Are there any national parks and other scenic areas within 4 hours driving distance of Cannes ? (can be in a different country nearby) We like beautiful lakes, parks, mountains, coastlines, etc that we can hike or drive through. (Not especially interested in wildlife.) Any places to kayak or canoe on calm waters? Any other famous places or attractions to see?
thanks for you help.

Canoe/Kayak-Raft - The Var Valley - BSN (en)

The Var River a couple of hours away.

The Gorge du Verdon is the classic place for scenery, but the Lac de Ste-Croix is also worth a visit--especially if you like water sports.

https://www.google.com/search?q=gorg...w=1536&bih=759

Yes I was going to mention the Gorges du Verdun but thought it may be more than 4 hours from Cannes - especially in summer when it took me once an hour of stop-and-go driving to go from Cannes to Grasse!

But yes - my son and I canoed thru part of it (rentals abound - we just stopped by) and only tipped over once.

thanks. gorge du verdon and lac st croix look especially beautiful! looks like its 2 hours away approx.

Hello,

The Mercantour park is near Cannes (about 1:30 trip).

You can go there by Vésubie valley : up to Saint-Martin Vésubie and Le Boréon or by Roya valley : Breil sur Roya up to Tende, where you can find the Vallée des Merveilles with prehistoric things. Very beautifull.

You can go to the Lac d'Esparon, not far away from the Lac de Sainte-Croix.

You also can go to the Calanques, near Marseille. Very beautifful place or to the Alpilles, near les Baux de Provence (2:15 from Cannes). I love it ! Not far away from the Alpilles, you have the national park of Lubéron.

Enjoy your trip

Of these 4 national parks, how would you rank them in order from best to least, and also, are any of them similar to each other?
Calanques, Ecrins, Mercantour, and Port Cross?