Located between Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie, the Corniche Vendéenne is an ocean-front promenade taking walkers along three kilometres of wild coastline strewn with rocks, including a group of five rock stacks called Les Cinq Pineaux.

The seaside resort of Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie is also a port renowned for its speciality: sardine fishing. Picturesque with its colourful boats, the Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie port is also the oldest in the Vendée!

The seaside resort of Saint-Jean-de-Monts offers visitors a beautiful 8-km long sandy beach. Water sports, wind sports and numerous leisure activities, especially for children, are on offer.

Crossed by many small canals, the Breton marsh in the Vendée extends over 45,000 hectares of wetland. This natural environment is home to a very rich fauna and flora.

The Daviaud heritage museum in La Barre-de-Monts is a discovery centre of the Breton marsh in the Vendée.

The Gois passage is a 4.5-km long tidal causeway which connects at low tide the Noirmoutier island to Beauvoir-sur-Mer on the continent.

Before the Noirmoutier bridge was built in 1971, the Gois passage was the only passable way allowing to reach the island. Today a tourist attraction, the Gois passage is also enjoyed by fishermen on foot. At rising tide, the rescue towers located all along the Passage du Gois are lifesavers for the careless people unable to make it back to the coast in time.

An unusual sports event is held in May, the Foulées du Gois: a running race over the Passage du Gois... at rising tide!

Situated on the Lumière coast (Coast of Light), the seaside resort of Les Sables-d'Olonne is a renowned destination presenting numerous attractions: a bustling seafront promenade lined with shops and cafés, a beautiful 3-kilometre long sandy beach that is very popular with summer tourists, a large marina, numerous events and sports activities, a casino and a thalassotherapy centre. Every four years, the seaside resort of Les Sables-d'Olonne hosts the departure of the Vendée Globe, the famous single-handed, round-the-world yacht race sailed non-stop and without assistance.

The Noirmoutier island benefits from a microclimate that is perfectly adapted to mimosa flowering. With a surface area of 49 km², the landscapes of the island alternate between between sandy beaches, dunes, creeks, pine and holm oak woods, and salt marshes.

Noirmoutier-en-l'Île, the capital of the island, is a wonderful place to visit with its narrow streets lined with beautiful white houses, its 12th-century port, its church and its medieval castle home to a museum about the history of the island.

The Traditions museum situated in La Guérinière recounts the island's activities and traditions through a collection of objects and costumes, as well as room reconstructions.

Not to be missed: Bois de la Chaise wood fronted by a pretty sandy beach with beach huts. This is where Souzeaux promenade begins, a beautiful walkway along the sea.

Equipped with numerous bicycle paths, the Noirmoutier island is great place to cycle. An excellent way to discover the treasures of the island...

Famous for its salt, the Noirmoutier island is also well known for oysters and bonnottes, a new potato with a unique flavour.

Situated in Les Lucs-sur-Boulogne, The Historial de la Vendée is a museum recounting the history of the Vendée, from Prehistory to our days. The Historial also houses a small museum for children about the history of food.

Built in the 11th century and then fortified in the 12th century, the Talmont-Saint-Hilaire castle is a real medieval fortress that was the residence of the king Richard I of England.

Open to visitors, the Talmont castle organises medieval-themed events every summer. And from June until September, the fortress is adorned with lights and projected images during the Nights of Richard the Lionheart show.

Built in 1804 by Napoleon I, the town of La Roche-sur-Yon abounds in typical early 19th-century Neoclassical buildings. The Napoleon Trail, signposted with information panels, takes visitors on a tour of sites such as Place Napoleon, a square where an equestrian statue of Napoleon I stands, Saint-Louis church, the town hall (Hôtel de Ville), the former law courts (Palais de Justice), the imperial secondary school, the theatre, the Prefecture and the national stud (Haras National).

The Logis de la Chabotterie, a typical Vendée stone manor house in Saint-Sulpice-le-Verdon, has furnished rooms, a permanent exhibition on the subject of the War of the Vendée and General Charette and a beautiful walled formal garden featuring flowerbeds, old roses and aromatic plants.

The Chemin de Charette path through Chabotterie wood leads to a monument commemorating the place where General Charette was arrested in 1796.

A Baroque music festival, Musiques à la Chabotterie, takes place every year in July and August.

Monday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Tuesday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Wednesday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Thursday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Friday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM
Sunday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM

Pornic on the Jade Coast is a much-loved seaside resort in Loire-Atlantique. With both a fishing harbour and a marina, it offers a perfect combination of relaxation and discovery, where you will be amazed by the beauty of nature. By the sea, on the river or inland, you can see a wide variety of fauna and flora. On foot, by bike or even on horseback, set off for an outing along the Customs Officers' Path, a coastal path along the coves and rocky cliffs that is full of well-preserved heritage.

A really sea-oriented town, it offers a wide range of activities available to make the most of this generous natural environment: shellfish-gathering, fishing in the sea or lake, carrelet net fishing (enthusiasts will have a field day!), boat trips to Noirmoutier Island or to admire the Jade Coast, swimming at the beautiful beaches of L'Étang, La Boutinardière, La Noëveillard and La Source, leisure activities on the water, sports... Also be sure to go and see the pêcheries, little fishing huts at the water's edge that are full of typical local charm.

In Pornic's medieval town centre, wander the narrow streets and climb the steps that wind their way between the fishermen's houses. Also discover its old harbour, with its fishing boats and traditional sailboats, and its picture postcard 13th-century castle.

Take some time out to be pampered at the thalassotherapy centre, and treat yourself to an artisanal ice cream at La Fraiseraie, a real institution in Pornic! Other local specialities: Le Curé Nantais, a little cheese washed with Muscadet wine, and La Brigantine, a craft beer. Enjoy!

Situated off Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie and extending over 23 km², the Yeu island has preserved its authenticity and its fishing traditions. Rocky coasts, cliffs, dunes, sandy beaches and hedged farmland make up the scenery. One place of interest not to be missed along the wild coast (côte sauvage): the Old Castle, a 14th-century fortified castle standing opposite the sea that is supposed to have inspired Hergé in his famous Tintin comic book The Black Island. Regular sea links with the Yeu island are offered from La Barre-de-Monts - Fromentine, and seasonal links from Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie.

After the signing of the Versailles Treaty, Georges Clemenceau left his political life and retired in the Vendée in a fisherman's house looking onto the sea located in Saint-Vincent-sur-Jard. Remained intact since his death in 1929, Georges Clemenceau's summer residence is today a museum which is home to furnished rooms and souvenirs of the Statesman. An Impressionist garden also is to be discovered.

Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM
Wednesday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM
Thursday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM
Friday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM
Sunday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 AM, 02:00 PM – 05:30 PM