Vendée is surrounded by beautiful seaside everywhere.
La Tranche-sur-Mer
The municipal area of La Tranche-sur-Mer covers 2,104 hectares. The average altitude of the municipality is 4 metres, with levels fluctuating between 0 and 25 metres.
This seaside resort is located on the Côte de Lumière, opposite the Ile de Ré. It welcomes up to 100,000 tourists in summer.
La Faute-sur-Mer
La Faute-sur-Mer lies on a small strip of coastal land in the far south of the Vendée.
To the west, the town is bordered by 8 kilometres of uninterrupted sandy beach, ending in an area reserved for naturists. It naturally became a small seaside resort in 1988, which enabled it to open a casino. It was awarded the Blue Flag in 1985. Since July 2019, it has been a tourist resort.
To the east, La Faute-sur-Mer is bordered by the River Lay, which separates it from the small port of L’Aiguillon-sur-Mer. Two bridges, one for pedestrians and one for cars, link the twin towns.
Sables d’Olonnes
The municipal area of Les Sables-d’Olonne covers 8,607 hectares. The altitude of the new commune fluctuates between 0 and 59 metres.
The new commune brings together the communes of Château-d’Olonne, Olonne-sur-Mer and Les Sables-d’Olonne, which become delegated communes on 1 January 2019. The communes déléguées were abolished by decision of the municipal council on 4 February 2019.
Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie
Situated on the Atlantic coast along the Côte de Lumière, 70 kilometres from Nantes, 320 from Bordeaux, 450 from Paris and 600 from Lyon, Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie covers an area of 10.5 km2.
It is bordered by Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez to the north, Le Fenouiller to the north-east, Givrand to the south-east and Bretignolles-sur-Mer to the south. The area formed by Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie and Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez is sometimes referred to as “Le Havre-de-Vie”. Sometimes these terms also include the communes of Le Fenouiller and Givrand.
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is the historic capital of the Aunis region and prefecture of the Charente-Maritime département in the Poitou-Charentes region.
Situated on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, off the Pertuis d’Antioche, and protected from storms by the ‘barrier’ of the islands of Ré, Oléron and Aix, the town is above all a first-rate port complex, and has been so since the 12th century. Its three harbours (fishing, commercial and yachting) make it more than ever the gateway to the ocean.