A seaside resort known for its unique architecture 5 km away from the campsite.

The birth of a seaside resort

When swimming in the sea became fashionable at the end of the 19th century, Royan quickly became a popular seaside resort. The construction of flamboyant Belle Époque villas overlooking the sea flourished, a casino was built, and a direct train between Paris and Royan was put in place...
Destroyed by bombing in 1945, Royan was rebuilt in the 1950s. The architects took inspiration from the Brazilian style of that time and the town is sometimes known as a ‘little Brasilia’. The 1950s architecture is both surprising and remarkably contemporary, existing alongside the flamboyant Belle Époque villas that survived the bombing.

Emblematic monuments in Royan

• Notre-Dame church, by architect Guillaume Gillet and engineer Bernard Laffaille (1958)
• The central market by architects Louis Simon and André Morisseau and engineers Bernard Laffaille and René Sarger (1956)
• The 1950s villas
• The protestant church designed by architects René Baraton, Marc Hébrard and Jean Beauhain (1956)