Generalities
Allright gentlemen, I thought I could share my experience and knowledge on a few beach towns I know on the French Atlantic coast. I'll be mainly focusing on the Northern part of the coast, roughly extending between Bordeaux and Britanny. Since the southern part of the Atlantic coast has already been mentionned numerous times here before and given that I don't know it that well, I won't take it into consideration.
More specifically, I'll linger on what I consider to be the gem of the region : Ré island (which is called « île de Ré » in French and is approximately pronunced as /eel duh rey/). Ré is a small island located 3 kilometers off La Rochelle, a 3rd-tier medium-sized historic and touristic harbour town. It's been linked to the mainland by a bridge since the late 1980's.
Ré is seen as a chic destination in French popular culture due to fact that a lot of artists and intellectuals have bought summer houses there. Tourism is huge in Ré and as early as late June the island's population rises from 20 000 permanent residents to several hundreds of thousands of tourists during the high season months. I've already heard numbers like 500 000 tourists permanently staying on the island in July and August but have no evidence to confirm that. One thing to consider is that most people can only afford to stay for one or two weeks and there's a constant turnover on every Saturday.
What I find to be particularly great about Ré and the surrounding beach towns on the mainland is that each village has a different vibe and the crowds are really quite diverse. There are lots of things to do and should you ever get bored in one place then La Rochelle and its first-rate touristic city center is only a short bus ride away.
So, let's get to the details now.
Here's the Ré island datasheet !
How to get there and how to move on the island
La Rochelle is only three hours away from the center of Paris by train. You have to take the TGV in Montparnasse and the average price for a single ticket in August is around 40 euros.
Once you're in La Rochelle, you just need to take the bus to cross the bridge. There's a line from the downtown (Place de Verdun) which goes until the first village. If I'm not mistaken, you can buy the tickets at the station or directly when you get in the bus. The bus will drop just after the bridge, near the beaches (Sablanceaux Plage). It's a public transportation system so the pricing is really fair. A single ticket is 1,30 euros. If the weather's good I also recommend you to take the ferry at the old harbour in La Rochelle. Last time I took it was two years ago and the crossing lasted about thirty minutes. It only costs 2 euros. Note that the ferry is quite small and it can be a great place to game a few tourists.
Once you're in Ré, you can move from one village to another very easily by bus. Just keep in mind that on the island the bus lines are runned by a private company and consequently the tickets are much more expensive. That's why I really, really advise you to rent a bike and use the numerous cycling lanes. There are cycling paths everywhere. Ré is fantastic because you don't even need a car to get around on the island. From East to West Ré is only 35 kilometers long. People just ride their bikes to go to the markets, the beaches etc. The landscape is totally flat so it shouldn't be too hard for you even if you're out of shape hahah !
Here's the picture of a cycling path near Sablanceaux :
![[Image: 419243pistecyclable2.jpg]](http://img15.hostingpics.net/pics/419243pistecyclable2.jpg)
More info on bike rental here:
http://cycland.fr/
Main spots and places to see
It actually looks like that in Ré, everything has been devised to make day game easier and more enjoyable. Bike renting stores, markets, supermarkets, shopping streets, beach side bars, campings, promenades, cycling paths, touristic and historic spots. Girls are flat-out craving to be approached everywhere. You can and should run game almost everywhere. The atmosphere of the island is relaxed (much more so than in the French Riviera), people tend to be very open to conversation.
Here's a succint rundown for all the villages of the island. Basically the more west you go, the more exclusive and expensive. The western part of the island (Ars and Les Portes) is deemed more authentic. The eastern part has more of a mediterranean feeling to it actually with pine trees forests and wine yards.
I won't post too many pictures here, but if you want to have an idea of what the island looks like you can watch a few video excerpts from a popular TV series aimed at teenagers. All the scenes are shot in Ré. Just don't pay attention to the characters
![[Image: dodgy.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/dodgy.gif)
Here's an example:→ Rivedoux Plage / Sablanceaux
Rivedoux is the first village you'll see when coming to Ré. It's not particularly but I still really like it. First, it's packed with campers. And in the weekend you have all the locals from neighbouring La Rochelle coming to spend the afternoon on the beach.
There are two beaches in Rivedoux: North and South Beach. North Beach is next to the harbour and isn't a very good place to swim or do sports. It's quite small and you should only go there to practice your beach game and pick up chicks from the camping ground nearby (Le Platin). The South Beach is prettier, cleaner and bigger.
No clubs or night bars in Rivedoux. All the parties are in the campsites. There used to be a nice disco on the main square of the village but the mother fuckers at the town council have decided to shut it down
![[Image: angry.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/angry.gif)
→ Sainte Marie / La Noue
Not the most touristic place in Ré. It's the most authentic village of the island though. I mean, that's where the real locals live: peasants, fishermen, craftsmen etc. There're still a bunch of hotels and campings which make it a reasonably appealling gaming ground. It's a bit weird because the town has two distinct centers which both have their own market. The scenery's perfect there though.
The beaches are beautiful but swimming there can be dangerous since there are a lot of fishing locks and you can injure yourself easily if you're not careful.
