From 23 to 25 April 2027, Banyuls-sur-Mer will host MERveille, the festival of diving and the protection of the seabed. A festive gathering, free and open from the age of 8, on the Quai Georges Petit and the Allées Aristide Maillol, at the gateway to the Cerbère-Banyuls marine nature reserve, France’s first marine reserve.
A one-of-a-kind event: to enjoy the sea, we must protect it
MERveille does not separate practice from protection: it makes the two a single experience. You come to enjoy the sea, protect its depths and share its culture. Three strands, one shared conviction: we only ever truly protect what we know.
Encounters and activities
On the programme: taster dives and freediving sessions led by the local clubs, snorkelling trails, workshops run by the Oceanological Observatory and the Biodiversarium, talks on biodiversity and microplastics, underwater photography exhibitions and image competitions.
Ambassadors with complementary voices
The festival will bring together ambassadors with complementary profiles: a scientific voice to link exploration and protection, a voice of freediving and performance, a local voice rooted in the Côte Vermeille, and an institutional voice (research and outreach). Each will tell, in their own way, how practice leads to protection.
Exhibitors and partners: why get involved?
Diving clubs and schools, responsible equipment makers, scientific institutions, environmental groups, sustainable tourism operators: MERveille brings together the whole sector. A chance to gain visibility, to meet the public and to join, from the very first edition, a festival that weds celebration to the protection of the seabed.
The programme and the terms of participation will be confirmed as the event draws nearer. To exhibit or become a partner, get in touch with the organising team.