Seven bays, and hours written down in black and white
Few councils publish rules that name private hire vehicles directly. This one did, for the season running from 23 May to 30 August 2026, and the document is precise.
Boulevard Vasserot becomes restricted on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 4 pm to 8 pm. The traverse de la Gendarmerie does the same, on the same days, from 7 pm to 3 am. On avenue Foch, level with place Carnot, seven quick drop-off bays are open from 8 pm to 3 am from 23 May. And from 30 May, loading bays become drop-off bays from 11 am to 6 am: boulevard Vasserot, avenue Paul Roussel, avenue de la Résistance, boulevard Louis Blanc, rue du 11 Novembre.
Seven bays for the whole of Saint-Tropez. That number tells you everything about the margin available on an August Saturday night. A guest set down anywhere else walks, and walks with luggage. The drop-off point is decided before departure, not in the queue.
The real bottleneck is called La Foux
Distance does not predict duration on this route. The planning document of the neighbouring commune of Cogolin, published by the Var state services, names the tipping point: the La Foux junction, where the RD 98, the RD 98a and the RD 559 converge, on a road network described as regularly saturated, particularly in summer.
That is where the gap opens between a late-March run and a mid-August run, not on the motorway. The same document notes that parking across the peninsula is insufficient in summer. The two problems stack: you arrive more slowly, and you cannot wait on site.
Our answer is simple and stated in advance: the fare is fixed when you book, including on a day of gridlock. What moves is the departure time we suggest, not the price.
Fifteen minutes by boat against a queue
The town of Sainte-Maxime describes the sea shuttle as the busiest link in the gulf: a 15-minute crossing, eleven months a year, seven days a week, with one to four sailings an hour on each scheduled line, and a fully electric vessel in service since 2025.
It is a documented alternative, not a trick. A drop-off at Sainte-Maxime followed by a crossing steps right out of the road problem, because it does not depend on the junction. We propose it when it saves time, and we say so when it does not.