Vienne

Visit Vienne

Vienne has a famous abbey at St Savin sur Gartempe, the historical town of Poitiers, the pretty village of Angles sur l'Anglin and various other attractions to explore - but it is for something much more modern that most visitors discover the Vienne department: the very popular theme park at Futuroscope, one of the most visited in France!

Selected places to visit in Vienne

Vienne: an introduction

Vienne is a department in central-eastern France to the north-east of the Poitou-Charentes region.

In the heart of La Vienne is Poitiers, the largest town in the department and capital of the Poitou-Charentes region, with many buildings of historical interest and lively centre. Nearby and very popular is the theme park at Futuroscope, while the Gallo-Roman site at Sanxay to the west of Poitiers is a listed National Monument.

Travel east from Poitiers to discover the medieval city at Chauvigny, and continue eastwards for the impressive Saint-Savin Abbey (world heritage site).

Anther highlight in the Vienne is the pretty village at Angles sur l'Anglin (north of Saint-Savin), with the curious prehistoric rock carvings at the 'Witches Rock' nearby.

You can also visit the abbey at Nouaille-Maupertuis.

There are numerous other attractions and places to visit across the department, which has many local museums and places of interest to see during your visit. Other popular towns include:

• Montmorillon, the book lovers town in the south-east of the department
• Loudun, and the old town around the 'square tower'
• Moncontour - small town with a fascinating history and the nearby Chateau Oiron
• Civray, for the medieval buildings and the Saint-Nicolas church
• Chatellerault, 'Descartes town' for the Saint-Jacques church and the 17th century bridge

Theme Parks, Fun and Nature

Vienne promotes itsef as a destination of amusement parks, animal parks, and outdoor leisure.

As well as the well known Futuroscope there are a couple of other theme parks, and a whole series of other family-focussed activities.

Nature - animals and gardens

Vienne is also great for animal lovers - travel from the Island of Serpents (La Trimouille) to the Valley of Monkeys (Romagne) via the new 'Crocodile planet' at Futuroscope and the eagle displays at Chauvigny!

Garden lovers will want to visit the extensive planned gardens in Magné in the east of Vienne, where an extraordinary range of plants set-off very well the original farm estate that stands here.

Note that Poitiers airport falls within the Vienne department.

See a list of all Vienne communes

Page in French? See Vienne (Francais)