The 8 most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime

Whether in the islands or in the hinterland, by the sea or in the countryside, the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime are nestled in various natural environments, real charming stopovers in the region.

The most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime trace a route that crosses the whole department from Island of Re to the island of Aix, from the Saintonge countryside to the shores of the Gironde. Villages that have been able to preserve all their charm, which stand out from their architecture and heritage, but also from the natural writing in which they evolve.

Character climbs during your trip to the region, or full holiday destinations, take the time to discover the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime at your own pace, while adopting their own.

1. Ars-en-Ré

Ars-en-Ré, it’s a bit the quintessence of the village at the ridge: low houses with green shutters, narrow veils with groaned roses, the small port at the bottom of the proud of Ars with its cafés, the church square, the market square... everything is there! Ars is seen between all the villages of the island thanks to its emblematic bell tower, painted in black and white, and serving as a marker to the sailors to sail in the proud.

Here, everyone moves on a bicycle, the means of transporting the island of Re: this is how one explores the paths that depart from the village, to the marshes of Ars where the flower of salt is produced, the natural reserve of Lilleau des Niges , or the splendid beach of the Conche des Baleines.

One of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime, but also simply in France.

2. Brouage

Among the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime, Brouage is probably the one that has experienced the most singular history. This small fortified city was built in the 16th century to act as a port, by the sea, from which to export the salt. Today lost in the midst of the marshes, the ocean, which retired from the Gulf of Saintonge in the meantime, seems far away!

Brouage preserves from this time an interesting heritage: impressive ramparts belt the village, with in its center the church of Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul, old military buildings such as the Halle aux Vivres and the powder shop Saint-Luc, the Royal Gate or the underground port...

Brouage remains lively with several restaurants and some shops and art workshops, not missing to attract the curious, while maintaining a peaceful atmosphere. All around the village, marshes with loss of view make up a unique landscape of its kind, to be discovered by strolling along the paths.

3. Île-d’Aix

Among the islands of the Charente coastline, the island of Aix is certainly the most unusual: a small one, it remains forbidden to any motor vehicle, but it is made easy by walking or cycling. It is thus that we reach Île-d’Aix (with a line of union for the nuance!), the smallest town in the department, but also one of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime.

The atmosphere on site is unique, and deserves to be there for two or three days, to imbue. In addition to the beaches, you can take a tour of the heritage of Île-d’Aix, not to underestimate: the Fort of Rade, the double Phare of the island of Aix, the Napoleonic Museum where the emperor stayed before his exile... but also the small bass houses typically Charentes, the noise of the bicycle bells, and off, the silhouette of Fort Boy

To discover the island of Aix, the departure is made with the smuggler from the port of Fouras, on the coast, at regular times.

4. Talmont-sur-Gironde

In Talmont-sur-Gironde this style of low houses with painted flaps sprinkled with grooved roses so characteristic of the most beautiful villages of Charente-Maritime, for the greatest pleasure of the walkers. We are this time south of the department, directly over the Gironde estuary.

If Talmont-sur-Gironde seems to be inoffensive today, it should be remembered that this village, established in promontory on limestone cliffs, was from the 13th century a strong bastide controlling the aisles and comings on the estuary.

A jewel of Romanesque architecture built in the 12th century, the church of Sainte-Radegonde serves as an immutable landmark in the heart of the village. After the alleys full of charm, take the time to discover the surroundings near Talmont, including its carrelets: these small fishermen’s houses with large square nets, built on a bow on the estuary, are an integral part of the local heritage.

5. The Fleet

The island of Ré is home to several of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime, and this time we make a stop at La Flotte on the North Coast. This village with a typical twist is organized above all around its small port, closed by a 200-metre rounded pier.

Around the pool where boats wait quietly at docks, a bunch of café-restaurants animates in the season, when the terraces fill. In the inner streets, shops and small shops make holidaymakers happy, and there again, bikes are almost as numerous as pedestrians.

Around La Flotte, the bike paths allow you to embark on beautiful coastal walks, in the direction of Saint-Martin or the bridge of the island of Ré, passing through the abbey of the Châteliers in ruin.

6. Mornac-sur-Seudre

The oyster landscapes have to steal more than one, with their marshes and their clears, their multicolored oyster huts and their fizzy of wood pious planted in the vase, always seems to it between land and sea... It is exactly the setting that awaits you in Mornac-sur-Seudre, not to doubt one of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime, but also one of the most original.

An ancient medieval village, Mornac has preserved its pretty alleys, its small Romanesque-style church of Saint-Pierre, its halls and artisan echoes. But today the village is dedicated mainly to ostericulture: the tasting of local oysters is an essential step in the visit! Go directly to the producers on the side of the port of Mornac-sur-Seudre.

7. Laws

We are back in the island of Ré with another of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime: Loix. The latter probably does not equal the pimping and shelling side of some of his colleagues was, but the setting of the village makes it a separate stopover.

Loix seems to be lost in the middle of the salt marshes. Only occupying its small peninsula, itself surrounded by the waters of the Breton pertuis and the proud of Ars, the whole area seems to be about to disappear under the sea at each rising tide... This situation gives Loix a little taste of the end of the world, in addition to the intrinsic charm of the village itself: the style was proven.

8. Saint-Sauvant

A little lost at the end of the Saintonge, it is very easy to miss one of the most beautiful villages in Charente-Maritime, Saint-Sauvant, without paying attention to it. Bordered by its small river, Le Coran, and with no more than 500 inhabitants, the village can indeed remain discreet.

However, Saint-Sauvant is located from Antiquity on the ancient Roman road that linked Saintes to Lyon, Via Agrippa, still visible today. The charms of the village reside in its old stones: Sinous medieval streets, ancient houses of the 14th and 15th centuries, wash, tower of defense, not to mention the church of Saint-Sylvain, dated the 12th century.

Far from any agitation, for a little walk out of time.