The best MTB trails around Semussac

🏖️ General Overview Chay Beach is a family-friendly, fine sandy beach located in Royan (Charente-Maritime), on the Côte d’Argent promenade between Pigeonnier Beach and Pointe du Chay. It stretches for approximately 200 meters and boasts a pleasant natural setting, with a cove bordered by rocks typical of the Charente coastline. 🏝️ Features • 🌊 Beach type: fine sand, sheltered cove. • 🏄‍♂️ Atmosphere: relatively calm and family-friendly, ideal for children and vacationers seeking relaxation away from the large urban beaches. • 🐾 Pets: prohibited from April 1st to September 30th. • 🫧 Water quality: excellent (Blue Flag label awarded for 2025). 🧭 Lifeguard and Safety • Swimming is supervised during the season (June to early September), with areas marked by red and yellow flags. • The area is classified as a Category 3 "Supervised Beach" and lifeguards are present during the indicated hours. 🪑 Amenities On-site, you can find: • 🏖️ Sun loungers, parasols, and mattresses for rent. • 🚿 Foot rinse and public restrooms. • 📶 Wi-Fi access, first aid station, and an area accessible to people with reduced mobility (assistance may be required depending on the slope). • 🍴 Beachfront restaurant ("Le Chay" bar-restaurant with sea views). 🚶‍♂️ Atmosphere and Activities • 🎈 Ideal for families and leisurely strolls. • 🌞 People come here for swimming, playing on the sand, flying kites, or simply relaxing by the ocean. • 🅿️ Parking is available nearby, and the beach is easily accessible on foot or by bike from Royan town center in just a few minutes. 🧭 Practical Tips • 📆 Best time to visit: summer for supervised swimming and full services, but also during the off-season for a more peaceful atmosphere. • ☀️ Arriving early in the morning makes parking easier during peak season. • 🐶 Dogs are not allowed during the summer season; check the signs on site during the off-season.

Here you'll find a romantic little lighthouse, and behind it lies a garden with a bench overlooking the sea, a lovely place to stop for a break. Afterwards, you can continue along the cliff to the right until you reach Euro Velo 1 again.

Alright

The Chay de Royan beach is a continuation of the Pigeonnier cove on the Côte d'Argent promenade and offers a larger area than the latter. This sandy beach is family-friendly with a restaurant on the beach. It is supervised during the summer season (mid-June to early September) and you can rent mattresses and cabins. The environment of this beach is very pleasant, there are fewer houses than on the other beaches in Royan. A large car park is available near this beach (left side). Access is possible for people with reduced mobility via an inclined plane with assistance (the slope is steep). Dogs are prohibited from April 1st to October 31st.

The Terre-Nègre lighthouse is a landmark forming a cylindrical tower a little over 26 meters high. Located on the tip of Terre-Nègre, in the commune of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer, in Charente-Maritime, it is intended to mark the southern pass of the Gironde estuary and to signal the presence of a dangerous sandbank, the "Anglais bar". This building forms a tower-column 3.16 meters in diameter and 26.60 meters high. A spiral staircase with a central core of 143 steps leads to a summit platform equipped with a directional light. The tower is painted in two different colors to make it more visible: the upper part is red, the lower part is white. The base of the lighthouse is hidden by a building that once served as the keeper's accommodation. The installation of a beacon at this location was considered as early as 1763. De Kearney took over the beaconing plan four years later. Construction work on the tower began in 1770 and was completed in 1773, probably under the supervision of the Bordeaux engineer Claude Tardy. In 1807, the tower was raised. However, this work was considered insufficient by some of the estuary's navigators. In 1834, sailors from the nearby port of Royan sent a request to the Ministry of the Navy to study the possibility of equipping the tower with a light. However, this request was postponed the following year due to lack of sufficient funds. A new request from sailors prompted the lighthouse commission to experiment with a first light in 1836. Finally, on October 15, 1838, a fixed white 4th order light was permanently installed. The latter was replaced in 1856 by a fixed white light of the 4th order of a small dioptric model with a reinforced sector of the 5th order catoptric. It was equipped with new lights in 1899 and 1904. In 1939, it was electrified. During the German occupation, the lighthouse served as an observatory for the soldiers of the Wehrmacht. Damaged during the fighting of 1945 (presence of breaches at the top of the tower), it was restored in the immediate post-war period. In March 1947, the lighthouse was operational again. A light with 3 occultations — changing every 12 seconds — was installed. Its colors are white, red and green. Its current range is 18 miles. Listed as a Historic Monument since 2011, the lighthouse is not open to visitors. However, it can be admired from the outside and a pretty passage provides direct access to the coastal path.

Cycle path directly on the coast

This part of Royan was not damaged by the bombing

The bay is shallow - the brackish water is not of the best quality