# Marennes-Oléron

The marshland between the River Seudre and the island of Oléron, chequered with claires, the ponds where oysters are finished before being sold. You tour it by bike and eat in the huts on the canals.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/france/nouvelle-aquitaine/marennes-oleron · Revisado: 2026-11-12

## What is a fine de claire?

Oysters grow in the sea and then spend a few weeks in the claires, clay ponds in the marsh with shallow water. There they are finished: they lose salt and gain flavour. A fine de claire spends at least 14 days at a maximum of 1 kg per m² in summer, or 28 days at 3 kg per m² in winter. The spéciale de claire follows the same rules but has more flesh: a fill index of 10.5 or more. Some turn green from an alga in the claires: that is the fine de claire verte, with the Label Rouge. The pousse en claire spends months in the pond, with very few oysters per square metre.

## How do you order and what does it cost?

At the producer's hut you order at the counter: a dozen, the size and a glass of white. It comes with bread and butter, and many serve nothing else. A dozen No. 2 fines costs from about €7 at a producer on the island; on a terrace with a view, somewhat more. The number is the weight, and the lower, the bigger: No. 5 weighs from 30 to 45 g, No. 0 more than 150 g.

The huts open from April to autumn and each closes one day a week. In July and August, book.

## Dónde está
- Zonas: French Oysters

## Qué hacer
- **A Visit to the La Cayenne Claires** (1 h 30 · €7 to €11 depending on the tasting (Le Banc d'Aline)): What it is
The claires are the clay ponds in the Marennes marsh where oysters spend their last weeks before being sold: the shallow, algae-rich water gives them their flavour and, sometimes, the green colour for which the fines de claire are known. Seeing them from the inside, with a producer explaining the trade, is the best way to understand what you will then eat in the cabins.
On the La Cayenne canal, in Marennes, the former Cité de l'Huître closed in November 2025. In its place, on the same rue des Martyrs, two producers' visits share the year: Marenn'Ostra in summer and Le Banc d'Aline, at the Cabane des Claires, in autumn.
What the visit includes
Both follow a similar scheme: the oyster's journey from birth to plate, a walk beside the claires and the canal and the working cabin from the inside. They end with direct sales and, if you choose it, a tasting.
At Le Banc d'Aline the visit lasts 30 to 45 minutes without tasting, and one to one and a half hours with it. The tasting is a choice between six oysters with bread, butter and a glass of white wine (or a soft drink), or seafood rillettes with toasts and the same glass. It is held in French.
When

Marenn'Ostra: in 2026, from July to September, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, 10:30 to 12:30 and 14:30 to 16:30, according to the tourist office listing. The season's closing dates differ between sources (27 or 30 September).
Le Banc d'Aline: from 1 October to 13 November 2026, Tuesday to Friday, 10:30 to 12:00 and 14:30 to 16:00.

The 2027 dates have not yet been published. Check with the Oléron and Marennes tourist office before planning the trip; if you go in spring, neither is announced.
Price and booking
Le Banc d'Aline charges €7 to €11 per person, adults and children, depending on whether you take the tasting. Booking is compulsory: you do it on the visit's listing on the tourist office website (ile-oleron-marennes.com), at its offices or by phone with the cabin, on +33 5 46 47 93 43. For Marenn'Ostra we have not been able to verify the 2026 price: buy the ticket through the tourist office before going.
Getting there
The meeting point is rue des Martyrs, on the La Cayenne canal, in Marennes-Hiers-Brouage, a few minutes from the centre of Marennes. Parking is free. By bike you get there from Marennes along the basin's tracks, and the Vélodyssée passes through Marennes.
Where to eat afterwards
On the same street, at the canal's edge, La Cabane aux Marées serves oysters from local producers on its terrace, from April to November and Wednesday to Sunday. If you are sleeping in Marennes, the ibis Styles Marennes Oléron is a few minutes away.
With children
The short visit, without tasting, works with children once they can listen for half an hour, although the explanation is in French. For a plan designed more for them, on the island there is Fort-Royer, with treasure hunts and workshops. It is windy in the marsh and there is little shade: a jacket in autumn, a cap in summer.
- **Fort-Royer, the Oyster Farmers' Village** (1 h · Desde 6 € person): What it is
Fort-Royer is a former oyster farmers' village in Saint-Pierre-d'Oléron, at La Perrotine, next to Boyardville: some forty colourful cabins between canals and claires, within the Moëze-Oléron nature reserve. For thirty years it has been looked after by an association, the Site ostréicole et naturel de Fort-Royer, which has restored the cabins, keeps oyster farming alive and teaches the trade to anyone who comes. It is not a museum in the usual sense: it is a working site with tours, tastings and games for families, always by reservation.
The tours

