Nantes Guide. Leisure Guides.

The airport is about 25mins from the centre of Nantes and a shuttle bus runs every 30 minutes throughout the day and evening. Once in Nantes, you can get around the historic centre easily enough on foot, but the city also has three tram lines as well as comprehensive local buses and trains. Trams go across the Loire to the Ile de Nantes and up the Erdre to the Ile de Versailles. 

 

One ticket covers bus, tram and navibus boat taxis and local trains. Tickets can be bought from a machine at any stop. If you buy a Nantes Pass from the tourist office or airport, this covers all transport, free entry to main sights and many special offers – a real money saver for seeing the city. A well-used pick-up, drop-off bike scheme (‘Bicloo’) is also in place, with options by the day or week. 

Nantes has a wide choice of accommodation, including apartment blocks right in the city centre. These serviced suites – which can provide breakfast – have kitchens and office space as well as bedrooms and a sitting area to give the greatest flexibility to your stay. Of these, Park Suites (4 rue des Petites Ecuries) is right in the heart of the lively Bouffay quarter, or try Adagio City Aparthotel (19 allée du Commandant Charcot), which is very well placed for the train station and chateau.

 

If you prefer a traditional hotel set-up, you won’t do better than the 18th-century Hotel de France in the fashionable rue Crébillon, with its high-ceilinged rooms and period-style French furniture. The very impressive entrance foyer of the four-star Mercure Nantes Central (4 rue du Couëdic) is soon to be matched by fully updated contemporary chic rooms.

The Bouffay quarter to the west of the castle is full of bars, many with music late at night. Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau is a magnet for the young crowd, including the perfect venue for jazz-lovers at L’Univers Speakeasy (at number 16). Further west, Le Privilège (4 place Emile Zola) is an all-night venue for an electro/techno bop. Across the river on the Île de Nantes, the Hangar à Bananes (21 quai des Antilles) hosts concerts, discos and cabaret in a congenial riverside setting.

 

Dedicated clubbers should note that the night-bus service Luciole links the centre with widely spaced entertainment venues on Thursday (the traditional student night out) and Saturday nights. The gorgeous Italianate Théâtre Graslin is currently undergoing renovation (until November 2012), but the packed cultural programme continues at places like Le Lieu Unique (quai Ferdinand Favre) and La Fabrique (boulevard Léon-Bureau).

Nantes has lots to offer gourmets and wine-lovers, with surprisingly reasonable prices even at the top end of the range. The narrow streets of the Bouffay quarter are stuffed with restaurants and bars, including a wide selection of ethnic eateries. For traditional French food at modest prices, a good bet here is La Reine Margot (8 rue de la Juiverie) with its intimate dining room. 

 

Opposite the Théâtre Graslin is the brasserie La Cigale (4 place Graslin), started in 1895 and famed for its lavish art nouveau décor and seafood dishes. This is the place to lunch, in the plush interior or outside in the square. At the upper end of the gastronomic scale, La Raffinerie (54 rue Fouré) presents the impeccably refined cooking of returning local boy Nicolas Bourget. For Asian fusion food incorporating Breton specialities such as scallops in an Eastern chic interior, visit the popular Song Saveur & Sens (5 rue Santeuil). Pick of the lot has to be Michelin-starred L’Atlantide (16 quai Ernest Renaud) where a menu to delight a gourmet’s heart features wild turbot.

Nantes has everything for shopaholics from the ultra-smart rue Crébillon with its suave boutiques for clothes and quality leather goods, to a host of markets. The Passage Pommeraye (rue de la Fosse), one of the city’s unique sights, is the place to hunt out an original gift, or search for art and antiques in the rue Jean Jaurès. In this very arty city, there’s a special trail for visiting the galleries if you fancy your own heirloom.

 

Browsers will love the Saturday flea market at the Marché de Talensac (rue Talensac) or the general offerings on the quai de la Fosse on the same day. A tempting selection awaits at the food market in place Bouffay (Wednesdays), or stock up on the local wines at the Maison des Vins de Loire (15 place du Commerce). LU biscuit memorabilia makes a good souvenir choice – they were the first to market their wares in attractive art nouveau boxes in the early 20th century.

Top 5 sights for first-timers

 

The castle of the dukes of Brittany, built in the 15th century, has been updated to include a very modern museum of the history of Nantes. The city’s changing identity is well documented, including a dimly lit room on the horrors of the slave trade, former source of the city’s wealth. Don’t miss the free rampart walk all around the castle with views over the city.

 

4 place Marc Elder

 

The Vikings sacked Nantes in 843, murdering bishop Saint-Gohard at the altar in an earlier version of this cathedral. The current flamboyant Gothic building has been renovated to present a luminous interior of Loire limestone. The famous marble tomb of Duke François II and his second wife is the most significant monument.

