For an authentic taste of island life, spurn St-Martin's portside restaurants and pick up the cycling path to Ars-en-Ré – on foot or by bike. Within seconds of hitting the coast, the path arrives at Didier Fournier's oyster cabane (hut). Kick back on a brightly coloured bar stool facing the sea and tuck into fresh prawns, whelks, clams and dozens of succulent island oysters.
Ré Ostréa
Île de Ré
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
11.64 MILES
La Rochelle's state-of-the-art, family-friendly aquarium is home to 12,000 marine animals and 600 different species. Visits begin by descending in a…
11.67 MILES
In a series of boldly coloured, red, blue and yellow canopied hangars at the Bassin à Flot, the Maritime Museum evokes the history of La Rochelle port,…
9 MILES
For an overview of the island, follow the crowds to Phare des Baleines, the island's scarlet-tipped, 59m-tall lighthouse on its northwestern tip. Scale…
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11.28 MILES
Easily mistaken for an ornate church spire, the conical 15th-century Tour de la Lanterne is La Rochelle's beauty queen. It was so named because of its…
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0.65 MILES
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…
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Réserve Naturelle Marais d'Yves
18.4 MILES
An easy 15km drive south of La Rochelle, this nature reserve runs a free nature centre where you can peer through telescopes to watch some of the 192…
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11.49 MILES
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…
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11.44 MILES
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…
Nearby Île de Ré attractions
0.65 MILES
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…
0.81 MILES
This small museum, opposite the tourist office at the entrance to St-Martin de Ré, explores island history through art, ceramics and maritime curiosities…
9 MILES
For an overview of the island, follow the crowds to Phare des Baleines, the island's scarlet-tipped, 59m-tall lighthouse on its northwestern tip. Scale…
11.28 MILES
Easily mistaken for an ornate church spire, the conical 15th-century Tour de la Lanterne is La Rochelle's beauty queen. It was so named because of its…
5. Musée des Automates et Modèles Réduits
11.39 MILES
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…
11.4 MILES
The gateway to the old city, Tour de la Grosse Horloge is a steadfast Gothic-style clock tower with a 12th-century base and 18th-century top.
11.41 MILES
La Rochelle's Museum of Fine Arts, housed inside a stunning neoclassical building, hosts an impressive collection of 15th- to 20th-century art.
11.44 MILES
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…