Right next to Royan and our campsite, station, the Saint-Palais-sur-Mer has been renowned for the beauty of its beaches since the beginning of seaside tourism and the sea-bathing craze in the 1930s. Saint-Palais is a favourite destination for anyone who enjoys beach games, swimming, relaxing and water sports.
The beaches of Saint-Palais, between Royan and La Palmyre
One of the strong points of this town near our home camping by the sea lies in the diversity of its beaches: ideally facing south or south-west, they are vast and family-friendly, or romantic at the end of a cove. All are prized for the fineness of their sand, their sheltered location, the quality of their water and their ease of access.
Saint-Palais-sur-Mer has five beaches. The first is Nauzan, straddling the commune of Royan. Vaux-sur-Mer, It is home to most of the activities organised by the Saint-Palais nautical centre. It is equipped with a first-aid post and is bordered by a restaurant.
The Bureau beach is then the one in the centre of Saint-Palais: bordered by a promenade and numerous bars and restaurants, it offers a 250-metre stretch of sand protected at the bottom of a conch. The beach in the centre has lifeguards in summer, is accessible to people with reduced mobility and has several car parks nearby.
A little further north, past the Pont du Diable rocks, is the Platin beach: facing south-west, it stretches for 800 metres and is bordered by the customs path. Swimming is not supervised.
The small Concié cove is located nearby, just outside Saint-Palais. Its small sandbank is ideal for holidaymakers looking for a quiet spot to swim. You can also admire some typical "carrelets".
The long Grande Côte beach stretches towards La Palmyre. Bordered by the Bois des Combots, it has car parks, a supervised swimming area and a sand yacht club. To the north, it joins the beautiful Pins de Cordouan beach at La Palmyre. You can enjoy a wide range of water sports, including surfing and kayaking. The Grande Côte beach is also home to several Second World War blockhouses.
Easily accessible beaches
Between Nauzan beach on the Royan and the Grande Côte beach to the north of the resort, only 3 kilometres are needed. The resort is ideal for those who enjoy a variety of pleasures, moving easily from a large, lively family beach to a charming little cove.
You can walk the route along the seafront and along the beautiful customs path. You can also easily go from one beach to another by sea kayak.
All the resort's beaches are linked by the network of cycle paths. The section of the Vélodyssée between La Tremblade and Royan links the Grande Côte beach to the Nauzan beach.
By car, it's just as easy to get to the beach at Saint-Palais-sur-Mer. Car parks have been built nearby, with a large number of spaces available to avoid parking problems during the season.
Perfect places for swimming in the sea
When you're on holiday on the Atlantic coast, you can be disappointed by the tide times, which don't always allow you to swim when you want to. The orientation and slope of the beaches at Saint-Palais-sur-Mer are ideal, allowing residents and holidaymakers alike to swim at any time.
For swimming at low tide, all you have to do is go to the Plage de Nauzan or the Plage du Centre: their gentle, even slope means you can swim at any time, whatever the tide level. In summer, the tidal coefficients are generally quite low, which favours this permanence of water. With children, the Bureau beach in the centre of Saint-Palais is the safest.
Water quality is another plus for family bathing. The town of Saint-Palais monitors the quality of its water, as well as the cleanliness of its beaches. Storm water basins, or decantation basins, have been created to prevent rainwater being discharged immediately into the sea in the event of heavy rainfall.
The water temperature on the beaches of Saint-Palais is also appreciated for its stability. On supervised beaches, a display near the lifeguard station shows the sea temperature every day. It is updated several times a day.
The temperature generally drops very little during the night. In summer, this means that the water is very soft from the early hours of the morning, especially as there is very little difference from the air temperature at the start of the day.
From June to September, the water temperature varies from 18° to 23° depending on the time of day and the weather. Swimming is therefore pleasant even outside the summer months.
The Charente coastline is renowned for its mild climate. A reputation that bathing water on the beaches of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer ! Discover also Royan's most beautiful beaches.