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Travel guide
Charente-Maritime and the Île de Ré
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to September
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Welcome
Charente-Maritime and the Île de Ré, in a few days
Between La Rochelle and the Gironde estuary, Charente-Maritime strings together four islands, salt marshes, villages with green shutters and hollyhocks, and harbours where oysters are eaten beside the beds they grew in.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · La Rochelle Old Port free · about 2 hThree medieval towers guard the harbour, including the Lanterne with its sailors' graffiti; climb for the view, then walk the arcaded merchant streets.
- Afternoon · Aquarium La Rochelle · 2 to 3 hOne of Europe's largest aquariums, with some 12,000 animals from Atlantic coasts to coral reefs; the shark tank and the jellyfish room stand out.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Saint-Nicolas€140 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Fort Boyard and Île d'Aix cruise · half a dayCircle Fort Boyard by boat, then land on car-free Île d'Aix, where Napoleon spent his last nights in France before Saint Helena.
- Afternoon · Brouage citadel free · about 1 hA once-thriving salt port now stranded in the marsh, ringed by Richelieu's 1630s ramparts with intact bastions, powder stores and market hall.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel L'Océan€160 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · The Corderie Royale, Rochefort · about 1 h 30A 374-metre royal ropeworks in Louis XIV's naval arsenal; learn to braid hemp, then walk to the dry dock where the Hermione replica was built.
- Afternoon · Saint-Martin-de-Ré free · 2 to 3 hThe island's capital, inside UNESCO-listed Vauban fortifications, with a horseshoe harbour lined with oyster terraces and ice cream queues.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Le Sénéchal€150 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Phare des Baleines · about 1 hA 57-metre lighthouse of 1854 at the western tip of Ré, with 257 steps to a gallery over the island and the 1682 Old Tower.
- Afternoon · Talmont-sur-Gironde free · about 1 hA clifftop village above the Gironde estuary, founded by the English in 1284, ending at the 12th-century Sainte-Radegonde church above the water.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel La Jetée€150 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €110 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to September
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/charente-maritime
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.