A museum with no door, a hundred metres from the shore
The Cannes underwater eco-museum is not a museum you walk into. It is six statues set on the sand, off the south shore of Île Sainte-Marguerite, in 3 to 5 metres of water and about a hundred metres from the shore. No ticket desk, no opening hours, no ticket: you take the boat, cross the island on foot, put on a mask and swim.
Our view: this is the best reason to put your head underwater in Cannes, provided you know what you are going to see. Six monumental faces two metres high, which you swim over in twenty minutes. It is short, it is free, and it requires being able to swim 100 metres in open water with nothing to hold on to. It is not a paddle for small children.
This guide covers three levels. The eco-museum with just a mask and snorkel, snorkelling elsewhere around Cannes, then scuba diving with the two clubs we were able to verify. The figures come from the City of Cannes website, the artist's website and the clubs' websites, consulted in October 2026.
From mask to tank
N° 01
The work
The statues are the work of British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, known for his underwater museums. They were submerged at the end of January 2021, and the city presents the site as the first underwater eco-museum in France and in the Mediterranean. Each piece is about 2 metres high and weighs around ten tonnes, in a pH-neutral material designed to be colonised by marine life. The faces are those of Cannes residents: the artist made 45 casts of volunteers and kept 6. The mask theme refers to the Man in the Iron Mask, the prisoner held on the island from 1687 to 1698.
N° 02
Getting there
Boats for Sainte-Marguerite leave from quai Laubeuf, in the Old Port, with several companies. The crossing takes about fifteen minutes. The adult return ticket was noted at €16 in 2022: expect a little more today, to be checked with the company. The landing stage is on the north shore, the statues on the south shore: you have to cross the island through the pine forest, about 1.3 km, or fifteen to twenty minutes on foot. The site lies directly below the forester's lodge path (chemin de la maison forestière), and the area is marked by buoys. Bring shoes for the path; you enter the water from the shore, facing the marked area.
N° 03
In the water
Between 84 and 132 metres from the shore, in 3 to 5 metres of water
These are the city's figures. The statues rest on patches of pale sand between the Posidonia seagrass meadows, which makes them visible from the surface in calm water. A mask and snorkel are enough to see them; fins make the swim more comfortable, and being able to duck-dive two or three metres changes everything for looking at them face to face. Boats are not allowed to anchor over the area, for swimmers' safety. Do not touch the sculptures or lean on them: their surface is made for marine life to settle on. We found no mention of a lifeguard post at this spot: treat the swim as unsupervised.
N° 04
Snorkelling
To see fish with a mask, you need rock and seagrass. The sandy beaches of La Croisette and La Bocca are pleasant for swimming, poor for watching. The shoreline around Sainte-Marguerite offers rocky edges lined with Posidonia, and the Estérel coast, from Théoule onwards, has coves of red rock. Two rules apply everywhere: Posidonia is a protected plant, so do not trample it or pull it up, and a marker buoy is useful as soon as you move away from the shore in an area where boats pass.
N° 05
Diving, Old Port
Plongée Club de Cannes, quai Saint-Pierre
The club is based on quai Saint-Pierre, in the Old Port, and its website says it has been operating since 1978. It offers try dives, exploration dives for certified divers and snorkelling trips. The try-dive price found in directories runs from €60 to €70, equipment included: to be confirmed on the club's price page, which we could not read in full. This is the simplest address if you are staying in the centre: you board on foot from Le Suquet. Book by phone or message before turning up at the quay, as trips depend on the weather.
N° 06
Diving, La Bocca
The centre is at 110 boulevard du Midi, Port du Béal, on the boundary between La Bocca and Mandelieu. It is a PADI operation: try dives from age 8, courses, exploration dives, and a snorkelling side with half-day or full-day trips to the Lérins Islands. The tourist office listing gives a season from 1 April to 31 October in 2026, with departures at 9am, 1pm or 4pm, booking mandatory. Prices are on the centre's website and were not recorded here. It is the logical choice with children or teenagers, as the centre runs programmes aimed at them.
N° 07
Certified divers
Around the islands: drop-offs, not just shallows
The Lérins are not only a try-dive site. Dive centre listings and dive logs describe, off the eastern tip of Sainte-Marguerite, the Tradelière area, with depths down to around forty metres, and the Vengeur drop-off, said to go down towards 60 metres and reserved for experienced divers. These depths are those quoted by the clubs, not measured by us. The choice of site belongs to the dive leader according to your level, the wind and the visibility on the day: bring your certification card and your logbook.
What we'd skip
What we'd skip: arriving by rental boat or kayak expecting to tie up above the statues. Anchoring is forbidden over the area, which is marked by buoys. You swim out from the shore: that is the point of the place.
We would also skip taking a weak swimmer without a float. The first statue is more than 80 metres from the shore, the last more than 130, with nowhere to stand. A board, a pool noodle or a buoy changes the outing for a child or an adult who is not at ease. If the sea is rough, give up: there is nothing to see in churned water.
Finally, do not expect a reef. The statues gather algae over the seasons, and their appearance changes from one year to the next. It is neither an aquarium nor a theme park: it is a work of art set in a seagrass meadow, to be looked at in a few breath-hold dives. Plan the rest of the day on the island, not in the water.
When to go
The season. Surface water in Cannes averages around 18°C in May, 24°C in August and 20°C in October. From June to September, you swim without a wetsuit; in May and October, a shorty makes the outing longer and more pleasant. The dive clubs operate mainly from April to October.
The time of day. Take one of the first boats. The sea is generally calmer in the morning, before the breeze picks up, and the water clearer as long as the bottom has not been stirred up. Check the time of the last return boat before crossing the island: the walk back to the landing stage takes twenty minutes.
Eco-museum and diving in Cannes, common questions
Is the Cannes underwater eco-museum free?
Yes. Access to the statues is free and open all year. The only cost is the boat to Île Sainte-Marguerite, leaving from quai Laubeuf in the Old Port of Cannes.
Do you need to be a diver to see the statues?
No. They lie in 3 to 5 metres of water: a mask and snorkel are enough to see them from the surface. You do need to be comfortable in open water, because they are between 84 and 132 metres from the shore.
Where exactly is the underwater eco-museum?
On the south shore of Île Sainte-Marguerite, directly below the forester's lodge path. From the landing stage, on the north side, you cross the island on foot, about 1.3 km. The area is marked out by buoys.
How much does a try dive cost in Cannes?
Prices found in directories in 2026 run from €60 to €70 at Plongée Club de Cannes, equipment included. Rates vary by club and package: confirm them directly before booking.
From what age can you do a try dive?
Nature Essentielle, at Port du Béal, advertises try dives from age 8. The minimum age depends on the club and on how comfortable the child is in the water: mention it when booking.
IT Digital entrepreneur · Cannes local
2026-10-10 · 8 min read
Prices, opening hours and addresses change. Spotted an error or something out of date? Tell us and we will correct it.
Read next