Niort Marais poitevin – Vallée de la Sèvre Niortaise Tourist Office offers practical informations to book and organize your trip in Niort and in the Marais Poitevin, “Grand Site de France”.Gites, hotels, guest houses, campsites… come and relax in a quiet place, over the river Sèvre Niortaise and its castles. Ride by boat, by walk or by bike : conquer the Green Venice. Discover animations, activities, sites you must see, restaurants… to move during your next holidays between plain and marsh.
Tradition
The life of the Poitevin marshlands, developed around the water, is building a way of life in a particularly pleasant climate. More than 2600 hours of sunshine per year and the closeness to the Atlantic Ocean bring an oceanic mildness. Wander through the authentic villages and go up and down the alley ways which lead to the harbours of the marshlands.
Look for typical examples of heritage : wash-houses, locks, fountains, foot bridges, Pigeon lofts.
And if the life of the marsh inhabitants is still articulated around the water, you can find the fundamental elements in the village streets which follow the bends of the canals.
Until the sixties, "la barque" (flat rowing boat that is typical of the marshes) was the only way of getting to the marshlands. In yester year, every marsh family had several of these rowing boats, in different sizes, to get around the marshlands. Today, la "barque" (the rowing boat), the emblem of the Marais Poitevin, has also developed as a tourist attraction...
