2025 economic and tourist report, a private village under pressure
As the Côte d’Azur continues to attract record crowds, Port Grimaud, a private lake village founded in the 1960s, draws up an economic report...
Designed as a Provençal living space, and not as a machine to welcome crowds, the site reminds us that it derives no profit from mass tourism. A singular position on a coastline dominated by the logic of attractiveness. A record attendance for a place that has never sought attractiveness.
This first episode opens a series of three articles dedicated to Port Grimaud: Episode 1: the 2025 economic and tourist report. Episode 2: projections and orientations for 2026. Episode 3: legal proceedings opposing Port Grimaud to the municipality of Grimaud.
The year 2025 confirmed a paradox that Port Grimaud officials have been repeating for years: the lake city attracts crowds... even though it was never designed as a tourist site. For the first time, an accurate count was made: 1.4 million visitors (approximately 1.2 million in 2024) entered the village gates.
A volume that would make it one of the most visited sites in Var. “It is a private site, open because the owners decided so,” recalls Philippe de Saint Rapt, president of Port Grimaud I.
Access remains free, and no attractiveness strategy is pursued. Summer attendance remains very high, but 2025 also saw an increase in visits in May and June and in September and October, notably via nearly 500 excursion coaches. A dynamic which, far from being an asset, complicates the daily management of a village designed for its inhabitants and impacts the living environment.
FLOWS THAT ARE DIFFICULT TO ABSORB IN A CITY DESIGNED FOR LOCAL LIFE The difficulty is not so much the number of visitors as their mode of arrival. Groups, sometimes composed of several dozen people, create temporary congestion in a... “When four buses arrive at the same time, it is not the same as a continuous flow of visitors on foot or by bicycle,” highlights the president. In high season, cohabitation between residents, owners, and excursionists becomes delicate.
“We are now considering a reservation system to limit groups in July/August”. A protective measure, not an exploitation one.
A STABLE INTERNAL ECONOMY, BUT ONE THAT DOES NOT BENEFIT FROM TOURISM Unlike neighboring seaside resorts, Port Grimaud does not live off tourism. The local economy relies on its businesses, services, and especially on its co-owners. Feedback from professionals also reflects the trend observed throughout the golfe de Saint-Tropez: many people, but a lower average spend.
Some businesses saw their attendance increase, others decline. “They come, they look, and they leave without spending,” summarizes a manager.
Parking revenues are slightly up, without however offsetting the increase in operating costs: security, maintenance, subcontracting. Because Port Grimaud alone finances its maintenance, its infrastructure, and receives no subsidies from local authorities who collect the site's tourist tax. global comes from third-party revenues (car parks, terrace rentals), two-thirds are funded directly by the owners.
And this, even though the municipality uses certain infrastructures and services ... without financing their maintenance and cost.
A VILLAGE THAT MAINTAINS ITSELF AT ITS OWN EXPENSE The lake city is a private entity: quays, bridges, squares, church, roads... everything belongs to the co-owners who bear the maintenance. Expenditures are heavy: payroll, security, and especially structural maintenance.
The anodes that protect the quays must be replaced on a rotating basis every five years, with an inspection every three years. “This is what allows Port Grimaud to stay afloat,” recalls the management. (An anode is a metal part that intentionally corrodes to protect the quays and structures from corrosion).
Bridges are regularly renovated; one of the main ones leading to the harbor master's office will be starting in autumn 2026. One-third of the budget economic and tourist driver for the municipality.
“We must keep control over how things are done,” insists the management. The water taxis, river transport boats for residents and visitors, already allow for a respectful discovery of the site; multiplying access or flows for other vessels would amount to transforming the city into a movie set. The sentence closing the interview summarizes the state of mind: “Port Grimaud is not an amusement park but a living space”.
A MODEL THREATENED BY EXTERNAL PRESSURE Beyond the numbers, the 2025 report reveals a deeper concern: Port Grimaud is being diverted from its primary identity. The village was designed as a Provençal, atypical, peaceful living space.
Not as a PLEASE NOTE... IN OUR NEXT ISSUE: Port Grimaud 2026 – Economic projections and defense of a unique model.
open because the owners decided so”, “When four buses arrive at the same time, these visitors on foot or by bicycle”, highlights the president. “We are now considering a reservation system to limit groups in “They come, they look, and they leave without allows keeping Port Grimaud afloat”, recalls municipality. “We must keep control over the way things are done”, insists the state of mind: “Port Grimaud is not an amusement park but a living space”. • Interview conducted by Pierre Bégliomini (text and photo).