Best anchorages and harbours in Atlantic coast

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Le Gourcq

Sand-bottom anchorage in New Aquitaine, sheltered from N, SW, W and NW, off the Cazaux lake shoreline.

• Sheltered N, SW, W, NW

La Rochelle before marina

Waiting anchorage west of the Port des Minimes entrance in La Rochelle, used before lock openings or when berths are full.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E, SE

Anse de l’Iboga

Sand anchorage in the Gironde estuary near the Pointe de Grave, close to the northern tip of the Médoc peninsula.

• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Plages des Anneries

Shallow beach anchorage on the north coast of the Île de Ré, east of the Pointe du Grouin, in New Aquitaine.

• Sheltered N, NE, E

Anse de la Maleconche

Sandy anchorage on the north-east coast of Île d'Oléron, 1.2 nm east of Le Douhet harbour.

• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Pointe du Chatelet

Anchorage off the northwest tip of the Ile d'Yeu, near the Grand Phare and the wild Cote Sauvage.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE

Bonne Anse

Tidal bay on the northern side of the Gironde estuary mouth, between Pointe de la Coubre and La Palmyre.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SW, W, NW

Le Canon

Anchorage off the village of Le Canon on the north shore of Arcachon Bay, on the Cap Ferret peninsula.

• Sheltered NW, N, W

Baby Plage

Anchorage off Baby Plage on the Île de Ré, in the Pertuis d'Antioche, Charente-Maritime.

• Free
• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Pointe de Mindin

Anchorage in the Loire estuary, on the south bank at Saint-Brevin-les-Pins, opposite Saint-Nazaire.

• Free
• Sheltered SW, S, SE

Lac d'Hourtin

Anchorage on Lac d'Hourtin-Carcans in the Médoc, France's largest natural freshwater lake at around 62 km2, west of the Gironde vineyards.

• Sheltered NW, N, W, SW

Plateau Cordouan

Sandbank anchorage around the Cordouan lighthouse, at the mouth of the Gironde estuary between Le Verdon and the Pointe de Grave, New Aquitaine.

Plage des Souzeaux - Anse Rouge

Anchorage on the north coast of Noirmoutier island, between the Souzeaux beach and the Plantier point, with around 200 moorings on mud bottom.

• Paid
• Sheltered SW, S

Baie du chapus

Shallow mud anchorage in the channel between the mainland at Bourcefranc-le-Chapus and the south-east coast of Île d'Oléron, crossed by the viaduct to Oléron.

• Sheltered W, E, SW, S, SE

Le Mimbeau

Sand-spit anchorage at the tip of Cap Ferret, inside the Bassin d'Arcachon, with sand holding and shelter from W, NW and SW winds.

• Free
• Sheltered SW, W, NW

Baie De Saint Jean De Luz

Anchorage of around 15 berths on sand inside the Baie de Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Pyrenees-Atlantiques, protected by three seawalls built between 1864 and 1895.

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

la Plage des Américains

Sand anchorage on the east shore of the Bassin d'Arcachon, north of the Cap Ferret peninsula, opposite the village of Le Canon.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW