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Things to do

Key things to do and see whilst you're in Fouras!

In Fouras

The summer funfair lit up on Place Carnot after dark

Fort Vauban

The 17th-century fort that guarded this coast against invasion from the sea, right on the Grande Plage. Climb up for the keep, the ramparts, and a wide view over the islands of Aix, Oléron and Madame. Map.

Fort Boyard

The oval stone fortress rising straight out of the sea between Île d’Aix and Île d’Oléron. You’ll know it as the set of the TV game show. You can see it from the Grande Plage, and boat tours sail around it. Map.

The Napoleon monument

A stone memorial on the waterfront at La Couarde, marking the exact spot where Napoleon left mainland France for the last time, in July 1815, before his exile to Saint Helena. Map.

Les carrelets

Along the shore you will see traditional square fishing huts on stilts. Each one is a carrelet (one of the square fishing huts on stilts along the shore), and they are the landmark of this coastline. Map.

Rue de la Halle and the market

Rue de la Halle is the main pedestrian street and the heart of town, running from the centre down to the seafront (map). The covered market is open every morning in summer: Charentais melons, local cheese, oysters and the morning’s catch (map).

Place Carnot

The main square. In the afternoons and evenings it fills with classic French seaside fairground life: merry-go-rounds, games, and chichis, the local small churros. Get a bag. Map.

On the water, on a bike, or on the green

Water sports and boat rental run off the Grande Plage (details). Les Vélos de Fouras hires bikes (details), and there are mapped cycling routes around Fouras if you want a proper ride. There is also mini golf.

The beaches

The sun setting over the water, seen from under a striped parasol

Four of them, all sandy: the Grande Plage, Plage Sud, Plage Nord and the Plage de l’Espérance.

One thing worth knowing before you carry everything down there: this is the Atlantic coast, so check the tide times. The beaches are only really swimmable around marée haute (high tide, the only time the beaches here are swimmable). At low tide the water pulls right back to expose the mudflats and the oyster beds. There is always a reservoir of water to swim in on the Grande Plage, whatever the tide is doing.

Eating and drinking

A dozen oysters and a glass of white at the fish counter in the market

Bakeries, brunch and sweet things

  • Maison Dunne. The best artisanal ice cream in town, on Rue de la Halle, made with fresh local Charentaise milk and fruit (map).
  • Tartine. Coffee, fresh pastries and a relaxed morning brunch (Instagram).
  • Loulou Boulangerie. By Hôtel Le Galet Bleu. Croissants, baguettes, pastries.
  • La Bottega. Italian deli. Produce, sandwiches and pasta to go, and Aperol when aperitivo hour comes around.

Restaurants and bars

Supermarkets

Casino is the small one on Rue de la Halle; Super U is bigger, a longer walk or a five-minute drive.

Day trips

Pink hollyhocks growing up a narrow lane in the old town

Île d’Aix

A tiny crescent of an island, three kilometres long, barely 700 metres wide, and entirely car-free. The ferry leaves from the Pointe de la Fumée, and the best way round is by bike (Cyclaix): coast, beaches, little shops. The Napoleon Museum covers his last days on French soil.

Rochefort

A naval town founded in 1666 by Louis XIV, about 20 minutes away by car, by R’Bus line E, or by bike. La Corderie Royale, the 374-metre royal ropeworks built to rig the French navy, is now a maritime museum on the Charente, and L’Hermione is the full-scale replica of the 1780 frigate that carried Lafayette to America, rebuilt here over 17 years with 18th-century techniques. One more thing we love: in the summer of 1966, Jacques Demy repainted the shutters and facades around Place Colbert to film Les Demoiselles de Rochefort, and the town has celebrated it ever since (tourism office).

La Rochelle

La Ville Blanche, the historic coastal capital of Charente-Maritime, a 25-minute drive north (city site). Medieval towers guarding the old port, shopping, dining, and a serious aquarium. It is also the practical hub if you are travelling on: airport, SNCF trains, and connections to the Île de Ré. If you are hungry there, we like Mamie Bigoude.

Île de Ré

Over the bridge from La Rochelle: white-washed villages, bike paths and sandy beaches (tourism site). Recommended if you are making a longer trip of Charente-Maritime.