The western French department of Vendee is a remarkable region for everything that has to do with relaxation. If you love wild coastlines and sandy beaches, then the Vendeen coastline will impress you with its 250 km of protected coast that includes 140 km of sandy beaches. It has sloping beaches and impeccable bathing water quality for all family vacationers. Water sports lovers will love the Vendee.

Beaches in Vendee

Several of Vendeen coastal villages and towns (La Barre de Monts, Saint Hilaire de Riez, La Fauts Sur Mer, Barbatre, etc) have selected special solutions to ensure their beaches remain clean and in excellent condition. Essentially, the beaches are not merely leisure spaces but are, firstly, natural living environments that exist between the dunes and the sea.

The sea deposits a bar of algae blended with organisms and marine plants at high tide. As it is, this natural deposit is an environmental resource for the stabilization of the environment and the dunes. Consequently, mechanical cleaning is only allowed on the most visited beaches.

Without much ado, here is my pick of the best beaches in Vendee in no particular order.

Le Plage, Point de l’Aiguillon 

The southernmost beach in the Vendee is Le Plage at Pointe l’Aiguillon. The region does extend south for many more kilometers into the Baie de l’Aiguillon, also known as the Anse de l’Aiguillon, but it is mostly mudflats.

There are many highlights at this quiet beach peninsular, and they are majorly petit, but if solitude is your thing, then this is a great place to start. While the waters are not too clean, as this is River Lay’s estuary, you will find areas of rocks with interesting pools at low tide. You can easily get a handful of mussels for the family if you are with them.

The biggest highlight of the point, apart from the beaches, are the offshore mussel farms as well as the Nature Reserve. During the autumn and in the spring in the Nature Reserve, birds (geese, ducks, and waders) take a stop on their migratory journey. The offshore mussel farms supply more than 20% of national production, which is one of the country’s major mussel-producing areas.

L’Aiguillon-Sur-Mer

In the town of l’Aiguillon, the beaches are based around 2 artificial lakes. Even though not natural, they are of excellent quality, making a very safe environment for parents to relax and kids to swim. There is a massive stretch of sands with a safe shallow kids’ swimming section visibly marked out.

Owing to its artificial nature and Gallic style, the beach has been designed to be family-friendly. It has facilities like cafes, toilettes, restaurants, and a kid’s play section. Also, the lakes offer different water sports- you will even find a water slide. Parking spaces are pretty decent.

At L’Aiguillon-sur-Mer, there are natural beaches, and these are found on the Pointe de l’Aiguillon- sand spilled that courses for 11 km in an arc. This place is the capital of the Mussel industry, with more than 20% of the nation’s production being cultivated in the Anse de l’Aiguillon and the Rive Lay estuary. Therefore, it is a perfect place to get fresh mussels. In addition, there are many fantastic restaurants where these tasty crustaceans can be sampled. 

La Faute-Sur-Mer

The 8 km of beaches from the Pointe D’Arcay by the town and onward approaching La Tranche Sur Mer is a gorgeous view. Around 200 hectares of Holm Oak and pine forest stabilized this delicate environment of dunes. The trees were planted almost 150 years ago. 

For sports aficionados and sun worshippers, the fine sands are the perfect playground. It is the perfect spot for windsurfing, sand yachting, and jogging. In the forest at the back of the beach, you will find a Parcours de Sante (fitness circuit) for those who want to have a great physical shape on vacation.

As the fine sand packs hard on the spot between the high and low watermarks, the Plage de Bulugas is the yachting center. One of the Vendee’s five naturist beaches is the Plage de la Barrique, and it caters to the needs of those that want to connect with nature. La Faute-Sur-Mer town has everything required to complete your vacation- from toys to cafes, shops on the beach, restaurants, and bars. 

La Tranche Sur Mer

Having 13 km of beach, La Tranche Sur Mer is another astonishing beachy area. On the Atlantic coast, it has some of the cleanest beaches that often receive blue flag recognition. The beaches closest to the town are perfect for kids and are softly sloping with protected waters; there is the additional perk of having all amenities close by. The restaurants, shops, and cafes are all near the beach. Therefore, if you need an extra beach ball or ice cream, you won’t have to walk far. Being a Mecca for water sports, La Tranche Sur Mer boasts of a range of activities from sailing and wind-surfing to extreme sports. 

La Terriere

Undoubtedly, La Terriere is one of the finest beaches in the Vendee. It extends from the beaches of la Tranche sur Mer. You will find a large park almost on the sands. The waters are being monitored not only in the major summer season but also on weekends in June and September.  

The beach is a regular awardee of the blue flag for cleanliness, and seaweed and other debris that usually mess up other beaches further north is not present here. You are bound to find good facilities on the beach and close to the car park. Regular surfers and novice wave boarders also love this area of the coast, even though it is on the Atlantic coast. 

Les Conches

Les Conches’ beaches stretch southward as far as the eye can behold towards la Terriere and northwards approaching La Rocher. This beguiling expanse of beach is backed by forests of pine and Holm Oak as well as dunes. 

The major car park is almost on the beach, and few beachside cafes open in summer. Further back in the village there are some stalls for beach items and a nice surfing shop too and cafes.

Throughout the year, you will find surfers on the beach as the surfing here can be as great as anywhere on the Vendee’s Atlantic coast. Every season, the beach is quite popular for sea angling, especially after storms, and there are cockles at low tide to be gathered. 

At the back of the dunes- among the forest- courses a tarmac path that at intervals have openings to the beach. While Les Conches and La Terriere are not officially nudist beaches, nudists have frequented them for many years. Also, there is a really nice path for walking between the dunes and the forest that is part of the coastal walkaway that passes through the entire Vendee.

Le Rocher

This is in the commune of Longeville-Sur-Mer that, despite its name, is some way from the beach. It is the end of the 8 km beach that courses north from La Tranche Sur Mer. It includes beaches like Les Conches and La Terriere. You will find many cafes, shops, and restaurants close to the beach. Le Rocher is easy to access. It is just off the D105, the road stretching from La Tranche-sur-Mer to Longville-sur-Mer.

Best Beaches in Vendee – Final Thoughts

The Vendee beaches are beautiful, gently sloping with golden sand. Every year, they attract visitors to holiday on their shores and have an excellent time. Indeed, nothing beats golden sand, blue sea, and glorious sunshine to conjure up the perfect holiday image. Luckily for you, the Vendee has lots of those.