We typically book excursions when we’re cruising because there are usually lots of interesting things (or one specific thing) to see which aren’t necessarily anywhere near where the cruise ship docks. The only time we won’t book cruise excursions are if we are familiar with the port and we know for certain we’ll be in walking distance or doing-it-ourselves distance from anything, or if there simply isn’t anything that grabs our attention (which doesn’t happen often). We didn’t book anything at Guernsey, though, not because of a lack of interest (there were castles and war-related attractions all over the place) but because Guernsey is a tender port for cruise ships; the ships are too large to dock so tender boats are required and because there is no sheltered area for the ships the use of tender boats is governed by the wind and sea conditions. In short, we couldn’t guarantee at the time of booking the cruise that we would even be allowed off the ship in Guernsey so we decided to play it by ear.

The morning after leaving Southampton the Sapphire Princess was anchored off Guernsey’s capital, St Peter Port. The sky was clear, there was a little bit of sea mist or haze, and the wind was light. A perfect day for getting up a little later than we normally would, enjoying a leisurely breakfast, then heading down to the tender boat ticket location near the photo gallery on deck seven. Our timing was perfect as we walked up, were asked if we wanted to leave immediately, replied that would be nice, were handed two tickets, then walked straight down to the tender departure area and into a queue of about three other people forming the last of those boarding a boat that would head off only a couple of minutes later.

The ride took about ten minutes and we were right at the front of the boat where the open windows allowed the pair of us – but mostly my wife – to get splashed with sea water as occasional waves were thumped into. We didn’t mind too much. At St Peter Port we got off and were directed one of two ways away from the pier depending on whether we had an arranged excursion or were doing our own thing. We were doing the latter, of course, and made our way along the marina area on the city before angling southwards.

Knowing that we wouldn’t be booking an excursion I’d done some research beforehand to see what was in the vicinity of St Peter Port and, specifically, where we could get to on our own. Fortifications and museums all looked very accessible to us and appeared to be the sorts of things that the excursions were offering anyway but, on the lookout for things we could do that other cruisers might not necessarily know about or attempt, I stumbled upon a list of walks that could be done and the one that appealed to me was this one: St Peter Port to Fermain Bay. I knew with the amount of time we would have in Guernsey that we could easily get part or all of the walking route done and hit a few historical sites and attractions on the way back too.

Following the main road along the coast to the south from St Peter Port took us past La Valette Underground Museum and the Victorian bathing pools then past the entrance to the Guernsey Aquarium. We knew the museum would be an option for visiting on our way back because it was also offered as cruise excursions but hadn’t been sure if the aquarium would be open as it wasn’t and this was a Sunday. As it turned out we could see welcoming signs and put that on our to visit list for the return as well.

Just past the aquarium was a flight of steps that led up to Clarence Battery, another location we intended to stop at on our way back. The Guernsey walk we were following carried on past the fortified lookout position on the clifftop and continued to hug the coastline as it wound its way southwards, occasionally quite steeply, and offering some fabulous views out across the sea, back the way we’d come, and looking out at the Sapphire Princess at anchor in the light haze in the distance.

Early May was just right for us to hit a known waypoint on our route, a suddenly serene spot known as the Bluebell Woods, which, like its many namesakes around the country at this time of year, was carpeted in the flowers. The closeness of the trees and set-back distance from the cliffs and any roads seemed to deaden most external noises and a number of benches were occupied with fellow walkers (almost all of whom appeared to be locals) having a rest to absorb the tranquility of the place.

We spent a couple of minutes in the wooded area enjoying the relative coolness of the place before carrying on down a steep part of the path in the direction of the Guernsey coastline once again.

A short distance on from the Bluebell Woods was a short decline off the main path leading to a brick wall. This was the top of the Ozanne Steps, a place I’d seen some photos of while researching our trip to the island and what we might see along the coastal walk and which I knew was somewhere I wanted to descend to take photos. The steps were built to allow a former governor of Guernsey and his wife a private way down to a secluded bay for bathing. The steps were not in great condition (they’re mostly used by local fishermen these days) but the views from the various landings down the zig-zagging steps were lovely and it’s well worth the short detour if you’re doing the walk from St Peter Port to Fermain Bay yourself.

