Popular Things to Do in Nantes
Food and Drink in Nantes
Deliciously creamy Normandy butter, traditional Breton crepes and a vast panoply of foodie goodies from both land and sea, washed down with lashings of crisp Muscadet -- the cuisine in Nantes really is something to write home about.
To eat like the locals, tuck into fresh-caught monkfish, pan-fried and smothered in sauce Nantais -- a hyper-local version of beurre blanc made with butter, white wine and herbs. For a light snack, try prefou -- cheese-stuffed garlic bread -- with an aperitif. Or, if you're a real wine lover, try Muscadet-flavored sausages. To finish, a slice of Gateau Nantais, a rich almond and rum cake, should hit the spot. And don't forget to sample one of those marvelous sweet or savory crepes.
Creperie Heb-Ken: An award-winning family-run business near the Passage Pommeraye is one of Nantes' top spots for pancake lovers, and you'll be astounded by how much fresh local produce they can pile into one crepe. Better believe your eyes, though; Heb-ken is, apparently, a local saying, which roughly translates as "what you see is what you get." (5 Rue de Guerande; +33-2-4048-7903; open Monday through Saturday, 11:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 6:45 to 10:30 p.m.)
La Civelle: A funky indoor/outdoor restaurant on the banks of the Loire at Trentemoult, La Civelle serves spectacular seafood, including tasty monkfish and gigantic platters of shellfish. It also offers good steak frites and poultry dishes, and serves wonderful pudding, including a chocolate and salted caramel confection that has to be tasted to be believed. (21 Quai Marcel Boissard; 33-2-4075-4660; open daily, 9:30 a.m. to 1 a.m.)
Restaurant Le Nouveau Monde, which lies in the building where Nantes' most famous son, sci-fi writer Jules Verne, was born in 1828, serves classic French cuisine in an historical setting. (4 Cours Olivier de Clisson; 33-2-4048 -0304; open Tuesday to Saturday, 12 to 1:30 p.m. and 7 to 10:30 p.m.)
La Cigale Brasserie: This utterly gorgeous eatery is located on Place Graslin at the heart of Nantes' neoclassic quarter, right opposite the imposing 18th-century Theatre Graslin. Opened in 1895, it features five high-ceilinged dining rooms, each elaborately decorated with mosaics, tiles and vast, shimmering mirrors. A longtime haunt of politicians, film stars and other glitterati, it serves good local seafood and classic French dishes. It also opens early and is open all day, so is a popular venue for a stylish breakfast or a delightful afternoon tea. (4 Place Graslin; 33-2-51-84-9494; open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.)
Don't Miss in Nantes
A cruise along the Erdre: When you join your riverboat, make time for an evening cruise excursion along the Erdre river, a pretty tributary of the Loire, which is lined with parkland, grand buildings and colorful houseboats, and was described by King Francis 1 as "the most beautiful river in France."
Les Machines de l'Ile: This is great fun, and a testament to the ingenuity and creativity that transformed the Ile de Nantes area from a derelict former dockyard to a vibrant artistic and cultural quarter. The vast hangars still stand, but their workshops are now devoted to creating fantastic mechanical machines -- like a gigantic elephant, an oversized heron tree and (new from 2016) a super-sized spider -- which not only delight locals and tourists, but are also exported around the world. Don't miss a ride on the surreal Merry Go Round of the Marine Worlds, which is populated by mechanized marine creatures straight out of a Jules Verne novel -- or a Tim Burton film. (Bd L?on Bureau; 33-8-10-12-1225; opening times vary widely. Broadly, the attraction is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in summer and 2 to 5 p.m. in winter)
Chateau des ducs de Bretagne (Castle of the Dukes of Brittany): This former Ducal Palace, one of the most outstanding chateaux in the Loire region, reopened after extensive renovation in 2007 and now houses the Natural History Museum, which features some excellent interactive exhibitions charting Nantes' medieval beginning, its later involvement in the slave trade and, more recently, its experiences in the First and Second World Wars. Climb up to its ramparts for fabulous views over the city. (4 Place Marc Elder; 33-272-640-479; courtyard open daily, 8.30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; interior open 10.30 a.m. to 7 p.m., closed on Mondays)
Jardin des Plantes: This lovely botanical garden -- featuring species from Africa, Asia and America as well as Europe, alongside a stunning collection of camellias -- is a haven of tranquility set close to the city center, and right opposite Nantes' main railway station. (Rue Stanislas-Baudry; free entrance, open daily.)
Passage Pommeraye: This gorgeously ornate shopping arcade was built in the mid-1800s and features Grecian statues bearing wrought-iron lamps and a beautiful wooden staircase. It's the place to shop in Nantes and, with designer shops, offbeat jewelry and ceramics outlets and heavenly chocolatiers; it has something to suit every budget. (Rue de la Fosse; 33-2-40-48-7817; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.)
Trentemoult and Ile de Nantes: A ferry ride will take you to this delightful former fishing village turned artists' quarter on the Loire's left bank. Alternatively, you can walk to it by crossing the Anne de Bretagne Bridge and heading right along the waterfront, past former warehouses that have now been transformed into restaurants and art galleries, a skate park and a market garden.
Here you'll also see Les Anneaux, an art installation of 18 brightly painted hoops spaced out along the Quai des Antilles that act as a kind of telescope through which to view the Nantes skyline and -- looking the other way -- the Loire snaking into the distance. At sunset they light up, and so are even prettier.
It will take you about an hour to walk from the boat dock through Ile de Nantes to Trentmoult and it's well worth doing, as Ile de Nantes lies at the heart of the city's creative vibe and Trentemoult is a charming jumble of colorful houses with some good restaurants on its waterfront.
Estuaire Nantes/Saint-Nazaire: Keep your eyes peeled for this open-air collection of artworks, which are scattered around Nantes and line the Loire's banks as far as Saint-Nazaire. They include a striking white-painted Lunar Tree, an offbeat zebra crossing and a gigantic tape measure.
Memorial to the Abolition of Slavery: This lies less than a five-minute walk from the boat dock and is well worth seeing; above ground, you'll find glass bricks set into the pavement, each bearing the name of a slave ship that operated from Nantes, a permanent reminder of the murkiest aspect of the city's past. Below ground, a passageway is lined with etched glass bearing comments and contemplations on the evils of slavery. (Quai de la Fosse; open daily; access is free.)