More info: Royan is a well-known seaside resort in Charente-Maritime on the french Atlantic coast. Royan offers locals and holidaymakers five sandy beaches, including the popular 2 km long Grande Conche, enjoyed by bathers, windsurfers and kite enthusiasts.
Royan, a well-known seaside resort in Charente-Maritime on the french Atlantic coast. Royan offers locals and holidaymakers five sandy beaches, including the popular 2 km long Grande Conche, enjoyed by bathers, windsurfers and kite enthusiasts.
Royan has belle epoque villas and modern, postwar architecture such as the concrete Notre-Dame de Royan church. Almost 85% of the town was destroyed during the Second World War by the allied bombings of 1945. The architects who rebuilt Royan were inspired by the modern movement. They were influenced by the Brazilian architecture of the 40s, in particular by the works of the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer.
Royan has a marina for over 1,000 boats and an active fishing port. The grand Cordouan Lighthouse stands on an islet in the Gironde estuary and is accessible by ferry. There is a ferry for passengers and vehicles across the Gironde estuary to Le Verdon-sur-Mer in the Medoc region.