It was easy to see why the governor and his wife had wanted these steps built once we reached the bottom. The flat, rocky outcrop provided a great spot for sunbathing and an easy way to clamber into and out of the water. The scenery all around the Ozanne Steps was gorgeous, helped by some fabulous weather during our visit.

It was at this point, however, that my wife aggravated an old injury in her foot – a hairline fracture – (enough, actually, to bring her to tears with the pain) and our plan to continue the walk was aborted. A very slow, very anxious, frequently pausing retracing of our steps back along the coastal path towards St Peter Port then commenced. So, something to consider should you be thinking about trying out this walk on Guernsey yourself is that the steep parts are really quite steep in places and you will need a reasonable level of fitness to do it; the seclusion of long areas of the walk too would make any accidents more troublesome than they would be anyway although we did see a fair number of walkers in both directions as we undertook the trek.

We eventually made it to more level ground (and less discomfort for my wife) in the area around Clarence Battery where the next post will pick up.

We took our time heading back and stopped frequently so that she could take some weight off the hairline fracture and while I took some opportunities to snap a few photos I was understandably more concerned for my wife’s comfort than simply grabbing pictures, especially as I’d not been shy about snapping away on the walk coming the other way.

As we approached Clarence Battery the ground levelled off and the pain diminished so I got the nod that it was okay for me to spend a few minutes nosing around the 18th century defensive position.

Clarence Battery formed part of the outer defences of Fort George, itself a fortification designed to protect St Peter Port. The fort was commissioned in 1779 and the gun battery we were visiting was built in 1787. At the time the battery was known as Terres Point but it was renamed Clarence Battery in 1815 in honour of George III’s son when all the fortifications were completed. Four gun mounts aiming southwards and one at the very end protected against sea-based approaches while another five gun mounts were aimed more northerly in order to coordinate crossfire with Castle Cornet against more direct approaches to the capital city.

The battery was in very good condition with most of the various mountings, rails, and pivots for the guns pretty much as they were a couple of hundred years ago. During the German occupation of Guernsey in World War II some minor modifications were made to Clarence Battery and it served as part of the Luftwaffe’s early warning system.

Clarence Battery is free to enter and and only needs a few minutes of your time to look around. The views from the headland were absolutely lovely. It can be found at the top of a set of steps directly above the Guernsey Aquarium which would be our next stop.

The only aquarium in the Channel Islands has been refurbished throughout to create a unique, authentic attraction and venue, with a new focus on local marine fish and life. Re-branded as The Aquarium, Guernsey’s new underwater experience is housed in tunnels used by the Germans during the Occupation years as a store.

While I’d already ascertained that the aquarium would be on our planned walking route along the island’s coastline prior to taking our cruise on the Sapphire Princess I hadn’t checked the opening times (mostly because we hadn’t intended to visit it) and wasn’t certain that it would be open with it being fairly early in the tourist season and a Sunday. As it turns out, the aquarium opens daily from 10:00 until 17:00.

Upon entry and payment (£5 each for adults, £3 for children (not that there were any of those things with us)) we first noticed the sign above the nearest of the numerous fish tanks.

As previously quoted from the official website, Guernsey Aquarium boasts that it is the world’s only tunnel aquarium, used by Germans during the Second World War. Okay, that’s a pretty niche claim but I suppose a little bit of that sort of marketing doesn’t hurt.

As the aquarium has a fair bit of focus on local fish as opposed to more exotic, tropical sorts there was a slightly different feel to this aqaurium than others we’ve visited (and we do tend to visit a lot). My wife started remarking as she moved from tank to tank along one of the tunnels how tasty some of the fish looked and wondered if the building moonlighted as a seafood restaurant.

Some of the fish tanks were quite quirky with decor that included sea mines or action figures and there were some animatronic additions such as clams that would open and release bubbles. Sadly, the curse of aquariums and their low light requiring me to take photos at high ISO prevented any of the pictures of clams and bubbles from being good enough to share.

The aquarium isn’t the largest one or the most impressive one you’ll ever visit but it’s not that expensive and it was good to get out of the sun for a bit while we were there (we also bought a raspberry slushie in the gift shop to try to rehydrate a little bit and gave ourselves the lasting memory of a huge sugar rush and ice headaches). It won’t take you long to look around what it has to offer but I think it’s worth a nose, especially if you’ve got kids who like these sorts of places.

