In Var there is as much high life as you can find in any big city, but there is also deep rurality on everyone's doorstep. The coastal resorts need no introduction at all: St-Raphaël, Fréjus, Ste-Maxime, St-Tropez, Bormes-les-Mimosas, and Hyères. The Var is also home to the largest canyon in Europe: the gorges du Verdon, which is a paradise for climbers and canoeists.

The land and the sea are equal partners in creating identity of the Var. The activities span the extremes of effort: from sunbathing, through golf and cycling to canyoning and other exhilarating outdoor sports. And there are many leisurely cultural sorties to be made out in the countryside: the château de Vins, with its training sessions and concerts; the Roman amphitheatre at Fréjus ("the Pompeii of Provence"), the magnificent château d'Entrecasteaux, the abbaye du Thoronet, and the citadel of St-Tropez.

Along the length of the littoral run the wooded hills of the Maures; containing hundreds of hectares of protected countryside. The corniche des Marues is a suberb route that winds its way through pines and down to the sea. The River Verdon has a wealth of perfectly preserved nature hidden in its gorges, bends and peaks, with villages perched high up in the clouds (like Trigance, for example, at 800 metres). Amongst the many towns worthy of visit are Barjols, with 33 its fountains; Brignoles, the city of the counts of Provence; Fox-Amphoux, the old village perched on a hill and the abbey at Thoronet, built in 1160.

The Var boasts the oldest vineyards in France; red wines are predominant here, and vary from the delicate and supple to the bold and curvacious. The gastronomy of the region is famously Mediterranean: bouillabaisse, aïoli etc... just about anything made with fresh vegetables, herbes de Provence and olives goes.