My own summer house is located in Sainte Marie
![[Image: whip.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/new/whip.gif)
→ La Flotte
La Flotte is the bigger town on the island. It's a charming place with lots and lots of narrow backstreets. The beach is ridiculously small and close to the city center so it's always packed and full hot girls from the campsites. The harbour and the main street are ideal for day game. A must see for anyone visiting the island. It's still a notch below Saint Martin in my opinion.
→ Saint Martin
The serious things start once you get to Saint Martin. The village's located within fortifications which date back to four centuries ago. Definitely the most popular place on the island. It's very scenic. I dare to say it's one of the most beautiful place in France. That's also where you'll find the most diverse crowd: French people, tourists from the Netherlands, Germany, England, Belgium and Parisians. It's always crowded. The harbour is large and there are town of cafés and bars. People also like stroll around along the battlements. The two main streets lead to the upper part of the village where the church and the main square is located. They're full of shops and attract a lot of visitors.
Saint Martin is a place full of history. Tell me what can be more gratifying than picking up a cute Parisian student in a fortress built by Louis XIV ? The talent is great too. Expect to see a lot of higher middle class girls from Paris and other French towns.
The only downside of Saint Martin is that the beach isn't very good to say the least. For one it's quite far from the center of the village. You'll have to go through the citadel which is used as a penitentiary today. It's also very small. If you're located in Saint Martin I'd say don't bother and head to Le Bois Plage and as soon as 11 AM. You have to hit the road early if you want to avoid the trafic (it can get pretty dense between Saint Martin and Le Bois during the first part of the afternoon).
As far as the night life is concerned, you have the choice between two clubs in Saint Martin,
Le Boucquingam and Le Bastion. They're quite small, but since the village isn't that big you can hop from one bar to another and check out the clubs later. Don't rely solely on those clubs to get laid.
http://www.le-boucquingam.fr/
http://www.le-bastion.com/
→ Le Bois Plage
Le Bois is where you have all the big campsites with thousands of tourists. Le Bois has the biggest market of the island. Every morning the whole village is swarming with tourists and merchants. Le Bois also have numerous beaches. They're naturally the best beaches of the island since that's where all the girls from the campsites go.
On the parkinglot in front of the Plage du Gros Joncs for example, you'll see hundreds of bikes padlocked. People ride from their campsite or their summer house straight to the beach and stay there the whole afternoon. The good thing with the Plage du Gros Joncs is that there're also two bars at the entry of the beach which is not the case of all the other beaches in Ré. The atmosphere is cool, lots of young people. A lot of people staying in Saint Martin go to the Plage du Gros Jonc too since as I mentioned earlier the beaches .
As a rule of thumb always keep in mind that the best beaches are always going to be located on the southern shore of the island.
→ La Couarde
La Couarde is another place of interest. It has a young vibe. The newest part of the town stretches along the beaches with bars and beach oriented shops. The old city center is quite hard to find if you're new to the town but it's very pleasant.
There're a few surfers in La Couarde and it seems to be a good place to practice other water sports but I'm far from being an expert on this.
The third club of the island is in La Couarde, it's called La Pergola. I prefer it to the two other clubs in Saint Martin personnally. If you want a better night life though head to La Rochelle, you'll have more choice.
http://www.lapergola-iledere.fr/
→ Ars / Loix
Ars is probably the second most beautiful village after Saint Martie. It's also one of the best organized. Ideal for day game and strolling around but no beaches.
Loix is much smaller, but it's also very typical. Ideal date location. The village is in the middle of the salt marshes. I'd only visit it when there are fairs and markets though. It can be pretty dead otherwise.
→ Les Portes / Saint Clément
Les Portes is where the so-called Parisian high class prefers to hang around. There're a few beaches near Les Portes which are worth seeing (Plage de Trousse Chemise is my favourite there). The village itself isn't that interesting if you're not a Parisian yourself.
Saint Clément is a very small village. There's not much to do there except sightseeinf. The main attraction of the village though is the lighthouse. It's probably the most visited spot on the whole island and as such it attracts a lot of tourists. It's a decent day game venue. There're also large beaches nearby (Plage des Baleines, Plage de la Conche), if you dare to venture in the threatening ocean.
On the whole, I'd say that the atmosphere is much more relaxed and « oceanic » in that part of the island. It feels really different from the Eastern part where Saint Martin and Le Bois are. The Parisian tourists tend to be more haughty and pretentious in that part of island too. There's more of a cliquish bourgeois vibe actually. Also more traditional and family-oriented. Definitely not my cup of tea.
On the local fauna
There's no need for a particular tactic here. North Americans should try to calibrate their game though. Super alpha game would be redundant in Ré given the general relaxed vibe of the island and the open nature of the people (tourists at least, locals tend to be more stuck up). Just be that cool, well-traveled English speaking guy, tell the girls about your life in New York, Hawai or London and everything is going to go smoothly. The dream of most French girls is to study in an English speaking country and British culture is very popular among the French middle class.