Although La Valette Museum was built in the 1940s (originally to securely store U-boat fuel that was otherwise at risk of RAF bombing raids) the museum itself covers a far wider range of military history of Guernsey. It’s not a huge museum by any means but there are plenty of things in various display cases along the walls of the tunnels to look at and if you’re keen on buying war memorabilia there seemed to be an awful lot of things available to purchase too.

One of the most interesting aspects of the visit to La Valette was seeing how the German occupation altered the way of life for the Channel Islanders. It’s well worth reading some of the rule changes – road signs, licencing for selling produce, who could sell to German soldiers, etc. – and newspaper accounts from an occupied location. There were parts of this that triggered memories of hearing from our battlefields tour guide in the Falkland Islands back in 2016 explaining about the Argentinian occupation of 1982.

I imagine with a lot of people visiting it could get a little uncomfortable in the museum complex both from a claustrophobia perspective (the connecting tunnel in particular is fairly narrow) and from a temperature perspective (while the museum is air-conditioned we both felt it was a little stifling during our visit with perhaps only a dozen other people present, although we might have still been recovering from our exertions along the coastal path earlier). However, the entry price was reasonable and it was a museum that certainly seemed to hold the attention of some very knowledgeable kids visiting with their parents so I’d not hesitate in recommending this if you’re visiting Guernsey’s capital city at any point and there’s someone in your group who wants to take a good, close look at wartime knives, swords, guns, or – in my wife’s case – uniforms, hats, and helmets.

Simply by keeping the water on our right side as we walked we hugged the shoreline past the harbour area, attractive under the sun and light haze of the day.

Castle Cornet was built in the first half of the 13th century. Originally, Guernsey was part of the Duchy of Normandy so following on from William I’s successful conquest of England in 1066 it and the other Channel Islands were ruled over by the king of England. That changed in 1202 when the French king declared Normandy forfeit and seized it from King John. Over half a century of battles took place over the disputed region until King Henry III signed the Treaty of Paris in 1259 which gave up the Normandy region except for the Channel Islands. Invasions of Guernsey continued, though, for centuries with the island and the castle (most of the time) changing ownership between the French and English numerous times and having its fortifications steadily improved as the years passed.

The castle was one of the most irregular structures of its sort that we’ve visited. Buildings inside its walls were at different levels, of different designs, and there seemed to be not a lot of thought to its planning, evidence of the way in which it had evolved its defences since first construction. Making our way around, therefore, involved a lot of going over parts of the castle’s interior several times looking for areas we’d missed. Fortunately, Castle Cornet is not too large and this was no major hardship.

Views from the topmost areas of the castle were lovely thanks largely to the lovely weather we had during our day in Guernsey. It was particularly nice to look out and see our cruise ship, Sapphire Princess, and the steady run of tender boats taking people to and from the island.

There were several museums and some small gardens in the castle grounds which were pleasant if not exactly incredible. For the very reasonable entry fee, though, Castle Cornet is definitely worth a visit if you’re in St Peter Port.

With our visit to Castle Cornet out of the way we made ourselves along the waterfront and its marina in order to see what might grab our attention in St Peter Port itself as up until this point we’d been exploring south of the city.

One of the reasons we’d chosen to head off away from St Peter Port in the first place was because we’d arrived on the island on a Sunday and with it being small we’d suspected that much of the city would be closed. This turned out to be mostly correct and there were only a few open shops and nothing that grabbed our attention as we hit the streets one or two back from the waterfront. There wasn’t even much of interest architecturally and I only grabbed a few shots of anything here.

We ended up hitting a few pubs in search of some local ales (and anyone who knows us knows this is not a surprising turn of events) and even had an unexpected and very pleasant conversation with the bar staff in one of them regarding the Flying Spaghetti Monster following some confusion over my Cthulhu t-shirt. Didn’t expect that to happen when we woke up that morning on board the cruise ship.

A few more photos of the marina on the way back to the tender boats (where we timed our arrival almost perfectly for just stepping on and heading straight back to the ship) concludes our very enjoyable (if you forget about Marie injuring herself on the coastal walk to the Ozanne Steps) first visit to any of the Channel Islands.

