Loire-Atlantique makes your eyes sparkle! Loire-Atlantique’s tourist attractions can take you to the most surprising places: the four corners of the world, the bottom of the sea, outer space, and lands of the imagination... Leave the everyday world behind and get carried away by the most inventive and creative artists!
In 2006, a million Londoners watched a 40-ft/12m tall mechanical elephant stride through the streets of London.
Like a piece of architecture in motion, this is just one of the amazing machines that were invented and built in Nantes ... in the Loire-Atlantique ! Best of all, you can visit the workshops to watch the imaginative engineers, sculptors and carpenters at work on the steel and wood structures for forthcoming machines, such as a giant squid, a manta ray and a giant crab. You feel as if you are in the world of Jules Verne (the local author, who wrote 20,000 Leagues under the Sea). And, you can even take a 40-minute ride on the elephant along the quayside !
The Château of the Dukes of Brittany was built towards the end of the Middle Ages.
Today it houses the Nantes Historical Museum.
Discover the exceptionally interesting history of the town, from medieval times to the modern day, taking in the trade triangle and Nantes’ industrial past. There are lots of multimedia displays and audio guides; guided tours can be arranged. To complete your visit, the museum is bursting with multimedia displays. It’s a place to encounter history and a thousand and one personal histories too!
Take a voyage back in time aboard a luxury transatlantic liner!
Moored at a former submarine base in the port of Saint-Nazaire, Escal’Atlantic is a lively replica of a glamorous transatlantic liner from the 1930s. The romance and lifestyle of the legendary liners and cruise ships is brought back to life, thanks to the theatrical but accurate presentation that includes rare artefacts as well as film clips from the good old days that have never been shown before. Visitors get to see the engine room as well as the decks and the bridge, the luxury cabins, the cocktail lounge and the stylish dining-room. Welcome aboard the Escal’Atlantic for the voyage of a lifetime!
New in 2010 : "The Normandie and The France, transatlantic legends!" From April to December 2010, Escal’Atlantic – celebrating its 10th birthday – pays homage to two legendary liners: the Normandie and the France.
Welcome to Planète Sauvage, the biggest safari park in the West, where you can follow a 10 km trail in your own vehicle and get a really close-up view of the animals.
Continue the adventure by visiting the Cité Marine to see the dolphins, and end your safari in the heart of the savannah at the bush village where you can see small animals and reptiles.
The Océarium has dropped anchor in Le Croisic, between the popular fishing port and the Côte Sauvage. This hi-tech aquarium takes you deep into the ocean, thanks to a glass tunnel, the first of its kind in Europe.
Walk through, looking up at sharks from Australia...or maybe they are looking down at you ! See tropical fish and a coral reef in the lagoon ; explore the beaches of South Africa with the penguins .. enjoy a great day out for all the family.
New for 2010 : dive into the Greek islands !
In addition to stunning displays about the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, the Océarium in Le Croisic has introduced the Mediterranean, with an underwater view of the Aegean around the Cyclades islands of Greece.
Ten centuries of history come together at the departmental Château of Châteaubriant!
It's a typical fortress of the Breton Marches and has elegant façades, grand staircases and remarkable Renaissance schist colonnades. A record in stone that tells the story of defensive and residential architecture through the ages!
The departmental Estate of La Garenne Lemot, a beautiful park created at the beginning of the 19th century.
There are statues, temples and pillars everywhere: it will surprise and delight you!
On the steep banks of the Sèvre Nantaise, its creator, the sculptor François-Frédéric Lemot, let his imagination run wild to turn this site into an ideal landscape where Italianate architecture blends with natural surroundings.
The Gardener’s house reveals the secrets of how this site was created. Don’t miss the Villa Lemot which houses temporary exhibitions throughout the year. Its terrace provides a magnificent view over Clisson and the Sèvre Nantaise!
Ce parc pittoresque créé au début du XIXème siècle, ponctué de statues, de temples et colonnes ne peut que vous surprendre ! Sur les bords escarpés de la Sèvre Nantaise, son créateur, le sculpteur François-Frédéric Lemot a laissé libre cours à son imagination pour faire de ce site un paysage idéal, où l’architecture italianisante se conjugue à la nature. La Maison du Jardinier vous dévoile les secrets de la création de ce site.
A ne pas manquer : La Villa Lemot, qui accueille toute l’année des expositions temporaires. Sa terrasse offre un magnifique point de vue sur Clisson et la Sèvre Nantaise !
This unmissable attraction is one of the high points of cultural life in Nantes. It's located at the former LU biscuit factory and has a multi-disciplinary programme, a unique bar and a shop. To top it all, you get an unrivalled view over the town of Nantes and its château from the ‘gyrorama’ at the top of the LU Tower!
Not to be missed! Every first Sunday in the month, from October to May, come and discover the secrets of this attraction on a guided tour! You’ll soon become an expert on the history of the site, the former biscuit factory and the present-day cultural centre!
Terre de Sel provides guided tours on foot around the salt-pans with paludiers (salt-marsh workers) and nature guides (family or cultural tours) and an exhibition area devoted to life in the salt marshes (with viewing terrace and telescope).
In the shop you won’t be able to resist the famous unprocessed salt, Guérande coarse salt and other gourmet gifts.
