Les Salines

Les salines is a saltworks spread across ten hectares of protected land behind sand dunes, with connected basins designed for salt production. The basins form a system where salt water moves slowly from one pool to the next, gradually concentrating as it evaporates in the open air.

Salt production in this region stretches back to Gallo-Roman times and has continued for over a thousand years. The craft passed through many hands across the centuries, with its core methods remaining largely the same.

The salt workers here keep methods alive that have been handed down for generations, showing how the craft remains woven into daily work. You can watch them move through the basins and see how knowledge about salt making shapes what happens in this landscape.

The site is walkable with paths laid out between the basins for visitors to follow. The summer season offers the best conditions for a visit, when the sun is strongest and salt work activities are most active.

A salt river winds through the site, allowing visitors to explore the basins from the water itself. This water-level perspective reveals how the system works from a completely different angle and shows the path water takes as it moves through.

Location: Les Sables-d'Olonne

Address: Route de l'Aubraie

Opening Hours: Monday-Friday 14:00-18:30; Sunday 14:00-18:30

Phone: +33251210119

Website: https://lessalines.fr

GPS coordinates: 46.51595,-1.80492

Latest update: December 9, 2025 12:21