Surfing in the Vendee

Surfing. The Vendée is recognized as one of the finest destinations in France for those who love to ride the waves and a round of the world championships is regularly held at La Tranche sur Mer. The long fetch of the Atlantic rollers together with gentle sloping beaches, the varied breaks and the long hours of sunshine make the Vendee ideal. It doesn't matter whether you are a seasoned surfer or a raw novice, the plethora of different breaks and surfing conditions along the 146 kilometres of coastline means that there is somewhere to suit all comers. For those who enjoy the long board then the variety of breaks are best around la Tranche, la Terrier and les Conches in the south, and la Tranchet near les Sables d'Olonne and la Sauveterre further north in the Vendée. For the exponents of the short board or body board then most beaches will have some useable surf, though if you want the best then the beaches mentioned for the long boarding are equally good for this type of surfing. A word of warning if you intend surfing the rocky shoreline of the beaches around Cayola just south of les Sables d'Olonne, or off of the rocks just north of Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie, great care and a helmet are advised.

There are several surf shops that cater for ones surfing needs, there is a particularly good one at Les Conches, the Manu surf shop next to the BUD Cafe.

Other surf shops include;

Bahia surf Shop 42 rue Ramparts, Les Sables d'Olonne.

Mantawaii, 18 rue de l'Ocean, Brem sur Mer.

Atlantic Lezard, 10 ave de la Plage,Bretignolles sur mer.

La Palmier, 14, rue du Pertuis Breton, La Tranche-s-Mer.

Nova Fun, 52 Ave Victor Hugo. Tel. 02 51 27 42 90.

Sail & Board Shop, 12, Route de la Roche-sur-Yon. Tel. 02 51 30 36 02

The sport of Kite surfing is also popular on several beaches with a round of the Championship de France being held on 11th-13th June 2011

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Surfing in the Vendée