Tanneron mimosas herald spring

On the Tanneron hills

Above Mandelieu and Pégomas, the roads climb through wooded hills. During the flowering season, mimosas are easy to spot from a distance: trees laden with yellow flower clusters dot the slopes and form denser groups in places. Along the road, viewpoints open up over the plain and the bay of Cannes.

The panoramas are part of the walk. You pause beside a mimosa laden with flowers, then look towards the coast. On a clear day, the sea draws a blue line on the horizon in the winter sunlight.

When can you see the mimosas in bloom?

Flowering extends through winter and varies with the cultivars, exposure and weather. To see the mimosas growing spontaneously in the massif, February is generally a good time. Some trees bloom earlier, while others extend the season into March. The slopes do not all turn yellow at the same time.

The photographs from this walk were taken in early February 2025. They show the flowering at that time, which can vary from year to year.

A stop in Tanneron village

The village offers a place to pause before continuing on foot. Around the town hall square are shops and café terraces, as well as the tourist information office, the Oustaou dou Païs. This is where you can ask for a map and choose a walk that suits the time you have available.

Tanneron extends beyond this small centre: the municipality includes twenty-two hamlets scattered across the hills. From the paths, houses appear among the trees, a reminder that the massif is also a place where people live and farm.

Walking among the mimosas

On foot, you can take a closer look at the flowers and their finely divided foliage, and enjoy their scent. The paths alternate between wooded stretches and open views of the hills. Mimosas grow alongside other trees; in some places they fill the foreground, while elsewhere they form yellow patches on distant slopes.

The tourist office suggests a walk of around an hour and a half around the village, passing through Les Carreiros and Notre-Dame de Peygros. Consult its route description or collect a map locally to follow the walk. The ridge hike is another, longer option that needs separate planning.

The views do not all face the sea. Inland, the wooded hills stand before the higher mountains of the hinterland, sometimes snow-covered in winter. These changing landscapes are a reason to slow down and allow time for several photography stops.

The work of mimosa growers

Originally from Australia, mimosa became established on the French Riviera before becoming an emblematic crop of the Tanneron. In the massif, cultivated trees grow alongside those that have spread spontaneously. Acidic, well-drained soils favour their growth.

The growers, known as mimosistes, cultivate mimosa for its flowering branches, sold in bouquets and used in floral arrangements. It is also grown for perfumery: the flowers yield a fragrant extract, called mimosa absolute, used in perfumes made in the Grasse area.

A visit to a farm provides an opportunity to learn about harvesting and the role of the forcing room, where warmth and humidity encourage the flowers to open. To meet a grower, look for a farm offering visits and check its arrangements for visitors. Buy bouquets from the professionals; the trees encountered on a walk are not there for picking.

Continuing your visit

You can extend your outing to the villages of the Pays de Fayence, Lake Saint-Cassien or the landscapes of the Estérel. During the season, the mimosa festivals in Tanneron and Mandelieu offer another way to discover the flowers, with events and parades. Check the programme for the year before planning your visit.