Ideally, you should have a car waiting for you at the Château d'Hyères.
You can shorten the walk a little by starting from the forest road at the junction of the La Crau Hyères road and the motorway access road, where there is a car park.

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Luc83
Luc83

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 10, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hello,
This route is close to the towns of Toulon and Hyères, so it is quite busy, but it is really very pleasant, with superb views.
It is also possible to find less busy alternatives, as there are so many trails that criss-cross Mont Fenouilllet.

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Syrius 83
Syrius 83

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 05, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very nice. Not very difficult despite the climb up to the cross, which I didn't do because I'm afraid of heights.
It's a shame there isn't more information about the surrounding trails because, not knowing where they lead, we didn't dare to try them

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Syrius 83
Syrius 83

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 05, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very nice. Not very difficult despite the climb up to the cross, which I didn't do because I'm afraid of heights

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brija
brija

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 14, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful hike, but the road between Fenouillet and the castle could be improved by the parallel trails, which unfortunately are not marked and may make you hesitate to venture onto them.
Beautiful views from Fenouillet and the castle

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lucmignon
lucmignon

Thank you for your feedback. Kind regards, Luc.

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Catherine D1.
Catherine D1.

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 08, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

a very pleasant route, with a significant climb to reach the Croix du Fenouillet, but no difficulties to report. I just took a slight detour to cross the mimosa forest (unfortunately not yet in bloom) on the right-hand side a few minutes before reaching the Château de Hyères (worth a visit)

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Caaarooooo
Caaarooooo

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We left La Crau at 9:15 a.m
Arrived around 10:20 a.m. at the cross...
A bit difficult to climb the rocks, but the view was magnificent
We arrived at the castle around noon
We took a 30-minute break to eat
We left via the potence loop (we couldn't find the path on the left along the route, so we returned via the same path we took on the way there
Returned around 3:30 p.m
A really enjoyable hike with magnificent scenery
We are two girls who are not very athletic 🙄🤣 Our legs ached for 48 hours afterwards, but for those who are used to hiking, it's no problem.
Perhaps we should have started with an easier route, but we don't regret it

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