Commentated oyster tour, 1 hour: from the oyster bed to the finishing in the claires, with the museum cabin and a 1907 film on oyster farming on a big screen. €6, reduced €5.
Commentated oyster walk, 2 hours: the same and, in addition, a walk through the marsh landscape and the history of the oyster in the area. €8, reduced €7.
Discovery tasting, 1 hour: a short introduction to the trade and three oysters to try. €7.

During the activities you can add a tasting: three plain fine oysters for €4, the Fort-Royer platter with six for €6.50, or the sweet platter, with Oléron butter-and-cognac biscuit, pastries and fleur de sel caramels, also for €6.50. They are served with a glass of Oléron white or with local lemonade, and only for those taking part in an activity.
For families

Gourmet treasure hunt, from age 3, 3 hours: orienteering, riddles and challenges with nine routes to choose from on the oyster, fauna, flora and heritage, with two tastings. €10, reduced €8. It runs on Wednesdays at 9:30 and 14:30 during French school holidays and in May, June and September.
"P'tit scientifique" workshop, for children aged 6 to 12, 1 hour: oysters, marsh fauna and plants, and a keepsake they make themselves (key ring, magnet or herbarium). €5. For children only, in school holidays, at the same time as the afternoon tours.

While the grown-ups try oysters, there is a corner with books, games and drawings for the little ones.
Season and booking
In 2026 it opened from Tuesday 10 February until November. All tours and activities are booked: write to sitedefortroyer@gmail.com or call +33 5 46 47 06 48 and leave a message so they call you back. Confirm days and times with them, because outdoor activities need a minimum number of participants and may be postponed in bad weather. The 2027 season has not yet been published.
Getting there
The address is Allée de Fort-Royer, La Perrotine, Saint-Pierre-d'Oléron, next to Boyardville, on the east coast of the island. You get there by car across the Oléron bridge, which is free. By bike you arrive along the Route des Huîtres from Le Château-d'Oléron: it is the end of the stretch we describe in Oléron by bike.
Rules
You are in a nature reserve: you may not pick plants or gather shellfish, and animals are not admitted, even on a lead. Wear comfortable shoes for the two-hour walk and something for the sun and wind: there is hardly any shade in the marsh.
Afterwards, if you want more oysters, on the Route des Huîtres there is the producer's cabin Établissement Testard, in Dolus.
- **Fort Louvois** (1 h · Adult €9.50 · Under-14s €4.50 · Family €24): What it is
Fort Louvois, also called Fort du Chapus, is a horseshoe-shaped fort built on a rock in the middle of the strait that separates the mainland from the island of Oléron, opposite the port of Bourcefranc-le-Chapus. It was begun in 1691 to plans by the Minister of War, the Marquis de Louvois, under the direction of the engineer François Ferry; on Louvois's death, Vauban scaled the project down and the work ended in 1694. It guarded the southern passage to the Rochefort arsenal, via the Pertuis de Maumusson. It is called the little brother of Fort Boyard.
What makes it special is the approach. At low tide you walk along a cobbled causeway of about 400 m across the seabed; at high tide the fort is surrounded by water and is reached by boat.
What you see
Inside you walk through the courtyard, the barracks, the provisions store, the powder magazine and the guardroom. The keep, separated from the rest by a moat that fills with the tide, is a five-level crenellated tower of about 24 m with a corner turret, and the fort's best viewpoint over the strait and the island. Since 1972 it has housed a small oyster museum and an exhibition on the fort's history, with models of the Charente coast fortifications.
The fort was bombed in September 1944, during the liberation of Marennes, and was flooded in the 2010 storm Xynthia, in which it lost its drawbridge. It belongs to the commune of Bourcefranc-le-Chapus and has been a historic monument since 1929. The visit takes about an hour.
Hours and tides
In 2026 it opened from 4 April to 1 November. The hours change each day with the tide and are published month by month, as a PDF, on the fort's website. The ticket office closes 45 minutes earlier. Check the calendar for the day you go and the Fort Louvois tides and hours page before setting off. Out of season it is closed.
Prices

Adult: €9.50.
Under-14s: €4.50; under-4s, free.
Family (two adults and two children): €24.
Reduced: €7.50 with a disability and €6 for students, with proof.

