Overview

Ars en Re is one of the small towns on the island of Ile de Re. It's known for its church which has a distinctive black and white spire, so sailors can recognise where they are. The church which is open all day for visitors is located on a central square which has a handful of cafes and houses. A 5 minute walk from the main town square is a small port and in the opposite direction about 10 minutes away is a beach area.

Transport & Parking

I travelled to Ars en Re by bus. The no 3 bus travels from one end of Ile de Re to the other. The stop for Ars en Re is on a by pass, s 5 minute walk to the central square. The buses are coach style, with 2 doors, the front door by the driver has a sign for people with walking sticks, it's doable but has quite deep coach stairs. The middle door has a wheelchair sign.

Access

The town centre of Ars en Re is flat, most of the roads are not very busy with traffic. L' Eglise Sainte Etiene, the church with the distinctive spire is open all day and there are 2 entrances, one of which is step free. The tourist information is also on the main square but there were a short flight of stairs to the entrance. I was unaware of an alternative entrance. The walk to the port is a 5 minute, level walk. Also close to where the bus stops is the beach, which I did not go to as the lady at the tourist information office said that there wasn't a promenade to walk along just beach. There were a few restaurants on the main square. I went to the Patisserie/ Salon de the which was step free and offered a self service restaurant with savoury food and fancy French cakes. There were indoor and outdoor seating and also food was available for take away.

Toilets

I only used the toilet in the restaurant. It had one grab rail and no emergency alarm. I have given the rating of 3 only because I'm unsure if there are any other accessible toilets in the town.

Staff

The lady in the tourist information office was very helpful, she talked me though, in English, the things I could see in the area. She suggested visiting the port area and the salt fields next to them as well as giving me a leaflet about a walking trail round the town. In the restaurant which was self service the staff were proactive and offered to carry my tray to my table.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

Ars en Re is a very nice, traditional, small, French town. It's very pretty and charming. Activity seemed to focus at the main square and at the port. I didn't see many restaurants or shops in the side streets. The church combines Romanesque and Gothic architecture and is well worth visiting. The day I visited it was very hot so I didn't explore the port as much as would have liked to but the area appeared flat and an attractive area to explore.

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