We liked what we saw of St Peter Port and there’s still a fair bit to explore of the rest of the island at some point so we’d be happy to return. The only problem with cruises is planning what to do when you get there as disembarkation is not guaranteed due to the unsheltered harbour and high tidal range so it might be a location best visited more deliberately, flying in and spending a few days, perhaps.

Guernsey In The 1980s

By way of comparison with the photos I’ve taken on our visit to Guernsey I’m now including scans of photos of my dad and a family friend, Nabil, visiting Guernsey themselves in the 1980s. I think it’s really interesting to see the unchanged and changed parts of St Peter Port in the photographs above and below.

Tip: Never actually expect you’re going to get into a French port

The bad element of this particular stop on the cruise was that Princess Cruises were not very good at explaining what was happening here, which was a shame. Their remarks both on the paper and over the ship’s speakers implied to us that our excursion was possibly still viable (especially as it was inland and roughly equidistant from the original and new French ports), only needing a different pick-up point for the coaches. This was not the case as we eventually discovered after wandering into the shore excursions centre on the night before landfall to enquire as to its status: it had been well-and-truly cancelled but look, here are some other trips we can book you on! We declined a booked excursion.

The great element of this particular stop on the cruise was that La Rochelle was utterly gorgeous and everyone who’d been to it and Le Verdon-sur-Mer before agreed it was a much better destination. Indeed, a cynical person might wonder why a cruise line would choose the latter port (nowhere near anything of much interest) over the former (plenty of things for people to do on their own) in the first place. But who’s cynical?

The view from our balcony on Sapphire Princess on the morning of our only French stop of the cruise was towards the small island Île de Ré, connected to the mainland by the Pont de Ré.

Having declined a booked excursion we took advantage of the free shuttle bus service provided by Princess and/or the La Rochelle port authority and ventured into the coastal city (about 15-20 minutes away, I think) for an explore on our own for a change. We were dropped off along the Avenue du Général de Gaulle not far off being opposite the tourist information centre where we were reminded about the last bus back to the ship and left to our own devices. One of the first things you’ll see in this area of La Rochelle is one of those big wheels that seem to have popped up across the world in every major city with something worth looking at from the air.

West of us as we’d got off the coach was an area of parkland and an open square near the city’s aquarium. Our plan was to visit that later (and we would; that’s in a future post) but our attention was drawn to the medieval towers along the walls protecting the Old Harbour (Vieux Port) so we headed roughly north as that’s where everyone else was heading. This took us past an area where a small set of amusement rides were set up, a statue to heroes of the city, and one of two lighthouses in the port area, this one being coloured green for navigation purposes.

We hugged the harbour and its marina area and made our way down the Quai du Carénage towards the nearest of the three tours, the Tour Saint-Nicolas de la Rochelle. The view from this part of La Rochelle was gorgeous, taking in the fairly quiet port area and the medieval fortifications as well as the numerous establishments set up to take advantage of the scenery. Summer evenings in La Rochelle must be fantastic.

As we approached the tower we discovered that a pedestrian swing bridge was currently open to allow a couple of yachts to exit and enter a small quay. Not the most amazing of things to witness but it was the first time I’d seen one in operation so I had to take some video (removed).

Across the swing bridge we found the second of the two lighthouses, this being the red counterpart to the one we’d seen before, as well as a little bit of street art. We didn’t know it at the time but that street art marked the northern boundary of a small area of La Rochelle called Belle du Gabut. We would be spending quite a bit of time in there later in the day (and, again, in a later post).

There were a number of people around the Tour Saint-Nicolas de la Rochelle as we approached but they quite clearly were not venturing inside the tower. We even saw one group approach the door, look at a sign, shrug, then leave. This made us suspect that we couldn’t get in which would have been a shame except this wasn’t true; it’s been a while since I studied any French but my skills were just enough to understand that the tower would open at 10:00 (it was a few minutes before that at this time) and that there were prices for entry to one, two, or three towers, but one of them (not this one) was closed for repairs and prices were reduced a fraction accordingly. I was quite pleased with what I’d read and so we spent the time before the door to the tower opening taking a few more shots of the scenery of the city, remarking to ourselves that a large bank of cloud seemed to be descending rather quickly. Luckily, this would burn off in due course and our views from the towers (next post) were not unduly hampered.