The high-tide boat is free. Individual tickets cannot be booked: they are bought there.
Getting there
It all starts at the Le Chapus oyster port, in Bourcefranc-le-Chapus, just before the Oléron bridge. On foot it is about five minutes along the causeway if the tide allows; by boat, about ten. Wear shoes with grip: the causeway is wet and slippery.
If you are sleeping nearby, Le Terminus is in Bourcefranc-le-Chapus itself.
With children, dogs and accessibility
Children like arriving on foot across the sea; at the keep, hold little ones by the hand. There are no toilets in the fort: use the public ones at the port beforehand. You cannot picnic inside either. Dogs are not allowed. The causeway and the interior, with stairs and uneven floors, are not comfortable with a wheelchair or pushchair; ask at the fort before going.
To eat oysters afterwards, the cabins on the La Cayenne canal, such as La Cabane aux Marées, are a few minutes away by car, in Marennes. Across the bridge, Le Château-d'Oléron completes the morning.
- **The Colourful Cabins of Le Château-d'Oléron** (1 h · On your own · free): What it is
Le Château-d'Oléron is the first town on the island as you come off the bridge, and one of the great oyster ports of the Marennes-Oléron basin. Its port, rebuilt in 1740, is lined with former oyster farmers' cabins that have been restored and painted in bright colours; today nearly all of them are artists' and craftspeople's workshops, small shops and a place or two to eat oysters. Beside it rises the citadel, which Richelieu ordered built in 1630, after the fall of La Rochelle, and which Vauban later extended.
It is a stroll with no ticket or opening hours, lasting an hour or a little more if you go into the workshops. It works well as a first stop on the island or as the end of a day's cycling.
The stroll
Start in the centre, in place de la République, where the Château market is held: Tuesday to Sunday morning, and every day in July and August, with oyster farmers, fishmongers and bakers. From there you go down to the port in a few minutes.
Walk along the canal. Along the quays the wooden cabins are lined up, with coloured doors and shutters, in front of the boats of the oyster farmers who still work here. Each workshop has its own hours; they open mainly in season, and in winter many are closed. At the far end, towards the sea, you see the oyster beds of the strait and, on the other side, the mainland coast.
Return via the citadel, beside the port, to see its ramparts and look out over the strait.
When to go
From spring to autumn the workshops and tasting cabins are open and the port is lively; in July and August, very much so. Go in the morning, when there is a market, or late in the afternoon, with the low light on the cabins. In winter the stroll is still pretty, but most workshops close.
The tide changes the look of the canal: at low tide the boats sit on the mud; at high tide the canal fills. Both have their charm.
Getting there and parking
By car, cross the Oléron bridge, which is free, and follow the signs to the centre and the port. In summer the centre fills up: arrive early or park a bit further away and walk.
By bike, the Château is the natural starting point for the Route des Huîtres towards Fort-Royer and Boyardville; the suggestion is in Oléron by bike and the bike hire is on avenue d'Antioche.
If you are in a motorhome, the Moulin des Sables area, facing the sea and 800 m from the centre, lets you walk. The Camping Les Remparts is a step away from the market and the port.
With children and dogs
The stroll is flat and short, suitable for pushchairs. With children, watch the edge of the quays. With a dog on a lead there is no problem in the streets and the port; in the workshops, ask before going in.
What to combine
Across the strait, opposite Le Chapus, is Fort Louvois. To the north, along the Route des Huîtres, Fort-Royer and the cabin of Établissement Testard. To the south, the Port des Salines, in Grand-Village.
- **Port des Salines** (1 h 30 · Ecomuseum €4.50 · With commentated tour €7 · Boat €16): What it is
The Port des Salines is a small port of cabins in the marsh of Le Grand-Village-Plage, in the south of the island of Oléron, which the Communauté de communes de l'île d'Oléron maintains as a salt ecomuseum. Here you see how an island salt pan works: the evaporation ponds, the system of sluices that lets sea water in and out, just as in the claires, and the work of the salt-maker, the saunier, with whom you can talk in summer. It has the Échappées Nature label.
What you see and what you can do

The ecomuseum, spread over four cabins. The first explains how a salt pan works and the history of the island's marshes, with a film about salt, the saunier's work and the seasons of the marsh. The other three deal with the salt pan's biodiversity, salt in everyday products and salt-pan landscapes in old postcards. For children there is a route with questions and games. It takes 45 minutes to an hour.
The commentated tour of the salt pan, one hour, outdoors, among the ponds.
The boat trip: you hire a boat for up to four people and paddle the canal through the marsh yourself, watching birds and plants.
Meet the saunier, on Tuesdays and Fridays in July and August, by reservation.
The tour with tasting, which adds local products to the commentated tour, and in school holidays, workshops for children and a team treasure hunt.

