La Baule-Escoublac, commonly referred to as La Baule,
is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique département of France.
It boasts the longest sand beach of Europe, which is 12 kilometers in length.
read full wikipedia reference about La Baule, France
There is something very surreal about emerging
from the Brière to the coast at LA BAULE - an imposing,
moneyed landscape where the dunes are no longer bonded together
with scrub and pines, but with massive apartment buildings and
luxury hotels. Sited on the long stretch of dunes that links
the former island of Le Croisic to the mainland, it owes its
existence to a storm in 1779 that engulfed the old town of Escoublac
in silt from the Loire, and thereby created a wonderful crescent
of sandy beach.
Neither La Baule's permanence nor its affluence
seems in any doubt these days. It is a resort that very firmly
imagines itself in the south of France:
around the crab-shaped bay, bronzed nymphettes and would-be Clint
Eastwoods ride across the sands into the sunset against a backdrop
of cruising lifeguards, horse-dung removers and fantastically
priced cocktails. It can be fun if you feel like a break from
the more subdued Breton attractions - and the beach is undeniably
impressive.
La Baule has two gare SNCFs, the barely
used La-Baule-les-Pins, and the main La-Baule-Escoublac near
the tourist office on place Rhin-et-Danube, where the TGVs from
Paris
arrive. The gare routière is at 4 place de la Victoire
(tel 02.40.60.25.58). Full details on staying in La Baule can
be had from the tourist office , away from the seafront at 8
place de la Victoire (mid-May to mid-Sept daily 9am-7.30pm; rest
of year Mon-Sat 9.30am-noon & 2-6pm; tel 02.40.24.34.44),
or from the local Web site www.pays-blanc.com
.
For lodging
accommodations, options are near the main gare SNCF , less
than 1km from the beach. These include Le Clémenceau ,
42 av Clémenceau (tel 02.40.60.21.33; closed Dec), and
the Marini , 22 av Clémenceau (tel 02.40.60.23.29).
The finest of the many local campsites
, 2km back from the beach, is the four-star La Roseraie , 20
av Sohier (tel 02.40.60.46.66, la-roserie@post.club-internet.fr
; closed Oct-March).
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