La Rochelle

The Romans built villas, harvested salt from the lagoons, and introduced wine production, but La Rochelle - "the little rock" - only becomes identifiable from the 10th century. It was boosted as a port, like Bordeaux to the south, by the dynastic marriage in 1152 of Eleanor of Aquitane with the future Henry II of England. So it didn't just trade with England, it was an English possession, until the French state expanded in the 14th century. From the 17th century La Rochelle was the base for Atlantic shipping, with fishing off the banks of Newfoundland, Francophone colonies in the Americas, and troop movements as wars between England and France were fought abroad. It became France's leading port but modern shipping outgrew the little harbour, small enough to pull a chain across against marauders. Deep-water facilities moved west to La Pallice, while other development was at Les Minimes, a tract of reclaimed land just south. The historic port and town centre were therefore preserved, and today are the highlight of La Rochelle.

The 🌍 tourist office is at 2 Quai Georges Simenon 500 m northwest of the railway station, open W-F 10:00-13:00, 14:00-18:00, Sa-Tu 09:30-18:30.

Walking is your best choice around the old town and harbour.

Yélo is the public transport combine - it's a pun on "yellow" and "vélo". A single bus ticket can be bought by bank card on the bus: in 2024 it costs €1.50 and is valid for one transfer within one hour. A 10-unit ticket costs €12, a 24-hour pass is €5, a 7-day pass is €22. Buy these from Yélo kiosks, for instance in Place de Verdun, which just about every bus line passes through. One exception is the Friday evening summer service to Île de Ré, which goes direct from the railway station.

The ferry from Vieux Port to Port des Minimes runs hourly, fare €3.

The bike rental service is also run by Yélo: you first need to register at their kiosk in Place de Verdun, with ID and credit card for a €150 deposit. Short-term rental is €1 for the first 30 min then €1.50 per 30 min - these rentals may not be taken to Île de Ré. Longer hires are also easily arranged. There are 112 pick-up and return stations across the city.

• Vieux Port is the oldest and most picturesque part of La Rochelle, dominated by its defensive towers. The quayside extends 200 m upstream from the port, along Canal Maubec. Most buildings are centuries old and very well maintained. The narrow streets and pale stone buildings make the city feel more Midi than Atlantic.
• 🌍 Tour de la Grosse Horloge is the Gothic great gate and clocktower connecting the quays to the network of old streets behind, which enclose the market hall, the Protestant church, and the New World Museum. Eventually Vieux Port opens onto Place de Verdun, with the Cathedral of St-Louis.
• 🌍 Tour de la Chaîne: If a party of enormous chess pieces came down to the seaside and got drunk, they would resemble these three 14th- / 15th-century towers. Tour de la Chaîne and Tour St Nicholas lean over the narrow harbour entrance: a stout chain was raised between them to keep out trouble (often English). A rampart stretches west to Tour de la Lanterne, the former lighthouse. You can visit the towers daily 10:00 to 13:00 and 14:15 to 17:30 (18:30 during daylight saving). Adult entry costs €9.50 per tower, or €13 for all three, child free.
• Église Protestante is at 2 Rue Saint-Michel, a block back from the quay. It has a small exhibition on the local Huguenot community and holds services on Sunday at 10:30.
• Hôtel de Ville is the ornate 14th century town hall, still in use. It suffered a fire in 2013 but has been restored. They no longer offer tours of the interior but you can look in at the impressive courtyard free.
• 🌍 Le Bunker, 8 Rue des Dames, ☏ +33 5 4642 5289. Daily 10:00-18:00. Bunker built during the German occupation 1941-45 and now a fascinating museum of that period. Adult €9, child €6.50. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Musée du Nouveau Monde, 10 Rue Fleuriau, ☏ +33 5 4641 4650. W-F, Su M 10:00-12:30, 13:30-17:30, Sa 13:30-17:30. Housed in the 18th century Fleuriau Hotel, this depicts La Rochelle's relationship with the Americas, especially Maritime Canada and the French Caribbean. Adult €8, child free. (updated Jun 2023)
• Musée des Beaux-Arts just north of Musée du Nouveau Monde remains closed in 2023.
• 🌍 Cathédrale Saint-Louis on Place de Verdun was built from 1742 and consecrated in 1748, but only completed in the 19th century when an earlier church and other buildings were cleared from the site. It's neo-classical, mostly plain but with paintings in the cupola. It also incorporates the 12th century bell tower of its predecessor.
• 🌍 Musée Maritime, Place Bernard Moitessier, ☏ +33 5 4628 0300. Tu-F, Su 10:00-12:30, 13:30-17:30, Sa 13:30-17:30. Land-side maritime museum plus eight 20th century ships moored in the Bassin des Chalutiers. Jan-March the ships can only be seen by guided tour. Adult €8, child free.. (updated Jun 2023)