In 2026 there was also a temporary exhibition, "À Fleur de Sel", from 12 June to 1 November.
Hours
The 2026 season ran from 1 April to 1 November; the site closes in winter and returns in late March 2027. Using the 2026 hours as a guide:

April to June and September to November: Monday to Saturday 10:00 to 12:30 and 14:00 to 18:00, with Wednesdays continuous from 10:00 to 18:00; Sundays, 14:00 to 18:00.
July and August: Monday to Saturday 10:00 to 19:00; Sundays, 14:00 to 19:00.

The ticket office closes an hour earlier. Commentated tours run every day; outside summer the times change each week, and in July and August they leave at 10:30, 11:30, 14:00, 15:30 and 17:00, except on Sunday morning. In summer you must book them and arrive at reception half an hour early.
Prices

Ecomuseum on your own: €4.50; ages 6 to 18, €1; reduced, €3; under-6s, free.
Commentated salt-pan tour: €4.50; ages 6 to 18 and reduced, €3.
Ecomuseum and commentated tour: €7; ages 6 to 18, €3.50; reduced, €4.50.
Boat (up to four people): €16.
Meet the saunier: €9.50; children and reduced, €5.50.
Tour with tasting: €7.50; ages 6 to 18, €5.50.
Treasure hunt: €18 per team of two to five.

Getting there
The address is 34 C rue des Anciennes Salines, Le Grand-Village-Plage. You get there by car from the Oléron bridge, heading to the south of the island. By bike it is part of the island's network of tracks: combine it with the Oléron by bike route. For questions about access or accessibility, the site has a Tourisme & Handicap page and answers on 05 46 75 82 28.
Where to eat
At the port itself is Le Relais des Salines, a former oyster cabin with a terrace over the marsh that is listed in the Michelin Guide; book.
With children
It is one of the easiest visits on the island with children: cheap tickets, games in the ecomuseum, boats and workshops in the holidays. There is no shade in the marsh: bring a cap and water in summer.
- **Oléron by Bike on the Route des Huîtres** (4 h · On your own · bike hire): What it is
The island of Oléron and the Marennes basin have close to 160 km of cycling routes, according to the tourist office, through marshes, pine forests and coast, with almost no climbs. It is easy cycling for families: the surface is mostly sand or compacted gravel, and the real difficulty is the wind. The suggestion in this entry is the oyster stretch: from Le Château-d'Oléron north along the Route des Huîtres, among canals, claires and producers' cabins, to Fort-Royer, next to Boyardville. Allow half a day with stops.
The route, step by step

Start at Le Château-d'Oléron. Begin at the port of the colourful cabins. If you haven't brought a bike, hire one in the village: in the hire entry you have Cycles Demion, on avenue d'Antioche, with leisure, mountain and electric bikes.
The Route des Huîtres. You head north across the marsh. On both sides the claires follow one after another, the ponds where oysters are finished before being sold, and the channels where the tides come in. Producers' cabins are grouped in small ports along the way.
La Baudissière. At Dolus, right on the route, is the cabin of Établissement Testard, with direct sales and tasting: the natural stop for some oysters with white wine.
Fort-Royer. At the end of the stretch, next to Boyardville, the former oyster farmers' village of Fort-Royer, with commentated tours and tastings, always by reservation. It is inside the Moëze-Oléron nature reserve: dogs are not allowed in.
Return. Go back the same way or, if you still feel like it, continue to the Saumonards forest, in Boyardville, one of the bike rides suggested by the tourist office, among maritime pines and holm oaks.

