Had a day in town during a cruise last week.Have to say how impressed I was.It must make a temporary difference to the ambience when a cruise ship with 2,500 pax arrives but I was so impressed.Very French is how I described it to our family on return.Even the unkempt street beggars weren%26#39;t pushy.My wife was a bit disturbed by a teenage couple openly smoking cannabis mid-morning on the forecourt of a street cafe overlooking the marina but they were so out of it they were no trouble.
We were blessed with fine weather and enjoyed an al fresco lunch with a bottle of vdp Ile de Re(tasted like Muscadet!) on the non-busy side of the marina (Cafe du Nord I think).While my wife shopped for 2 hours (!) I had a good nosing walk around the town centre and later on we had a look around the cathedral together.The nautical theme even extends to the interior of that sacred place.
I liked it so much first time I am planning a 4 day trip back in September as we can fly direct from Manchester.From the TA hotel reviews I think it must be Comfort Hotel.
Could the DE for La Rochelle lady whose posts I have just read please advise how easy it is for visitors with no transport of their own to explore Ile de Re from La Rochelle without changing hotel base.
Such a lovely place.Day after we docked in Brest.Less said about that the better.
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Hi there, I%26#39;m glad you had such a nice time, its an easy town to fall in love with!
Getting to the Ile de Re, in summer, is usually by bus from Place de Verdun (the main bus terminal) line 50 and the bus velo (which carries bikes)both of which go to Sablonceax Plage at the beginning of the island, then you can hire bikes to get around. I%26#39;m not sure but I think this service ends in august. However Les Mouettes have an all year round bus service from the train station http://www.lesmouettes-transports.com/
Or take a boat trip from the vieux port. This way is nicest as you get to spend a few hours wandering around St Martin before the boat goes back to La Rochelle. inter-iles.com/croisiere-escale-ile-de-re-36…
There are other boat companies that go to other ports such as La Flotte / Ars en Re , you could try the Ile de Re tourist website http://www.holidays-iledere.co.uk/
Or how about this for an idea - hire bikes in LaRochelle and cycle all the way there.....plenty of people do it but its not for me, i%26#39;d let the bus/boat take the srtain, and leaves more energy for wine tasting!
Although I%26#39;m a local, I%26#39;m not a huge fan of Ile de Re wine, although it appears to be gaining in quality and stature here, and is much cheaper than muscadet.
Beggars are unfortunately a newish addition to the town,3 years ago we only had one old lady who I would descibe as a character rather than a beggar, but this year we have a few more, but its a sign of the times in our ever widening europe. They are completely harmless and the town is very relaxing trouble free environment
Hope you have a lovely time, if you need anything else let me know!
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Great reply thanx.It will be the boat trip to St Martin I think just what we are looking for.A trip and a good look around.Presume it still runs in September?
Neither of us has ridden a bike for 7 years so that%26#39;s out.
Know what you mean about the IDR vdp.Nice to drink something local but that was not that nice.E15 a bottle hardly worth it.When you think we got 2 plates of crudites and 2 of charcuteries for the same cost....
When the shuttle dropped us back at the ship some enterprising stallholders had set up their canopies there.We bought tinned pates,Ushant honey but not wine.And on the quay most of the day was a band of local musicians in traditional costume. La Rochelle did the 2,500 pax on Grand Princess proud.I know 2 at least who will return.
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Thanks - other nice bars to try are the Cave a So (also on the non busy side of the harbour (the Gabut), Cafe Leffe (next to the smaller tower (Tour de la Chaine).
All the bars up by the market are good places to go for a croissant and coffee rather than pay silly prices for hotel petit dejeuner.(Only during market hours of course, which is open every day till lunchtime apart from wed / sat then its open all day plus theres the farmers market friday evening).
On a positive note, Ile de Re beer isn%26#39;t that bad compared to the local wine! We generally share a bottle of muscadet or a cotes du rhone.
Pardon me for asking,did your cruise company bus you into town? , or did they leave you to your own devices? I ask because I have been asked by someone about facilities at the port. As the public are not allowed into the cruise port (I have tried!!) can you let me know any details , such as whether the bus shuttled back and forth, or were there fixed times?
Thanks in advance
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Happy to return a favour.At La Rochelle ship had booked a fleet of buses from the main bus operator.Passengers were charged 10$US for the return journey from the quay into town where the buses disgorged at a coach stop near the rear of the cathedral overlooking the canal.No set times other than first and last departures and in between the buses moved to and fro as they filled up.
There were long queues to board the buses at the quay at the busy time post-breakfast and it was hot standing out in line in the blazing sun (would have been worse if it had been raining!).Hardly surprising there were temporary pressure points as there were literally hundreds from the 2,500 pax on board to be transported.Too long a journey to have done it on foot.As we boarded the outgoing bus we were handed a shopping guide and a town map by the tourist guides.On return we were given a bookmark each %26quot;to remind us of our visit to La Rochelle%26quot;.As I said before the local tourism people did much more for Grand Princess passengers than merely provide a docking berth.
A similar service at same cost was provided in Lisbon.In Vigo and Brest the shuttle buses were provided free by the city councils but they operated in the same manner.
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Thank you very much, your information is extremely useful, and I hope you stay goes very well!
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