I’ve found an island with as many sunshine hours as Nice, but fewer British accents, quieter beaches and, arguably, better seafood. It’s also more laidback, just as chic and, if timed right, better value for money than the Riviera . Île de Ré is a 19-mile by three-mile, low-lying, fish-hook-shaped island of white-washed villages a couple of miles off the French Atlantic coast.
While it may not be cheap, a well-timed visit, with a bit of know-how, can be cost-effective. The island is a favourite sunny getaway among Parisians . It became popular when a two-mile-long bridge linking the island to the mainland near La Rochelle was completed in 1988.
You can fly to La Rochelle and hire a car, but driving seems self-defeating as the whole point of the island (where cyclists rule the road) is to kick back and take things slowly. True, it’s a lengthy journey without a flight – around eight hours from London St Pancras International, via Paris, to La Rochelle from where a bus (No 3) goes to the island – but, apart from the Metro across Paris, relaxing. However, enjoying that casual French attitude, those pretty, hollyhock-strewn villages and the rustic oyster shacks and the gentle cycle rides amongst vineyards and salt marshes can come at a price – unless you visit off season.
“September is the perfect time to come,” says Didier Le Calvez. He and his wife, Olivia, own Hôtel de Toiras , which overlooks the harbour of St Martin, the island’s nominal capital. “Sc.
