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Nantes Travel Guide: 215 reviews and 614 photos
We visited Nantes because we wanted to attend Hellfest festival that takes place in Clisson(a small town 30km away) and brings in the area about 25,000 people every year. The 3 days of the festival we were leaving early in the morning only to return back to the hotel at 2:00am so we couldnt really enjoy the city but we decided to add 2 extra days for a proper sightseeing in the city that Jules Verne was born.
Nantes is located 385 SW of Paris (3 hours by fast TGV train) and 50km from Atlantic cost, in our days it’s the capital of Pays de la Toire region but it used to be the capital of Brittany (Bretagne).
In the old days it used to an important port serving the trade with Africa and West Indies. Nantes has about 800,000 inhabitants in the general metropolitan area(and about 50,000 students at the university) . One interesting fact about the city is that it is named after the gaulish tribe Namnetes, a pre-Roman era tribe that lived there in 70BC
It’s a normal french city, clean, with a small old city centre where you can see the cathedral, the château, some small but good museums and enjoy your wine at some nice small brasseries. Of course it’s not high on tourists’ lists but we saw some tourist buses passing by.
Due to its proximity with the Atlantic they have cold winters and mild summers but the main problem is the rainfalls, we noticed a lot of them in mid june. We spend most of the evenings at Place du Bouffay, the old part of the city where you can find many restaurants and bars. In the morning we checked some of the sights but also walked a bit near Loire river(actually its branch that is called Erdre) that passes through the city.
- Pros:peaceful, clean, no tourists
Reviews (24)
shopping at the center
Shopping
(1)
We didn’t have time for shopping but the city centre was full of clothing stores and some other small ones for small... more travel advice
Basilique Saint-Nicolas
Things to Do
(14)
This basilica is a catholic roman church that was built in 1869 by Jean-Baptiste Antoine Lassus in neo gothic style... more travel advice
Opéra Graslin
Things to Do
(14)
Walking along rue de Voltaire we saw several stores around, some nice buildings (pic 1) but the most impressive was... more travel advice
Les Machines De L'Isle De Nantes
Things to Do
(14)
The “Machines of the Isle of Nantes” is a weird exhition of huge mechanical animals! I’ve read on VT that is a must see... more travel advice
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Comments (5)
nice interesting page, remarkable monument to the 50 murdered hostages. somehow, i get the feeling this is not a top tourist attraction for good reasons. the elephant doesn't help.
Great Nantes tips. I like the story about the waitress and the coffee. langauage can be awkward at times but if you work in a cafe ... most people come in for a coffee!!
Nantes must me a nice city. A good place for your annual rock event. And of course, the visit to the castle ;-) Good page.
That river boat reminds me of the movie 'Chocolat.' Why did they have a rock festival in an area that has so much rain at that time of the year? Looks like you had a good time anyway!
Interesting tips! What brought you to Nantes? I'm now working on my Oxford page (you are welcome to visit!). Kalinichta! Ilan