Best anchorages and harbours in Atlantic coast

La Tremblade

Port of 115 berths on the Seudre estuary, in the heart of the Marennes-Oléron oyster basin in Charente-Maritime.

Plage de la Grande Conche / Plage des Ovaires

Open bay on the south-east shore of the Île d'Yeu, in the Vendée, with a sand bottom and a ban on anchoring over the seagrass beds.

• Sheltered W, SW

Fouras - Port Nord

Anchorage on the north shore of the Fouras peninsula, Charente-Maritime, looking across the Rade des Basques toward the Île-d'Aix.

• Paid
• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Port Vilaine Maritime

Marina of 130 berths on the lower Vilaine, at Pénestin in Morbihan, Brittany.

Roche-Bernard

Anchorage on the river Vilaine at La Roche-Bernard, upstream of the Arzal dam and lock, southern Brittany.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

L’eguille/seudre

River anchorage on the Seudre estuary in Charente-Maritime, mud bottom, opposite the oyster village of L'Éguille-sur-Seudre.

• Sheltered W

Tahiti Beach

Anchorage off Plage Tahiti on the Cap Ferret peninsula in Arcachon Bay, sand bottom with rock and seagrass patches, sheltered from N, NE and E.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

La Roche-Bernard

River anchorage on the Vilaine upstream of the Arzal dam, in front of the town of La Roche-Bernard.

• Paid
• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Conche des Baleines

Sand-bottomed bay on the northwest tip of the Île de Ré, around 40 moorings, sheltered from E, SE, S and SW winds.

• Sheltered E, SW, S, SE

Rivedoux Plage

Open anchorage off the east coast of the Ile de Re, just south of the Ile de Re bridge linking the island to La Rochelle.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW, S, SE

Ponton Belem

Dedicated berth of 15 places on the Loire at Nantes, named after the three-masted barque Belem which calls there.

Vilaine

River anchorage on the Vilaine above the Arzal dam, between Arzal-Camoël and La Roche-Bernard, southern Morbihan.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Port d Toul'Ru

Mooring field of 200 buoys off Mesquer in the Baie de Pont-Mahé, Pays de la Loire, between the Pointe de Merquel and the salt marshes of Guérande.

• Paid
• Sheltered W, SW, S

Port de l'Erdre

River port of 50 berths on the Erdre at Nantes, upstream of the Saint-Félix lock, in Pays de la Loire.

Sucé sur Erdre

River anchorage on the Erdre north of Nantes, in a widened reach of the river classed among the protected landscapes of the Loire-Atlantique.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Plage de la Terrière

Open anchorage off a long sand beach at La Tranche-sur-Mer, Vendée, facing the Pertuis Breton.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

Mouillage des Sabias

Anchorage on the south coast of Île d'Yeu, two miles from Port-Joinville, sheltered from winds from the north sector.

• Sheltered N, NE, NW

L’Isle

Anchorage on the Vilaine upstream of the Arzal dam, mud bottom, well sheltered by surrounding wooded banks.

• Sheltered NW, NE, W, E, S, SE

Boyardville

Marina of 180 berths on the east coast of the Île d'Oléron, facing Fort Boyard and the Île d'Aix.

Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie

Anchorage off the estuary of the Vie on the Vendée coast, sand bottom, shelter from NW through E.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E

La Rochelle - Vieux port

Historic wet dock in the heart of La Rochelle, 390 berths between the Tour Saint-Nicolas and the Tour de la Chaîne, Charente-Maritime.

Île Dumet

Anchorage off Ile Dumet, a 7-hectare island 3 NM off the Mesquer coast in southern Brittany.

• Sheltered NE, E

Jard-sur-Mer

Tidal marina in southern Vendée, 716 berths, maximum draught 1.3 m, on the coast between Les Sables-d'Olonne and La Tranche-sur-Mer.

Cordemais

River port of around 60 berths on the north bank of the Loire estuary, 20 km upstream of Saint-Nazaire.

Embarcadère de Lamarque

River anchorage off the Lamarque ferry landing on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, in the Médoc, opposite Blaye.

• Sheltered W

Banc d'Arguin

Shifting sandbank at the entrance of the Bassin d'Arcachon, facing the Dune du Pilat, classified as a réserve naturelle nationale since 1972.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW

Talmont sur Gironde

Small tidal port on the Gironde estuary below the cliff of Talmont, in Charente-Maritime.

La Blanche Plate

Anchorage on the northern shore of the Île de Ré in Charente-Maritime, between La Flotte and Saint-Martin-de-Ré, on sand.

• Sheltered W, SW, S

La Flotte en Ré

Drying harbour on the north coast of Île de Ré in Charente-Maritime, with a retention gate keeping about 200 pontoon berths afloat.

Chantier Des Fontaines

Boatyard and dry storage at Port-des-Barques, at the mouth of the Charente river, Charente-Maritime.