Île de Noirmoutier (with Fromentine)
Noirmoutier has more of our Vendée villas than anywhere else. The island is flat and laced with cycle paths, with salt pans where you can buy salt from the producers, oyster sheds and a castle in Noirmoutier-en-l'Île. The Bois de la Chaise has small beaches under pines and holm oaks. You can drive on via the bridge from Fromentine or, around low tide, the Passage du Gois causeway. Nantes airport is around an hour and a quarter away.
Best for: Families who want cycling, salt marshes and sheltered beaches in the pines
Not for you if: You hate queues: the bridge and island roads back up on summer Saturdays.
