Nantes in 5 days

A mechanical elephant, a ducal castle and France's most inventive art city on the Loire. Best time to visit: May-September. Average daily budget: $110 to $220 USD.

Day 1, Get oriented

Base: Centre & Bouffay, The medieval quarter of half-timbered houses, restaurants and bars around Place du Bouffay and the castle.

Morning: Ride the Grand Éléphant. A 48-tonne steel and wood elephant that walks, sprays water and carries 50 passengers around the old shipyards at Les Machines de l'île.

Afternoon: Explore Centre & Bouffay, The medieval quarter of half-timbered houses, restaurants and bars around Place du Bouffay and the castle.

Evening: Explore the Château des ducs de Bretagne. A moated 15th-century castle with free ramparts and an excellent city-history museum inside.

Eat: Beurre blanc sauce, invented on the Loire nearby

Day 2, Iconic sights

Base: Île de Nantes, The former shipyard island, now home to Les Machines de l'île, the Carrousel and riverfront art.

Morning: Follow the green line. Le Voyage à Nantes paints a 12 km line linking every major artwork and landmark, changing with each summer's new installations.

Afternoon: Explore Île de Nantes, The former shipyard island, now home to Les Machines de l'île, the Carrousel and riverfront art.

Evening: Photograph Passage Pommeraye. An extraordinary three-level 1843 shopping arcade with staircases, statues and a glass roof.

Eat: Muscadet white wine from the vineyards just outside the city

Day 3, Local neighbourhoods

Base: Graslin, Neoclassical Nantes: the opera house, Place Royale and the glass-roofed Passage Pommeraye.

Morning: Cruise or cycle the Loire and Erdre. Boat trips to Trentemoult's painted fishing village and cycle routes along the Loire à Vélo greenway.

Afternoon: Explore Graslin, Neoclassical Nantes: the opera house, Place Royale and the glass-roofed Passage Pommeraye.

Evening: Trentemoult, a pastel-coloured former fishing village a short ferry hop across the Loire.. A local favourite most visitors miss, worth the detour.

Eat: Galettes and crêpes from Brittany traditions

Day 4, Day trip or nature

Base: Hangar à Bananes / Quai des Antilles, Warehouse bars, the Buren rings light installation and the best sunset river views.

Morning: The Jardin des Plantes with Claude Ponti's giant sculpted plant-creatures.. A local favourite most visitors miss, worth the detour.

Afternoon: Explore Hangar à Bananes / Quai des Antilles, Warehouse bars, the Buren rings light installation and the best sunset river views.

Evening: Lieu Unique, a former biscuit factory turned arts centre with a tower and hammam.. A local favourite most visitors miss, worth the detour.

Eat: Petit-beurre LU biscuits and gâteau nantais

Day 5, Slow finish

Base: Centre & Bouffay, The medieval quarter of half-timbered houses, restaurants and bars around Place du Bouffay and the castle.

Morning: The Carrousel des Mondes Marins, a three-storey mechanical sea carousel.. A local favourite most visitors miss, worth the detour.

Afternoon: Explore Centre & Bouffay, The medieval quarter of half-timbered houses, restaurants and bars around Place du Bouffay and the castle.

Evening: Dinner at Beurre blanc sauce, invented on the Loire nearby, then a quiet drink wherever the locals are in Centre & Bouffay.

Eat: Beurre blanc sauce, invented on the Loire nearby

Hidden gems

Trentemoult, a pastel-coloured former fishing village a short ferry hop across the Loire.
The Jardin des Plantes with Claude Ponti's giant sculpted plant-creatures.
Lieu Unique, a former biscuit factory turned arts centre with a tower and hammam.
The Carrousel des Mondes Marins, a three-storey mechanical sea carousel.

Getting around

The centre is walkable and the tram network is fast, cheap and covers everything including Île de Nantes. Bicloo bike hire and the free Navibus river shuttle to Trentemoult fill the gaps. TGV trains reach Paris in about two hours and the Atlantic beaches at La Baule in an hour. Nantes Atlantique airport is 15 minutes out by shuttle bus.

Safety

Nantes is a safe mid-sized French city. Usual precautions apply around the train station and Bouffay bar area late at night, where pickpocketing and occasional scuffles happen at weekends. Keep an eye on bags on trams. Loire quaysides are unfenced in places, and cycle lanes are busy, so watch when crossing.

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