Royan, France
Self Catering Royan Holiday Homes, Cottages and Gites
Royan is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department of the Poitou-Charentes region in southwestern France. A seaside resort, located on the Atlantic Ocean, Royan is the capital of the locally known area ‘Côte de beauté’. A stay ina Royan Holiday Gite is impressive! It boasts five sandy beaches, a marina and a fishing port. Royan is located at the mouth of the Gironde Estuary, the largest estuary in Europe.
When you rent a holiday home in Royan, you’ll no doubt be tempted by the beach! But there is more on offer including the Church of Notre-Dame. Built in three years by the architects Guillaume Gillet and Marc Hébrard, the church Notre-Dame of Royan is considered as one of the leaders of work of the contemporary architecture. The bombardments of January 5, 1945 had destroyed the former neo-Gothic church which dated back to 1877. It was decided to rebuild it as a building of bigger size and with an architecture both ambitious as spectacular, inspired by the aesthetics of other large Gothic cathedrals. Finished in 1958, it is built completely of concrete. The church was classified as a historical monument in 1988.
The Palais des congrès was built in 1957 by the architect of Bordeaux Claude Ferret. It is designed as a cubic geometry eased by the oblique movement of outside staircases and by the subtle interweaving of internal convex walls. Widely opened on the estuary of the Gironde by a glass wall, it was later enlarged with gardens, under a transparent cube. It was classified as a historical monument in 2004.
When you stay in self catering accommodation in Royan, make time to venture outside this exciting city and beach destination. Just half an hour away is the city of Saintes, the historic capital of Saintonge -an important city of art and history.
To get to your Royan Self-Catering Accommodation: Royan is situated approximately 40 miles away from the department capital of La Rochelle. It is 315 miles away from Paris. Royan SNCF railway-station is the terminus of a line connecting the city to Saintes, Angoulême, and Niort (TGV for Bordeaux and Paris). La Rochelle is the nearest airport. Flight operators include: easyjet, Flybe, Jet2, Ryanair, Aer Lingus.
The Poitou-Charentes region is renowned for having one of the most pleasant climates in France. Winters are really mild and thanks to the oceanic climate, summers are hot but not muggy. Poitou-Charentes benefits from 2,400 sunshine hours a year and is the hottest and sunniest place of the whole Atlantic coast.