The Blue Flag floats on the beaches of Royan
At the mouth of the Gironde estuary, Royan has a remarkable natural environment and some of the most beautiful beaches on the Atlantic coast. The seaside resort makes every effort to preserve this heritage and offer its visitors a privileged vacation spot. Close to the city center, its five sandy beaches are ideal for swimming.
The Chay beach has an “Excellent” water quality. This allows it to hoist the Blue Flag flag every summer. In 2024, the Grande Conche de Royan, Foncillon and Le Pigeonnier are also classified “A”. They can therefore proudly display the famous Blue Flag. This label firstly reflects the efforts made locally in favor of the environment. Then, it allows Royan to include these bathing sites among the best beaches in Charente-Maritime.
Discover the Blue Flag beaches
What does the Blue Flag on the beaches mean?
If some beaches immediately arouse the confidence of tourists, it is those where the wind floats Blue Flag. This flag is easily recognizable by its logo depicting a globe traversed by an azure swell. Present in more than forty countries, on all continents, it is an undeniable tourist asset for seaside resorts. However, many users are unaware of the true content of the message delivered by this signage.
Objective: preserve bathing areas
Awarded on application, this label promotes local authorities that permanently lead a sustainable tourism development policy. Its objective: to limit the impact of tourist and maritime activities on the environment and to preserve resources. To obtain this distinction, in addition to the imperative criteria concerning safety, respect for the environment and awareness of the general public, bathing waters must first be classified as “Excellent quality water”. In addition, one of the obligations to be fulfilled in order to obtain – and keep – the label, consists in ensuring cleaning and treatment of waste on the beaches. Users who frequent them are therefore invited to sort their waste.
As for the behind the scenes, it requires a strong commitment and concrete actions on the part of the municipalities to meet the standards imposed by the Blue Flag. For example, Royan relies on its own laboratory to monitor and measure on a weekly basis the bathing water quality. This comes in addition to the monitoring carried out by the Regional Health Agency (ARS). It thus provides itself with the means for a rapid reaction in the event of untimely pollution. She also set up several information boards for users and regularly organizes cleaning operations of its beaches.
