The port of call of Port Vendres is situated close to the Spanish border, giving a temperate Mediterranean weather. The cruise wharf is situated in the main harbor.

Map to take along.

Cruise calendar for this port.

Watch a destination video.

A typical Mediterranean fishing port, situated near the Spanish border on the cote Vermeille in south west France, Port-Vendres is renowned for its numerous fish and sea food restaurants. You can watch the fishing boats arriving with their daily catch. It is also a major marina in the region.

Port-Vendres is one of the few deep-water ports in this part of the French Mediterranean coast. It takes freighters and cruise ships, as well as large and small fishing boats.

If you wish to see the town with an aid of a tour guide, the tourism of Port Vendres provides this kind of tour throughout the summer.

There was a little tourist train that takes tourists to Collioure and around the hilltop vineyards. The train stop is less than 100 yards from the gangway.

Port-Vendres provides the opportunity to visit some of the prettiest areas of France. It serves as a convenient starting point for trips to Perpignan, Roussillon's historic capital; Collioure, a picturesque harbor filled with brightly colored fishing boats; Banyuls, famous for its sweet wine and as the birthplace of sculptor Aristide Maillol; and the medieval town of Carcassonne.

There is an indoor fish market, with some food stalls to sample the fresh catch.

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For Internet check with the local tourist office.

Local emergency number:

Police:              17
Fire brigade:      18
Ambulance:       15 

Most shops, businesses, information services, museums and banks in France stay open all day. The exceptions are the smaller shops and enterprises, which may close for lunch sometime between 12.30pm and 2pm. Basic hours of business are from 8 or 9am to 6.30 or 7.30pm Monday to Saturday for the big shops and Tuesday to Saturday for smaller shops (some of the smaller shops may open on Monday afternoon). You can always find boulangeries and food shops that do stay open, however, on days when others close – on Sunday normally until noon.

National holiday dates:

January 1 New Year's Day
Easter Sunday
Easter Monday
Ascension Day (forty days after Easter)
Pentecost or Whitsun (seventh Sunday after Easter, plus the Monday)
May 1 May Day/Labour Day
May 8 Victory in Europe Day
July 14 Bastille Day
August 15 Assumption of the Virgin Mary
November 1 All Saints' Day
November 11 1918 Armistice Day
December 25 Christmas Day

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