Fort-Royer is about 8 km as the crow flies from the Château; on the way, with the twists of the marsh, allow a bit more. The round trip with stops fits into a morning or an afternoon.
Signs and maps
The tourist offices give out the cycle track map, and the Communauté de communes de l'île d'Oléron publishes it on its website. The Loopi app, recommended by the tourist office, calculates bike routes between two points and suggests themed half-day circuits.
Getting to the island by bike
The Oléron bridge, about 3 km long, can be crossed for free by bike too, although it has no protected lane: with children, better to cross by car and start on the island. On the mainland, the Vélodyssée crosses the Marennes basin in two stages: Rochefort – Marennes, about 38 km, and Marennes – Royan, about 45 km. In summer, a ferry links Marennes and La Tremblade with bikes on board; check times and prices at the tourist office.
When to go
Spring and autumn are the best times: few people on the tracks and the oyster cabins open from April to October or November. In July and August the tracks are full and it is hot: set off early. In the marsh there is no shade and the wind slows you a lot: check the forecast before setting off.
With children, dogs and if the weather changes
The flat terrain makes the route suitable for children who already cycle on their own or for trailers; some bollards on the tracks mean you have to detach two-wheeled trailers to get through. Bring water, a cap and sun cream: among the claires there is nowhere to shelter. If it rains or the wind blows very hard, cut it short and stay in the Château. With a dog you can use the tracks, but not enter Fort-Royer.
To sleep along the route, the Camping Le Fief Melin, in the Château, hires bikes at reception.

## Dónde comer
- **La Cabane aux Marées** (Bar, Marennes, €€). Qué pedir: a dozen fines de claire from the basin and, for anyone who doesn't want oysters, mussels.
- **Établissement Testard** (Bar, Dolus-d'Oléron, €). Qué pedir: the house fines and spéciales, the same dozen of each to compare.
- **Le Relais des Salines** (Restaurant, Grand-Village-Plage, €€). Qué pedir: oysters to start and the fish of the day.
- **Le Château-d'Oléron Market** (Market, Le Château-d'Oléron, €). Qué pedir: oysters to take away and bread for a picnic at the citadel.

## By car: By Car, Between Marennes and the Island
With a car you can link the Marennes claires, Fort Louvois and the island's cabins in a day. The bridge is free.
Presupuesto orientativo: 80–120 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **ibis Styles Marennes Oléron** (Hotel, desde 79 € / night): Renovated in 2025, with air conditioning and its own car park. A practical base between the Marennes canals and the Oléron bridge.
- **Le Terminus** (Small hotel, desde 80 € / night): A small hotel with a seasonal-cooking restaurant, close to Le Chapus and Fort Louvois. In winter it is closed on Monday and Sunday evening.
### Servicios
- **Fort Louvois Tides and Hours**: The 400 m walk to the fort changes every day with the tide · at high tide there is a boat from Le Chapus port
- **Oléron Bridge**: About 3 km · free all year · can also be crossed by bike

## By campervan: By Motorhome: Large Area, Open All Year
The Moulin des Sables area, in Le Château-d'Oléron, has 180 pitches with services and is open all year. The village campsites accept motorhomes from March to October or November.
Presupuesto orientativo: 35–55 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir in a campervan
- **Camping Les Remparts** (Campsite): At the foot of the market and the port of the colourful cabins, with tent and motorhome pitches and a laundry.
- **Camping Le Fief Melin** (Campsite): A family campsite with a heated swimming pool, shop and bikes to hire at reception. A stop for the free summer bus nearby.
- **Moulin des Sables Area** (Campervan area, desde 16.5 € / night): Facing the sea, 800 m from the centre, with a free-spaces board at the entrance and a free shuttle in summer.
### Servicios
- **Fort Louvois Tides and Hours**: The 400 m walk to the fort changes every day with the tide · at high tide there is a boat from Le Chapus port
- **Waste Disposal at Moulin des Sables**: Route des Huîtres · 180-pitch area with water, grey and black waste disposal and electricity · €16.50 a night with services · all year
- **Oléron Bridge**: About 3 km · free all year · can also be crossed by bike

## Camping: Camping in Le Château-d'Oléron
Two campsites on the edge of the village, with tent pitches. Camping outside them is not allowed: French law prohibits camping on the seashore.
Presupuesto orientativo: 35–55 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're camping
- **Camping Les Remparts** (Campsite): At the foot of the market and the port of the colourful cabins, with tent and motorhome pitches and a laundry.
- **Camping Le Fief Melin** (Campsite): A family campsite with a heated swimming pool, shop and bikes to hire at reception. A stop for the free summer bus nearby.
### Servicios
- **Fort Louvois Tides and Hours**: The 400 m walk to the fort changes every day with the tide · at high tide there is a boat from Le Chapus port
- **Bike Hire in Le Château-d'Oléron**: Cycles Demion, avenue d'Antioche · leisure, mountain and electric bikes · also in Saint-Trojan and Grand-Village