The first of the towers that we ventured into was…

Tour Saint-Nicolas De La Rochelle

Situated on the eastern side of the harbour entrance and the obvious first stop was Tour Saint-Nicolas de la Rochelle, one half of the gateway to the harbour. This tower and the one opposite it were built from the mid to late 1300s. The original plan was to create an arch between the towers as well although this was never realised.

The foundations of this tower were wood, driven into the mud of the water basin, but the tower itself is so heavy that there is a very slight lean to it. It’s still perfectly safe to explore these days, though, and a series of steep, spiralling staircases and narrow corridors curving around the inside of the tower wall and offering entry points into the central, circular section at a number of spots eventually lead up onto the roof where some excellent views of La Rochelle and the surrounding region can be seen. We’d timed our visit to coincide with a bank of low-level cloud so the French city wasn’t quite as pretty as it could have been but as you’ll see from the photos of the next towers we visited that cloud quickly evaporated in the pleasing breeze and rising temperature of the day.

Tour De La Chaine

Getting to the second of the towers required us to retrace our approach hugging the harbour on our left and around the attractive waterfront shops, bars, and restaurants.

The Tour de la Chaine (or Chain Tower) is the western side tower guarding the entrance to La Rochelle’s harbour. This was the tower that controlled access to the port and as you might be able to guess from its name it did this using a chain that could be strung between it and Tour Saint-Nicolas either for defensive purposes or to ensure that tax was duly applied to arriving or departing vessels. In fact, the chain itself was originally controlled from a smaller tower alongside this one although that was removed in order to widen the entrance.

This was the tower that was closed when we visited although, on seeing the door was open, we ventured inside where we were told that we could pass through and onto the small, fortified area closer to the harbour entrance. We did, because we could, and so that I could snap a few photos. If we’re allowed to go somewhere then you can pretty much guarantee we will just to say we have because that’s what travelling’s all about for us.

Tour De La Lanterne

The most visually impressive of the three towers was the Tour de la Lanterne (or Lantern Tower), situated at the western end of the Rue sur les Murs, the same section of defensive wall that housed the Tour de la Chaine. This “road on the walls” featured some attractive architecture among its houses’ designs.

Built in the middle of the 1400s the Tour de la Lanterne is the oldest lighthouse on the Atlantic coast and if that’s not a good enough reason just to visit it then I don’t know what is. My advice if you’re visiting, though, is to hang around and wait for a bit outside if you see a queue or a large group of people entering. The entry doorway is narrow and the actual route into the tower is on your right as you pass in. However, to gain entry you have to head into a small room straight ahead to have your “three towers” ticket approved or buy a single ticket, then head back out and through the door you passed on the way in. This is fine if there are only a few of you. This was chaotic when we turned up as it was a heaving mass of bodies trying to head one way then another then squeezing past. But still very worth it.

In addition to serving as a lighthouse and providing obvious defensive capabilities to the city of La Rochelle the tower was also a prison for a long period. The interior walls are filled with carvings in the stone from former prisoners, some of the more important of which are highlighted or explained in further detail on plaques as you ascend the structure. It’s incredibly fascinating to see some of the writing, the dates, the artwork even of formerly-incarcerated people long dead and it’s shocking just how many people there were held at a time in some of the rooms; it must have been hell in there.

It’s not a true holiday for us unless we’ve climbed to the top of some steep structure panting and sweating and shaking our heads wondering why we put ourselves through such torture. But we know why really, and that’s so we can get great views from wherever we are. Climbing to the top of the Tour de la Lanterne and looking all around La Rochelle was a fabulous experience. The clouds were little more than distant haze at this point and the warmth of colours along with the contrast of the blues of the sky and sea against the greenery of nearby parkland and the red-tiled, white-walled buildings of the city was an absolute joy to behold.

The walkway around the former housing for the lantern that gave the tower its name and lighthouse-functionality is only wide enough for one person at a time and there is no indication as to which direction you should head around it. Expect lots of reversing and trying other directions and repeating that until you finally make the circuit. A minor inconvenience for that wide, beautiful landscape in every direction and so you can say that you reached the highest point on the tower.

If you’re visiting La Rochelle then it’s really worth the effort and very reasonable price to spend an hour or so exploring the three towers protecting its old harbour area. Each tower has its own charm and associated bit of history and each provides unique views of the city that you shouldn’t miss.

