Arcachon
In the delightful Ville d'Été (Summer Quarter), Arcachon's deep sandy beach, Plage d'Arcachon, is flanked by two piers. Lively Jetée Thiers is at the…
Must-see attractions in Atlantic Coast
La Rochelle
The only tower to be decked out like a house, this 37m-high pentagonal stone tower has leaned slightly to one side ever since building was complete in…
Bordeaux
This Roman-style city gate was designed in the 1750s by 18th-century celebrity architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel (1698–1782), best known for redesigning…
Bordeaux
An imposing concrete hangar on the riverfront is the venue for this cutting-edge science museum, host to various temporary exhibitions focusing on…
Mémorial de l’Abolition de l’Esclavage
Nantes
Down by the water, 2000 brick-sized glass plaques embedded in the quay-side pavement scream out the names of slave-trading ships that regularly set sail…
St-Émilion
Within the ruined cloisters of a 14th-century Franciscan monastery, winery Les Cordeliers has made sparkling Crémant de Bordeaux wine in its ancient…
Poitiers
The 1970s Brutalist architecture of this art museum, built from reinforced concrete, is a shock after the elegance of its ancient episcopal neighbours…
Île de Ré
A hike up the 117 steps inside the bell stone of fortified Église St-Martin rewards with a mighty fine panorama of St-Martin-de-Ré and the coast. The well…
Atlantic Coast
Inside a contemporary building set into the ramparts alongside the 19th-century Hôtel Perrin de Boussac, this museum explains the production of Cognac…
Institut Culturel Bernard Magrez
Bordeaux
Glittering glass chandeliers, parquet flooring, original moulded ceilings and pretty peppermint-green painted wood-panelling create a wonderfully romantic…
Bordeaux
Landscaping is artistic as well as informative at the Jardin Public. Established in 1755 and laid out in the English style a century later, the grounds…
Bordeaux
Europe's highest lift bridge crosses the River Garonne with grace and aplomb near the entrance to the Bassins à Flot. At night, its four distinctive…
Bordeaux
This gargoyled, 50m-high Flamboyant Gothic belfry was built for the adjoining cathedral between 1440 and 1466. Its spire was added in the 19th century,…
Poitiers
The town's grand Gothic cathedral safeguards beautiful 13th-century oak-carved choir stalls, an 18th-century organ with more than 3000 pipes and…
St-Émilion
For captivating views of the hilltop hamlet, borrow one of four keys from the tourist office to climb the 196 spiralling steps of this 68m-high bell tower…
Poitiers
Constructed in the 4th and 5th centuries on Roman foundations, this ginger-stone baptistery formed part of the episcopal ensemble with the cathedral, 100m…
Bordeaux
A visit to this Museum of Ethnography is as much an excuse to nose around the old medical faculty of Bordeaux's prestigious university, established in…
Cathédrale St-Pierre et St-Paul
Nantes
Inside Nantes' Flamboyant Gothic cathedral, the tomb of François II (r 1458–88), Duke of Brittany, and of his second wife, Marguerite de Foix, is a…
Poitiers
Consecrated in 1049, used as a warehouse during the Revolution and partly rebuilt in the 19th century, this grandiose Romanesque church appears on Unesco…
La Rochelle
To protect the harbour at night in times of war, an enormous chain was raised between the two 14th-century stone towers at the harbour entrance to La…
Bordeaux
This imposing fountain on vast square and public-transport hub Esplanade des Quinconces is a riot of horses. It was created between 1894 and 1902 in…
Musée de l’Histoire Maritime de Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Meet the shipowners, traders, explorers, navigators, poets and philosophers who contributed to the city's rich maritime history at this small, intimate…
Bordeaux
An alley of centurion plane trees charts out the course of this elevated garden behind the Capucins food market, built into the remains of the 5km-long…
Jardin Botanique de la Bastide
Bordeaux
On the right bank, attractive botanical gardens showcase six different zones, including a water garden with impressive lilies, a vertical garden planted…
Musée des Automates et Modèles Réduits
La Rochelle
This small museum displays 300 automated dolls from the last two centuries, including a near-life-size re-creation of bygone Montmartre in Paris, right…
Musée des Arts Décoratifs et du Design
Bordeaux
Faience pottery, porcelain, gold, iron, glasswork and furniture are displayed at the small Decorative Arts and Design Museum, at home in an elegant golden…
Arcachon
On the tree-covered hillside south of the Ville d'Été, the century-old Ville d'Hiver (Winter Quarter) has more than 300 villas, many decorated with…
Musée Bordeaux – Sciences et Nature
Bordeaux
With more than one million different specimens on show, Bordeaux's former Natural History Museum is among France's most impressive. Closed at the time of…
Musée d’Art et d’Histoire de Cognac
Atlantic Coast
In the southern corner of the grotto- and pond-clad Jardin Public, Cognac’s Art and History Museum showcases the town’s history. Its interior –…
La Rochelle
La Rochelle's role as a departure point for North America is interpreted at this museum, housed in an elegant courtyard-clad mansion built in 1750.
Église Ste-Marie de la Bastide
Bordeaux
La Bastide's neo-medieval church, consecrated in 1884, was designed by Paul Abadie (1812–84) – the same architect who designed the Basilica de Sacre-Coeur…
La Rochelle
La Rochelle's Museum of Fine Arts, housed inside a stunning neoclassical building, hosts an impressive collection of 15th- to 20th-century art.
Île de Ré
This small museum, opposite the tourist office at the entrance to St-Martin de Ré, explores island history through art, ceramics and maritime curiosities…
Bordeaux
Temporary exhibitions of the nearby Musée des Beaux Arts will be hosted at this annexe once it reopens after extensive renovation work in early 2019. The…
St-Émilion
A domed Romanesque 12th-century nave dominates the former Collégiale, which also boasts an almost-square vaulted choir built between the 14th and 16th…
Nantes
Edgy temporary art exhibitions, events and happenings fill this old industrial slipway, shaped like a wedge of cheese at the foot of Île de Nantes'…
St-Émilion
Defensive city walls were built around St-Émilion by the English in the 13th century. Several surviving sections of the medieval walls and gates can be…
Bordeaux
In a city increasingly known for its street art, it was inevitable that a gallery dedicated solely to street art would open. Enter Cox Gallery, with a…
Nantes
Nantes' Natural History Museum has a fascinating collection of minerals, fossils, stuffed animals and an impressive whale skeleton. There are frequent…
Atlantic Coast
Cognac's main church occupies a former Benedictine priory. Building work started in 1130 and continued for more than three centuries, hence the mix of…
