Île d'Oléron, 30 km (19 miles) long and 8 km (5 miles) wide, is just the right size for summer relaxation, adventures and discoverie: sandy beaches good for swimming and surfing, stables for horse-riding, campsites, and a 110-km (68-mile) network of bicycle paths.

Saint-Pierre d'Oléron

The largest of Île d'Oléron's eight communes, Saint-Pierre d'Oléron (population 6,400) is the administrative and commercial center, but also boasts the historic Église Saint-Pierre, the 12th-century 23.4-meter (77-foot-) high funerary-monument tower called the Lanterne des Morts, and the Maison des Aïeules.

a former home of the 19th-century romantic novelist Pierre Loti, who is buried here.

Le Château d'Oléron

The town gathered around the walls of the impressive Château d'Oléron offers bicycling, boat cruises, horse-riding on the beach, and of course tours of the fortress whose defenses were designed by the faouns Vauban.

La Cotinière

The island village of La Cotinière is the most important fishing-boat harbor in the département of Charente-Maritime, so there's plenty of fresh seafood to enjoy, including the island's own renowned oysters.

Boyardville

Officially part of the commune of Saint-Georges d'Oléron, Boyardville was named for Fort Boyard, the fortress offshore from the town. Another fortress, Fort Galissonière, is nearby, but most visitors come for the beach, especially surfing.

Le Grand-Village-Plage

The name says it all: the village is only grand in summer when its population of less than a thousand swells with holday-makers crowding the popular beach.

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