 

Place Saint-Pierre

 

This area was once an island as the name suggests but the Loire has today lost many of its branches in the interests of modern traffic systems. What the Île Feydeau retains are streets of houses once owned by wealthy merchants, some at a jaunty angle thanks to unstable foundations. With their ornate iron balconies and graphically sculpted mascarons (masks), they reflect Nantes’ worldwide commercial profile.

 

Quarter south of the Gare Centrale

 

Constructed in 1843, this totally over-the-top covered shopping arcade sports sweeping staircases, extravagant lighting and a wealth of rococo statuary. The smart shops with many original products are well worth a look too.

 

Rue de la Fosse

 

The author of Around the World in 80 Days was born in Nantes in 1828 and as a boy became fascinated by the maritime traditions of the city. He was later at the forefront of science fiction with Journey to the Centre of the Earth and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The Jules Verne museum’s fascinating collection looks at his life, but also at how the themes of his publications have been exploited in many forms.

 

3 rue de l'Hermitage

 

 

A sombre reminder of the root of Nantes’ commercial prosperity has been set up on the bank of the Loire. A path is scattered with tiny glass panels recording the ships involved in the slave trade, before an underground tunnel offers facts, figures and quotations from around the world about the struggle to abolish this crime against humanity.

 

Quai de la Fosse

 

At the top of the rather ugly 32-storey 1970s Tour Bretagne office block, renowned graphic artist Jean Jullien has created a bird’s-nest theme for this eyrie which provides stunning views over Nantes. The café is styled around an enormous white bird forming the bar, with tables and chairs fashioned from its ‘eggs’. 

 

Place de Bretagne

 

Don’t miss this venture located in the former shipbuilding works on the Île de Nantes. The city’s industrial past is transformed into a vast space for the activity of mechanical creations such as a larger-than-life elephant, which takes visitors on a leisurely tour. Their ongoing project is the creation of a tree of herons with giant birds and travel baskets attached to the branches. 

 

Boulevard Léon Bureau

www.lesmachines-nantes.fr 

 

This funky arts centre is located in the former Lu Biscuit manufacture and little has been done to upgrade the concrete and metal interior beyond some minimalist artistic twists. The underground toilets are decorated with a riot of graffiti. There’s a trendy bar with riverside terrace and a restaurant, and the remaining decorative tower with its gyroscope is open in the afternoons. There’s even a Turkish bath downstairs!

 

Quai Ferdinand Favre

www.lelieuunique.com 

 

Nantes is not short of green spaces, but the thoughtfully designed Japanese gardens on this tiny island in the Erdre are a haven of tranquillity. A place to unwind and reflect on your Nantais experiences or view the exhibition centre featuring all aspects of the river. You can take a boat out yourself from the Ruban Vert centre. 

 

East of quai de Versailles

From the Île de Versailles, Ruban Vert hires out small, silent electric boats for a trip up the Erdre River, described by François I as the most beautiful river in France. Take time to pause at a riverside restaurant or just admire the wildlife.

 

If you prefer to leave the sailing to others, how about a themed evening cruise on one of Nantes’ rivers with Bateaux Nantais (Quai de la Motte Rouge) - dining, cocktails or even Brazilian dancers may be on the agenda.

 

The Nantes area is famous for Muscadet wines and the fruity Gros Plant. Start your quest at the Maison des Vins de Loire (15 place du Commerce), then follow the wine route to vineyards for tastings and purchases. The tourist office has all the details.

 

An animated excursion around the city at night with experienced storytellers gives a different perspective on what makes Nantes tick. The tour is in French, but vivid and entertainingly accessible for all.

 

An amazing other world is revealed in the basement of the Le Lieu unique arts centre. This Turkish bath provides a truly memorable experience of luxurious indulgence in sensuous surroundings set off by lush oriental décor.

A month-long festival celebrating the baroque in theatre, dance, music and visual art.

 

Date: June

Venue: Nantes and surrounding area

 

Jazz festival featuring artists and music from all over the world.

 

Date: August-September

Venue: Nantes and along the Erdre

 

A biennial culinary feast of local produce, famous chefs, vintners and fabulous food for everyone. 

 

Date: July-September (even years)

Venue: Nantes Castle

 

An annual Breton culture-fest with music, dancing, theatre and exhibitions on Celtic themes.

 

Date: October

Venue: Nantes and other venues in Loire-Atlantique

 

Les Utopiales festival celebrates all aspects of the science-fiction world with film screenings, exhibitions, cartoons and maybe the chance to rub shoulders with strange beings.

 

Date: November

Venue: Nantes Cité internationale des Congrès