France’s Green Venice Offers a Cool Escape From Heat and Crowds

Western France: as temperatures rise across Europe, tourists may forever long for a cooler and less crowded alternative to other European destinations. Marais Poitevin is a large wetland in western France, also called the French “Green Venice.” 

The regional park consists of a large number of wetlands, thousands of km of waterways, dotted with creeks and tributaries, running from the ancient city of Niort to the Atlantic Ocean, approximately along the Vendée and Charente-Maritime line. 

The Marais Poitevin is a few degrees cooler than the surrounding countryside and has the welcome shade of its many waterways lined with poplar and willow trees. 

The park is also a good alternative to the famous tourist attractions of France, as it offers a more laid-back experience around its pretty little villages and their traditional boats. 

Marais Poitevin: a man-made wetland with a long history 

Marais Poitevin today looks like a natural habitat, but it was in fact heavily altered by centuries of human activity. 

This area used to be covered by the Atlantic ocean, but the sea gradually receded, leaving behind large tidal flats. In the Middle Ages the monks took advantage of these lands and built a system of dikes and canals to drain some of the tidal flats and protect them from the sea. 

The most famous mediaeval building still standing is the Abbaye de Maillezais. The Abbatiale Saint-Michel, also known as l’Abbaye Royale, was constructed on Saint-Michel-en-l’Herm. 

Later the other monks built more dikes and waterways, which created a broad irrigation system for the region. 

Today Marais Poitevin is less agricultural and more tourist as an economic activity. 

How to get around the regional park: A local boatman and his long stick 

The best known way to explore Marais Poitevin is to take a traditional flat-bottomed boat (the plate). The boatman uses a long wooden pole, called a pigouille, to steer the small boat thru the narrow channels. 

They also allow you to get around the park while discovering its landscapes and taking a break from the summer heat. 

The boatmen and their traditional boats are a part of Marais Poitevin, the main means of transportation between villages in the past. 

They still have a role today but in former times they were used by the post office or even the bus services. 

Less crowded than a European summer 

Marais Poitevin is a perfect chance for tourists who want to get a more authentic French experience. It’s not your typical European summer of capital cities jam-packed with sightseeing. However, it allows you to enjoy nature, discover charming local villages and beat the heat with a boat ride in the shade of the trees. 

If you’re interested in getting off the beaten path, Marais Poitevin is a great alternative for tourists who want the discovery of a new region with history and preserved centuries-old traditions.