Christmas/New Year greetings from Sainte Maxime  (pronounced ‘Maksim’), located here on the Mediterranean Sea in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region in Southeastern France.

We’re located in the French Riviera (Côte d’Azur), 90 km (56 mi) south-west from Nice and 130 km (81 mi) north-east from Marseille, and about a 20/30 minute drive from Saint Tropez or about 15-minutes in catching the ferry the runs between both towns.

Sainte Maxime boasts  a population of around 16,000 but that’s nearly doubled in the summer months.

Its inhabitants are called Maximois or Maximoises in French.

Being Christmas Day, it’s a time to spend with the family but then many of the townsfolk headed into the town to enjoy the sights, sounds and opportunity enjoy all the fun of a Festive Season fair.

This pretty seaside town faces southward on the northern shore of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez. In the north the Massif des Maures mountain range protects it from the cold winds of the mistral.

Firstly, let’s show you where on the Google map we’re located:

Sainte Maxime photographs – Credit Sainte Maxime Tourism