• 🌍 Musée des Automates, 14 Rue de la Désirée, ☏ +33 5 4641 6808. Daily 14:00-19:00. Grand collection of mechanical toys and scale models. Adult €12, child €8. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Aquarium de La Rochelle, Quai Louis Prunier, ☏ +33 5 4634 0000. Daily Apr-Jun & Sep 09:00-20:00, Jul Aug 09:00-23:00, Oct-Mar 10:00-20:00. You need two hours to see all the multiple habitats and 82 aquariums. Ample signage in English, you don't need to pay extra for the audioguide. Adult €17.50, child €12.50. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, 28 Rue Albert I, ☏ +33 5 4641 1825. Su, Tu-F 10:00-12:30, 13:30-17:30, Sa 13:30-17:30. Old-style museum with stuffed animals from many lands. Several rooms are closed for renovation hence the reduced admission fee. Adult €6, child free. (updated Jun 2023)

• La Grande Roue is a 42-m ferris wheel next to the tourist office, running daily to 19:00, to 23:00 in July and August. €5 (adult or child) gets you three spins, taking six minutes.
• Grand Théâtre de la Coursive is at 4 Rue St Jean du Pérot a block back from the quay.
• Cinema CGR have cinemas at 8 Cour des Dames in old town and Ave Henri Becquerel in Les Minimes. Their Olympia branch on Rue Chaudrier has closed.
• 🌍 Stade Rochelais, Stade Marcel-Deflandre, 27 Ave du Maréchal Juin (2 km west of old town), ☏ +33 5 4643 1405. "Les Maritimes" play rugby union (15-a-side) in Top 14, the top tier in France. They usually do well and qualify for European tournaments. The stadium dates to the 1920s, but has been renovated several times and now has a capacity of 16,000. It's named for Marcel Deflandre, who was club president in 1940 when rugby league ("rugby-a-treize") was outlawed by the Vichy government, its assets handed over without compensation to rugby union clubs, and the union game greatly strengthened in France. (updated Jun 2023)
• Football - soccer - is only played at amateur level, by ES La Rochelle down in the minor leagues.
• Port des Minimes is one of the biggest pleasure boat marinas in Europe: mostly yachts not motorboats.
• Boat trips head out to Fort Boyard and Île-d'Aix, with over a dozen operators.
• Plage des Minimes is the closest beach to town, a sandy expanse just south of the marina. There's better on Île de Ré.
• Golf: Golf La Rochelle is 10 km north of town at Marsilly.
• Film Festival is probably next held 28 June - 4 July 2024, tbc.
• Francofollies is about French pop and rock. It's next held on 12-16 July 2023, on the parking lot south of the Towers.
• TV Drama Festival has free screenings of shows not yet broadcast. The next is probably 12-17 Sept 2023, tbc.
• La Rochelle Jazz Festival is next held 12-15 Oct 2023.
• Marathon de La Rochelle is next run on Su 26 Nov 2023.

• Vieux Marché is the main market, north side of old town on Rue Thiers. There's a large covered hall and open-air stalls, daily 06:00-13:30.
• Monoprix is the main store in town centre, at 29 Rue Admyrauld, open daily 08:30-20:00.
• Convenience stores are dotted around, such as Epicerie de la Gare in front of the station (daily 09:00-02:00).
• Big supermarkets are further out, for instance Intermarché Super and Lidl on the retail park 3 km east.

Local specialties: seafood of course. Try the mussels "Charantais" in a creamy white wine and onion sauce. Also try a waffle with "caramel au beurre sale" (salty butter caramel), a crepe/galette de sarasin, broye du poitou (a butter cookie) and some "gache" (a type of brioche). For dessert, tourteau fromager is a baked cheese cake with a burned layer on top; canneles are small cylindrical pastries.