Speaking basic French will be a very strong advantage for sure, but by no means should you try to hide or your accent. Just make sure you're understandable. If you speak some French, use as many English words as possible in the middle of your sentences. You don't need to be fluent. Basic conversational skills are enough. Make it look like you're doing efforts to speak the language and respect the local culture. I've seen a lot of clerks are happy to practice their English with foreign tourists.
Don't give up even if you speak zero French though. As a lot of girls who stay in Ré during the summer are university students from Paris and other big cities, so you'll find many people to talk to. I mean, having a decent knowledge of English isn't that rare among university educated French people under 25. Just don't expect everyone to understand your rapid fire speech and idioms/jokes.
Approaching in French and then switching to English is the way to go.
Competition
The first important thing to know is that your competition will be mostly French guys under 30. Older men who come to Ré for the summer are usually with their family or their mistress. Foreigners are scarce and most of them come from Germany and Belgium and have poor skills with women.
Young French guys tend to play a mix of caveman/corny/asshole game until they get lucky. Parisian guys have more style but they lack swag and manliness as quite a lot of them have that preppy guy look. Parisians will probably never start a fight but French guys from small towns tend to be more agressive and some of them may get jealous if they see an English speaking foreigner hit on their prospects.
As I stated above, very few single male foreigners visit the island so I guess that white or black Anglo-Saxon and Latinos would stand out immediatly as exotic. I've been to Ré for the last ten years every summer and I've only seen like two or three black guys. I've only heard Portuguese and Spanish spoken a few times too. Big plus for guys coming from a country having a beach culture.
Weather conditions
Usually warm (between 20°C and 30°C). It can get pretty hot in August (up to 38°C). If you're unlucky the weather can turn windy and you can expect rain to last for a few days. Cold weather shouldn't have a negative impact on your gaming agenda since most people massively flock to the shopping streets and tourist attractions when they can't go to the beaches.
Violent storms are frequent in late August/early September when the tidal coefficients are higher.
The water of the ocean is rather cold (don't expect more than 20°C most of the time). But hey, we're not going to Ré to train for the Olympics aren't we ?
Another thing: yes the weather can get rainy for a week. But hey, the risk also exist in any other location on the Atlantic ocean. And as I said, shitty weather shouldn't prevent you from meeting chicks.
Accommodations and cost of life
I'll be quite clear here : Ré isn't the best place for travellers on a budget and backpackers. But unlike the French Riviera, you don't need to be a millionnaire to enjoy all the possibilities the island and the other beach towns have to offer. In Ré, game is more democratic in a way.
With that said, renting a decent house will be quite costly. Ideally you'd come with one or two friends and share the renting charges. As one can expect the cheapest hotels are in the less touristic villages (Sainte-Marie / La Noue – the cheapest I know is called Les Tilleuls).
You're in luck because I've already dealt with a lot of the real estate agencies of the island in the last four years. Based on my personnal experience with them, I'd advise you to get an overview of the local seasonal rental market by browsing the following sites as they tend to be the most representative and dependable :
http://www.locations-ile-re.com/
http://www.saintyvesorpi.com/locations_s..._de_re.asp
http://www.aaph-locations.com/location-ile-de-re/
If staying in a campsite isn't a problem for you, then it could be a good option as they tend to organize a lot of events and parties. Of course the most interesting campsites are mostly located in Le Bois Plage given all the reasons I wrote above. Here's a comprehensive list anyway :
http://www.holidays-iledere.co.uk/plan/w.../campsites
Food is quite expensive too (for French standards at least), but it's good and healthy. Even in the supermarkets. The island produces top quality vegetables and the seafood is great too, even though I'm not really a fan. Don't waste your time with the restaurants, they're all terribly expensive and the food isn't worth it. Tourists traps for the most part. Don't expect less than 30 euros for a decent dinner. If you still want to try the local cuisine at its best, I still advise you to Le chat botté in Saint Clément, most of their customers are regulars as very few tourists go there.
It's a much better ideo to go the market every morning and prepare your own meals yourself. I mean, Ré is great because you can have a very healthy life style there. There's no pollution, not too many cars (at least compared to the French Riviera), the weather isn't sweating hot and if you're tired of the crowds you can easily find beaches to chill and relax with your girl.
Conclusion
What Ré isn't : a huge party center with girls from all over Europe. If you want that kind of atmosphere then the French Riviera is better for you. If, on the contraty, you don't mind spending a few weeks in a very scenic and picturesque place full of fresh, young French girls to reload your batteries after an exhausting and intense crusade in Eastern Europe or South America, then you should come and see it by yourself.
Ré has a « farniente » vibe if you see what I mean. It's a relaxing place ideally located with La Rochelle a few miles away and Bordeaux two hundred kilometers down South.
Anyway, I hope that these pieces of information will prove to be useful and just don't mind the clumsy syntax/weird choice of words, I'm not really used to writting long texts like this in English.
Keep in mind I'm writting those lines directly from the battlefield too. Everything is up to date. You can ask any questions if you want more details, this was just a synthesis. I'm currently drafting an addendum about the beach towns on the mainland and will also talk more about La Rochelle later.
