Vendée - Loisirs - Vacances
Local Activities ... What to do?
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Horse riding centre Club hippique havre de vie is situated right next to the Zagarella site for organised treks (beginners welcome!) in the forest and along the beach.
Ponies are available for the younger members of the family. The forest adjoins the site and the forest paths leave just nearby for walking and cycling.
Mountain and standard bikes can be hired directly on the sites themselves or from Cyclo Hops, on Avenue de la Foret in St Jean de Monts and they will deliver the bikes to the site for you!
Free guide to days out
If golf is your sport, the 18 holescourse situated in between the forest and the beach is only 3 km away. The Vendee Golf Pass allows you to play on 5 different course all nearby in the Vendeen countryside. If crazy golf is more your style, there are 3 courses at St Jean to challenge the family with.For the more adventurous Go-Kartingand Quad biking are popular and there is every kind of water sport imaginable. There are 2 water parksnearby, Atlantic toboggan nearby at St Hilaire with a superb wave pool and lots of slides and Oceanile at Noirmoutier which has 20 different water attractions.
So that you can make the most of your holiday in the Vendee, we will provide for you, on arrival, a free guide in English of all the best places to see and things to do in the areas. St Gilles, the quaint fishing port, the islands of Noirmoutier and Yeu, the chic resorts of Les Sables and La Baule, the african safari park at Port St Pere even the cobble stone road to Noirmoutier (le gois), that disappears under the sea at high tide !!! Further afield, there are 2 superb attraction parks. Check out Futuroscope, space age technology with 3D rides, and huge cinema screens of all shapes and sizes. Alternatively, try the Puy du Fou, a medieval theme park with daytime and evening shows, exciting jousting and horsemanship, falconry, gardens and animals. These two parks are well known both nationally and internationally and are only 2/3 hrs drive from the site. Visit their web sites, both produced in English to find out more about what they have on offer.
Why not try something new on your holiday this year? At St Jean de Monts there are lots of fun things to try. It's the ideal time to give it a go!
The Vendee
Situated on the Atlantic coast between La Rochelle and Brittany, lies the Vendée. The Coast stretches for 140 km, full of fine golden sandy, gently shelving beaches (8 km of it at St Jean de Monts). With an amazing 210 days of sunshine per year, the special micro climate in the Vendee has a record rivalling that of the south of France and ensures hot sunny days and long warm evenings.It is a region of Pine forest and sand dunes protected by the government, an area of superb natural beauty but also, there is always plenty to see and do. The Vendée is reclaimed land and therefore flat (great for cycling!) lined with vast beaches and dunes, inviting you to either relax for those who like to take it easy, or for the more energetic, there is a host of activities. You can choose from sand yachting, horse riding, golfing, tennis, water skiing, catamaran and dinghy hire, para sailing, organised boat trips and sea and lake fishing. For the really adventurous, there is quad biking in the sand dunes and Go-Karting on a superb track. At dusk, the Vendee transforms into several lively night time resorts welcoming you with a variety of brightly lit harbours, restaurants, bars, night markets, fireworks, concerts and evening shows.
The land is cultivated in many different ways; working salt marshes (you can visit and buy the salt), oyster and mussel beds (taste them in the restaurants), fields of delicious sweet new potatoes in Noirmoutier, vineyards and fresh fish from St Gilles including the nationally famous sardines (delicious when barbecued)The Vendée offers colourful beauty and a variety of countryside from the Bocage farmlands to the Marais Poitevin Marshes, from the Mervent forests to the sea. It offers typical French scenes in the villages with their busy markets selling the local produce including the sweet bread/cake speciality "Brioche Vendéenne".The area is also steeped in history and the past is ever present in the form of museums, cloisters, abbeys, inhabited Châteaux and their gardens (including Blue Beard's Castle), working windmills and local festivals with traditional dancing, food and sports (including cow pat throwing!)You couldn't find a better setting to mix seaside fun, plenty of space on the gently sloping beaches, where you can cool off and picnics in the fragrant pine woods which sweep down to the sand dunes.
St. Jean de Monts
The long flat beach of fine sand is one of the finest in France - over 8kms long and a paradise made for children, with safe swimming, life guards on the main beach and even mini clubs and mini bikes to hire. It is good for windsurfing, jet skis, sand surfing, but most of the area is used just for cooling off and safe swimming.The new town, linked by the long sea front esplanade, where you can watch roller bladers and joggers from the many cafés, is separated from the old town by wooded dunes and a vast forest of pine trees. In the summer months the whole of St Jean comes alive and there are many things to do and see.
In the old town the Church of St Jean de Baptiste has been rebuilt in local style with exotic wood on its bell tower. In the building situated right next to the church in the square, enjoy the bustle of the indoor market every day from June to September, where all the local fresh produce is on sale. On Wednesdays and Saturdays the market expands to cover the whole square with lots to see and buy. There are souvenir shops as well as an Art gallery, Library and Cinema and wine cave to taste the local wine.The "Forêt domaniale" (National Forest) has over 750 hectares of pines, acacias, and green oaks planted by Napoleon III. There are many footpaths and cycle paths - or even visit the forest on horseback. Enjoy the early morning freshness with its iodised air and smell of the pines and later in the day, the shade it gives from the afternoon heat. You can get maps from the tourist office showing the paths and plan a whole day out or just a couple of hours, there are different paths for you to choose from. They also have organised walks and bike trips throughout the summer and anyone can take part. Bike hire is easy and inexpensive and the easiest way to travel in St Jean.
Wander along Avenue de la Forêt, a wide avenue bordered by flowers, down to the sea and the main tourist office. Here you will find several restaurants offering all types of cuisine, from fresh seafood to pizzas. Just a bit further along is Avenue de la Mer, this small pedestrian area has lots of outdoor cafés and restaurants where you can sit and watch the world go by, souvenir shops and clothes shops, and an atmosphere of fun with its night market stalls and artists. On the sea front there is even a Casino. Hire a Rosalie, a 4,6 or 8 seat bike for the whole family or pick up the little train along its route from town to beach.
There are most sports available: You will find the 18 hole Golf course - which is a part of the Golf Pass including 5 courses in the Vendée for a special price and of course crazy golf too. St Jean is a thermal centre and the spa centre, the Thalasso and Les Thermes Marines offer the largest swimming pool in France with sea water heated to 34°, with a fitness room and individual spas, physiotherapy, aqua gym and massages. Sailing, windsurfing and canoe trips through the salt marshes, horse riding available at 4 centres, tennis. Kite flying, boules, skate boarding, Archery, shooting. You could even enter the annual "Triathlon International" - swimming, cycling, and running, which takes place on the sea front.
There are many concerts and shows organised during each summer - The tourist office produce a timetable with all their activities; ask for details. There are adult and children arts and crafts workshops, chess and bridge games, art exhibitions and live entertainment.When you arrive you will be given a well-researched file of information, with all the up to date details of what is happening in the Vendee and especially St Jean.
