GREAT DESTINATIONS ❘ DEUX CHARENTES


“ TINY FISHING VILLAGES SHARE SPACE WITH SANDY BEACHES, MARSHLANDS, OYSTER FARMING AND ANCIENT FORTIFICATIONS”


From top: Royan, which was badly damaged in the Second World War and rebuilt in the 1950s; a glut of fresh mussels; traditional fishing huts at Talmont-sur-Gironde; Sablonceaux Abbey


Saintes, a grand town with plenty to remind you of its Roman past, including the Arc de Germanicus, the cathedral and the Abbaye aux Dames. Most impressive of all is the amphitheatre, Les Arènes gallo-romaines. By now, you’re almost back at the coast. First head to Royan, a popular beach town which bore the brunt of Allied bombing during the Second World War – little remains of the Belle Époque buildings which once graced it. In the 1950s, it became a test city for post-war architectural experimentation and is now considered a showcase of the Modernist style. If uncompromisingly bold concrete is your cup of tea, then check out Gillet and Hébard’s Church of Notre-Dame, Claude Ferret’s Palais des Congrès, and Simon and Morisseau’s central market. To unwind, there are plenty of beaches, including the 3km-long Grande Conche.


From here, drive north and cross the Pont Viaduc d’Oléron to the Île d’Oléron, France’s second largest island after Corsica. Here, tiny fi shing villages share space with sandy beaches, marshlands, oyster farming and ancient fortifi cations. The best beach of all is at La Brée-les-Bains, up towards the northern tip.


STRATEGIC WATERSIDE Back on the mainland, it’s a short drive north to Rochefort. Hugging the northern bank of a huge meander in the River Charente, in centuries past this town was home to France’s most hi-tech naval shipyards. Just fi ve miles as the crow fl ies from the Atlantic coast, but strategically positioned several twists and turns upriver out of reach of enemy fl eets, it was the perfect hiding place for the French navy to build its best warships. The surrounding marshland put paid to any land attacks. Still today, the riverbanks and estuary between Rochefort and the sea bristle with former military forts, most notably Fort


❯❯ 100 ❘ FRANCE TODAY Oct/Nov 2023


IMAGES © CHARENTES TOURISME, SHUTTERSTOCK


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