La Rochelle - La Rochelle visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'La Rochelle' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Poitou-Charentes.

La Rochelle is an ancient seaport city on the Bay of Biscay in the Poitou-Charentes region of France. The harbour opens up into the Pertuis d'Antioche straits and the city is linked by a 2.9km bridge to the Île de Ré.

Historically, La Rochelle area was occupied by the Gauls and then the Romans who developed both wine growing in the region and the salt evaporation ponds. The harbour and town of La Rochelle was established in the 10th century. It grew in importance in the 12th century whenGuillaume X, Duke of Aquitaine defeated Isambert de Châtelaillon and destroyed Châtelaillon harbour.

Because of the harbour, La Rochelle has often been fought over during the centuries with several sieges and naval blockades. One of the better known sieges was the Siege of La Rochelle (1627-28) during the Anglo-French War (1627-1629). Even as recently as WWII La Rochelle was important in military terms, and the Germans built extensive defences along the coast and established a U-Boat base at La Pallice.

La Rochelle - Tourist Attractions

La Rochelle has maintained an historic charm, and many of the old buildings remain intact. The most popular and important tourist attractions around the city include:

• La Rochelle Harbor - old harbour flanked by the Tour St-Nicolas (1384) and the Tour de la Chaîne protective towers, full of traditional fishing boats and lined with hotels and restaurants.
• Harbour Towers - the harbour has three 14th century towers, Tour de la Chaîne (Chain Tower), Tour Saint-Nicolas and Tour de la Lanterne.
• Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall ) - richly decorated Renaissance building from 1595-1606 surrounded by defensive walls.
• La Rochelle Cathedral - classic style, 18th century Cathedral of St-Louis with an earlier 15th century tower.
• Musée des Beaux Arts - hosed in an 18th century Episcopal palace the museum contains art from the 15th to 19th centuries, including works by Brossard de Beaulieu, Eustache Le Sueur, Corot, and Fromentin.
• La Rochelle Old Town - narrow streets lined with cafes and bars and several notable buildings like the Palais de Justice (Law Courts, 1789) and the Bourse (Exchange, 1785), Maison de Henri II (1555), and Porte de la Grosse-Horloge (14th-15th C.), the old town gate.
• La Rochelle Aquarium - full of sea life, fish and other displays.
• Port des Minimes - one of the biggest ports for pleasure craft in Europe, full of boats and yachts of all sizes.
• Ile de Ré - accessible via the road bridge with pretty villages and Phare de la Baleine, beautiful beaches and good restaurants.
• La Pallice - village 7km north of La Rochelle which contains the 'New Harbour' developed in 1883- 1890 and used by the Germans as a U-boat station.

La Rochelle Tourist Board
2, Quai Georges Simenon
Le Gabut – 17025 La Rochelle
Cedex 01 - FRANCE
Phone: + 33 5 46 41 14 68
accueil@larochelle-tourisme.com

Flight: La Rochelle International Airport.
Train: High speed TGV trains link La Rochelle to Paris.