OpenSeaMap is used for orientation. The official anchoring, swimming, speed and no-go zones are those in the annexes to the order in force and the buoyage present on the water.
Ideas for enjoying the water from the boat or the shore, without turning a regulated zone into a place for activities. The day’s conditions, the official chart and the buoyage always have the final say.
The river is an inland navigation and manoeuvring route, not a place to launch an activity from a rental boat. Keep the paddleboard, snorkelling gear and swimming equipment stowed during the trip.
Rowing boats, kayaks and paddleboards may be on the water from their clubs or authorised starting points: they are priority users to anticipate, not an invitation to get into the water from your boat.
No swimming and no spontaneous launching: bridges, current, shallow water and local traffic reduce the safety margin.
Maritime order 085/2026 refers to the specific inland navigation police regulations for the Siagne and the Riou de l’Argentière. A sea boating licence does not, on its own, give the rights of an inland waters licence on a river. Ask the rental company and the harbour office whether the boat, its insurance, the contract and your licence allow the planned route.
A rental exemption cannot be improvised: where one exists, it depends on an authorisation and training given by an approved rental company. Without an explicit answer, the Siagne is not on the programme.
The port of Cannes Marina publishes an access route via the Siagne, about 0.5 nautical miles east of La Napoule. It states 3 knots, two bridges with a stated air draught of 4.70 m at chart datum, a stated maximum draught of 1.50 m, a sandbank east of the river mouth and a river that is not lit at night. These figures are port access information, not permanent guarantees: they must be confirmed with the harbour office before each approach.
If the water depth, the air draught, the visibility or your permission to navigate is uncertain, turn round in the gulf before committing. Do not attempt a tight turn or an improvised reverse in a narrow section.
The banks of the Siagne are home to an inland port and rowing activities. Keep to a speed suited to the waterway, a wide lateral separation and a careful lookout. Do not cut across the path of a rowing boat, kayak or paddleboard; they have little room to change direction when approaching a structure.
Bridges and weirs are not passages to attempt at the last moment. Before committing, check the height, current, depth, oncoming traffic and whether there is room to pull clear. Swimming and spontaneous launching are not part of a river navigation programme.
Cannes Marina states that the river is not lit at night. For a rental, no night navigation on the Siagne should be undertaken without explicit instructions from the harbour office and the rental company. A fireworks display, a parade or a local event does not make the river any easier to read and may create additional constraints.
Check PING and the town’s information on the day. Start your return well before dusk, with a fallback option towards the gulf if conditions change.
The specific navigation police regulations for the Siagne and the Riou de l’Argentière (prefectoral order 2019/642) cover all branches of the Siagne and the Siagne canal, from the sea to the anti-salt dam level with the Pont de Lattre de Tassigny, and the Riou de l’Argentière from the sea to the Passerelle des Amoureux footbridge.
At the river mouth, an access channel 45 m wide and 300 m long, oriented at 290°, starts from the west bank level with the RD 6098 bridge; spherical buoys mark its starboard side (order 085/2026). Cannes Marina gives the Royal Casino, a large white building, to port as the entrance landmark (Cannes Marina).
| Rule | What it says |
|---|---|
| Speed | 3 knots (5 km/h) on the river; 5 knots in the access channel at the river mouth. |
| Access channel | Enter at one end, cross directly, without stopping; stopping and anchoring prohibited. |
| Passing and distance | Everyone keeps to starboard; at least 20 m behind the boat ahead; no overtaking. |
| Prohibited | Sailing (except sailing boats under engine), windsurfing, water-skiing, parasailing; stopping except when necessary, anchoring, mooring under bridges, swimming, diving. |
| Mooring to the bank | Permitted, subject to the rights of riverside owners and leaving a passage corridor. |
| Riou de l’Argentière | Kayaks, rowing boats and paddleboards prohibited; jet skis prohibited in front of its mouth. |
| Golf course ferry | A cable-guided ferry crosses the river at the “Old Course” golf club; it has no priority over other users. |
Sources: prefectoral order 2019/642, maritime prefectoral order 085/2026.
On inland waters, the “inland waters” option of the boating licence is required above 4.5 kW (6 hp); the sea licence, for its part, is only valid on enclosed stretches of water (French ministry responsible for the sea). A boat rented at sea with a coastal licence is therefore not, by default, authorised to go up the river: have the rental company confirm it in writing. Cannes Marina also asks anyone renting a boat from the port to provide their navigation card, insurance and emergency contact details.
| Port | What the port publishes |
|---|---|
| Cannes Marina | “No visitor berths”; average draught of 1.30 m. Harbour office 04 93 49 51 27. Emptying toilets and sinks is prohibited in the port and in the Siagne. Port website |
| Port Inland | Dry port with 800 places on the Siagne canal, motorboats up to 11 m and 5 t. 04 93 47 50 68. Port website |
| Port communal du Riou | 122 berths, motorboats only; slipway accessible with a card issued by the town hall annexe (04 89 87 52 26). Town of Mandelieu |
The Rowing Club Cannes Mandelieu rows all year round on the Siagne and at sea, with more than 80 boats (Town of Mandelieu): expect to meet rowing boats at any time of day.
The Îlot du Golf hotel, 681 avenue de la Mer, advertises a private pontoon on the Siagne; it asks you to contact it in advance to come alongside (hotel website). Its restaurant, Le K, serves lunch and dinner.
A possible outing, if your licence and your contract allow it: refuel at Port La Napoule, enter via the 45 m channel at 5 knots, go upriver at 3 knots without overtaking, lunch at the Îlot du Golf after booking the pontoon, and return well before dusk.
Sources consulted on 26 September 2026. The names of the two bridges with 4.70 m air draught and the exact boundary between the sea and the river could not be confirmed: ask the harbour office.
There is no station to aim for from the river. Refuel before entering: Port La Napoule or Port de la Rague are the options in the area.