## By bike: By Bike: Flat, with Cabins Every Few Kilometres
About 160 km of almost flat tracks cross the island and the Marennes basin. The Route des Huîtres stretch goes from cabin to cabin.
Presupuesto orientativo: 70–110 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're cycling
- **ibis Styles Marennes Oléron** (Hotel, desde 79 € / night): Renovated in 2025, with air conditioning and its own car park. A practical base between the Marennes canals and the Oléron bridge.
- **Camping Les Remparts** (Campsite): At the foot of the market and the port of the colourful cabins, with tent and motorhome pitches and a laundry.
- **Camping Le Fief Melin** (Campsite): A family campsite with a heated swimming pool, shop and bikes to hire at reception. A stop for the free summer bus nearby.
### Servicios
- **Fort Louvois Tides and Hours**: The 400 m walk to the fort changes every day with the tide · at high tide there is a boat from Le Chapus port
- **Bike Hire in Le Château-d'Oléron**: Cycles Demion, avenue d'Antioche · leisure, mountain and electric bikes · also in Saint-Trojan and Grand-Village
- **Oléron Bridge**: About 3 km · free all year · can also be crossed by bike

## By plane: Fly to Bordeaux or La Rochelle and drive to the island
Bordeaux-Mérignac has direct flights from several Spanish cities and is about two hours by car from Marennes; La Rochelle is closer, a little over an hour away. Hire the car at the airport: the Oléron bridge is free and the island can be covered by car or bike.
### Dónde dormir if you're flying
- **ibis Styles Marennes Oléron** (Hotel, desde 79 € / night): Renovated in 2025, with air conditioning and its own car park. A practical base between the Marennes canals and the Oléron bridge.
- **Le Terminus** (Small hotel, desde 80 € / night): A small hotel with a seasonal-cooking restaurant, close to Le Chapus and Fort Louvois. In winter it is closed on Monday and Sunday evening.
### Servicios
- **La Rochelle-Île de Ré Airport**: La Rochelle airport (LRH), a little over an hour from Marennes and the Oléron bridge, with car hire

## As a family: As a Family, with Forts, Boats and Treasure Hunts

For children who don't eat oysters, here there are forts in the sea, boats in the marsh and cycling without cars. Many cabins have prawns or mussels for them.

### What works best
Fort Louvois on foot at low tide, or by boat if it rises

The treasure hunts and children's workshops at Fort-Royer

The boat trip round the canals of the Port des Salines

Short stretches of the Route des Huîtres by bike

### Where to sleep
Le Fief Melin, with an indoor pool and games

ibis Styles Marennes, with air conditioning

### Eating
Mussels at La Cabane aux Marées

Le Relais des Salines, with a menu beyond seafood

### Keep in mind
The Fort Louvois causeway is 400 m of wet cobbles: shoes with grip, no pushchair

The cabins have no children's menu: bread, prawns and little else

### Qué hacer as a family
- A Visit to the La Cayenne Claires
- Fort-Royer, the Oyster Farmers' Village
- Fort Louvois
- The Colourful Cabins of Le Château-d'Oléron
- Port des Salines
- Oléron by Bike on the Route des Huîtres

## Consejos

### Go at low tide
The beds and claires are best seen at low water. For Fort Louvois on foot, check the day's timetable.

### Cross the bridge by bike
The 3 km bridge to the island is free and has a lane for bikes.

### Order the green one
If you see fine de claire verte on the blackboard, try it next to an ordinary one.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How much does a dozen oysters cost in Oléron?
At a producer, from about €7 for a dozen No. 2 fines. At Fort-Royer, a plate of six with a glass comes to about €6.50.

### What is the difference between fine de claire and spéciale de claire?
Both are finished in a claire. The spéciale has more flesh, with a fill index of 10.5 or more. The fine is lighter.

### Is the Cité de l'Huître open?
No. It closed in November 2025. Its buildings are now the headquarters of the oyster quality group.

### Do I need to book at the huts?
In July and August, yes, and some always ask for it. Out of summer it is enough to phone to find out which days they open.

### What do children who don't want oysters eat?
At the huts there is bread, prawns and, at some, mussels. For a full meal, the Relais des Salines or the restaurants in Château-d'Oléron.

### Can I go without a car?
With difficulty: there is no train to the island. There are buses from La Rochelle and Rochefort, and on the island the bike solves almost everything.