Poitou Charentes Description and Information

Poitou Charentes Départements

• Charente
• Charente-Maritime
• Deux-Sévres
• Vienne

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Poitou Charentes Description

Poitou-Charentes is a tranquil and largely unspoilt région halfway down the West coast. Its long Atlantic coastline has fine sandy beaches, pretty marinas and bustling resorts. There are a number of beautiful islands such as nineteen-mile long Ile d'Oléron which is popular with naturists and whose main industry is oyster catching. Another island, Ile de Ré is known for its salt marshes and is reputed to receive more hours of sunshine than anywhere else in France away from the Mediterranean. A bridge linking it with the mainland makes it easily accessible to outsiders, to the chagrin of residents who feel that the island's previous pleasant seclusion has gone and traffic has hugely increased. On the mainland Royan, at the southern tip of the région, is a busy tourist resort with five well-kept but congested beaches, or conches as they're referred to.

Inland Poitou-Charentes also has plenty to offer. The marshes of Marais Poitevin are often dubbed France's Venice (tourist guides call it the "Green Venice"). The serene and lush expanse of fields can be explored by rowing boat or kayak along the canals which were built by eleventh century monks. The town of Cognac is a popular place to visit. Here visitors can sample the world famous brandy and see how the distilling process takes place. Close to Poitiers is the Futuroscope theme park where cinema and special effects are pushed to their limit in an attempt to glimpse into the future of visual technology whilst providing an educational experience. It also claims to have the biggest screen in Europe.

Farming is important to the economy and wheat, corn melons and sunflowers are important crops. The dairy industry is also important and there are many cattle farms. There are also many vineyards. Away from agriculture, there are many industries producing machinery and chemicals. Niort, in the département of Deux-Sèvres, is well-known throughout France for being the main centre of the French insurance industry.

With its lovely beaches, pretty pleasant interior and mild climate, it's certainly a good place for a second or permanent home.

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Poitou Charentes Population

• Population: 1,640,068
• Pop.density (people per km2): 64

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