• Cognac. The city is part of Charente-Maritime AOC. It's double-distilled from Ugni Blanc, which is too dry and acidic to drink as wine, at Cognac Godet near the bridge to Île de Ré, and Pineau - Cognac Bossuet who have an outlet in town. (updated Dec 2023)
• Le General Humbert, 14 Rue Saint-Nicolas (off Quai Valin), ☏ +33 5 4637 0108. Su-Th 18:00-02:00, F Sa 18:00-04:00. Irish pub with TV sport, welcoming to visiting rugby fans, no food. It's named for the fellow who invaded Killala, County Mayo in 1798 in support of the Irish rebellion, and gave the London government an almighty fright. US President Biden's ancestors emigrated in the aftermath. (updated Jun 2023)
• La Guignette is along the street from General Humbert at 8 Rue Saint-Nicholas. It's a grungy wine bar in a former garage open M-Sa 11:00-01:00, 17:00-21:00, where you sit at barrel tables. The specialty is wine with fruit juice or syrup, which can get you wasted before you realise it.
• La Calhute is on Rue de la Fourche, off Rue Saint-Nicholas, and it too serves wine with fruit mixtures. It's open M Tu 14:00-02:00, W-Sa 12:00-02:00, Su 14:00-23:00.

• 🌍 Auberge de Jeunesse, Ave de Minimes (by marina), ☏ +33 5 4644 4311. The only youth hostel in town. No kitchen or communal lounge, so it may not suit sociable backpackers. Dorm €22 ppn. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Ibis La Rochelle Centre Historique, 1 ter Rue Fleuriau, ☏ +33 5 4650 5255. Great value for money in the heart of town. B&B double €80. (updated Jun 2023)
• Ibis Styles La Rochelle Centre, 4 Rue Léonce Vieljeux (by Grosse Horloge), ☏ +33 5 4650 6868. Good central budget choice, but it helps if you're not tall. B&B double €100. (updated Jun 2023)
• Hôtel François 1er is a charming but tiny place at 15 Rue Bazoges, 100 m east of the cathedral.
• Hotel La Marine, 30 Quai Duperré (50 m east of Grosse Horloge), ☏ +33 5 4650 5163. Smart boutique hotel, very central in Vieux Port. B&B double €120. (updated Jun 2023)
• Hôtel Henri IV is a simple place at 31 Rue des Gentilshommes, a block back from Quai Duperré.
• 🌍 Villa Grand Voile, 12 Rue de la Cloche, ☏ +33 5 4644 8114. Upmarket hotel run by chef Christopher Coutanceau, part of Relais & Châteaux group, so comfort and dining are excellent. B&B double €180. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Ibis La Rochelle Vieux-Port, Place du Commandant de la Motte Rouge, ☏ +33 5 4641 6022. Another from this budget chain. B&B double €110. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Pierre et Vacances La Rochelle Centre, 14 Quai de Marans, ☏ +33 5 4650 1010. 2-storey apart-hotel with indoor swimming pool in the "Bastion Saint Nicolas" district. Clean and helpful. Double (room only) €90. (updated Jun 2023)
• Hôtel Mercure La Rochelle Vieux-Port, Quai Louis Prunier (by Aquarium), ☏ +33 5 4650 6150. Higher prices but only Ibis quality. B&B double €150. (updated Jun 2023)
• 🌍 Hotel La Monnaie, 3 Rue de la Monnaie, ☏ +33 5 4650 6565. Venerable facade, modern within, and very central. B&B double €120. (updated Jun 2023)
• Best Western Premier Masqhotel, 17 Rue de l'Ouvrage À Cornes (100 m northeast of railway station), ☏ +33 5 4641 8383. Comfy convenient place. B&B double €110. (updated Jun 2023)
• Île de Ré also has hotels, such as Hôtel La Jetée by Saint-Martin harbour. The campsite is south end of town at Rue de Rempart - camping on the island is only permitted at designated sites.

As of June 2023 La Rochelle, its approach roads and Île de Ré have 5G from all French carriers.

• Cognac: Best use public transport to reach it, or sort out in advance who'll be driving back.
• Nantes is the port that outgrew La Rochelle, and has an interesting old town centre.
• Royan is a seaside resort.
• Bordeaux is best known for its wine; it's equally worth visiting for its grand neoclassical centre.