We had plenty of time as it was still early so decided to take a circular route back to the harbour area of La Rochelle through the nearby park as much just to take a stroll that would provide shade from the increasingly warm day as to see whether it had anything to offer. Leaving the Tour de la Lanterne we continued west a short way, passing through a doorway set into the remains of the city wall called the Porte Des Deux Moulins (Door/Gate of the Two Mills, though I couldn’t tell you why). In the photo now above you can see that gate on the left side if you follow the line of the walls.

This took us to a short bridge over a narrow river or stream coming out of the park and into the sea. The numerous drainage ditches and canals of the park itself are fed by two rivers, Lafond and Fétilly, though which one of these we were crossing I can’t say. What I can say, though, is that it reeked to high heavens here. The water was not exactly fresh and the reason for this becomes clear with a little more of the history of the park, coming up soon.

The other side of the bridge saw a small café area with some seating and some street art adorning its rear; not the best example but I always try to capture photos of local artistry wherever I go. It might be useful to know that you can get some food and drink at the southern end of the park, though, if you’re visiting La Rochelle.

This brought us to the park itself. No fences surround it, it’s open all year long and free to wander through at your leisure. The history of the park is fairly interesting. Originally, the land that now forms Le Parc Charruyer was marshland (hence that smell) and given over to military forces most of the time, stationed outside the city walls. In the late nineteenth century, Marie-Adèle Charruyer, the daughter of a local, wealthy shipowner, Étienne Charruyer, and heiress to the family fortune, bequeathed 100,000 francs to the city in her will to establish a public park at the exit of the city. The land didn’t actually belong to the family but after her death it was this area that was subsequently cleared, drained, cleaned up, and transformed close to how it appears today.

The park was very peaceful; the abundance of foliage on the trees soaked up any external noise nicely and the dappled shade as we followed a path along a river’s edge dropped the temperature to something very pleasant indeed. Cycling routes through the park have been added in more recent times and Le Parc Charruyer covers an area of around 40 hectares, providing a pleasant walk of around two kilometres across its full length. We only walked about half this distance electing to turn back towards the city roughly in line with La Rochelle’s cathedral a little after we’d passed under a bridge with some graffiti of questionable quality (and yet still I took some photos (oh, me!))

If you’ve got the time when you’re in La Rochelle and fancy some peace and quiet away from the hustle and bustle of the city then the park is a lovely little place to just absorb a touch of nature while you’re there.

Out of the park we headed back towards the waterfront area of La Rochelle. The direction we mostly wanted to head was southwards but the brightness of the sun directly ahead and the contrast from the cool surroundings we’d been in to the heat trap of the dry streets and stone-fronted buildings left us taking a zig-zag route to where we needed to be in order to jump into the shade of buildings or take a break from squinting at every opportunity. There wasn’t a huge variety in the architecture of the buildings we saw but the general style was very nice.

We eventually came out by the harbour at the Porte de la Grosse-Horloge, an attractive tower and gateway we’d seen across the marina when we’d first arrived in La Rochelle. A small square nearby with a number of attractive shops and a large mass of people shopping and just admiring the sights also sported a statue adorned with traffic cones, something statues appear to do worldwide.

The next thing we wanted to see – and the next post – would be La Rochelle’s aquarium, south of where we’d been dropped off at in the city. We braved the direct sunlight for a little longer and headed past the harbour towards it.

Aquarium La Rochelle is a hard-to-miss building on the quayside to the south of the tourist information centre and west of the city’s train station. When we arrived there was a queue of perhaps twenty people outside the building in a section that could clearly cope with a queue of a few hundred so we didn’t think that was too bad. However, it’s worth noting that the queue continues inside the building, doubling back alongside the queue outside so that twenty was probably closer to fifty.

Buying Tickets

There were signs outside advising people to buy their tickets online and I did consider doing that to skip the queue but ultimately opted not to; checking their site they recommend allowing two hours from purchase before using the ticket so it’s a good thing I didn’t try that.

It’s also worth noting that there appeared to be a couple of ticket machines inside the building too but nobody in the queue was using them so, again, I didn’t look them over. If you’re a general visitor to the city then you might want to look at either of those ways to beat the queue but if you’re a cruise visitor (and we were, this being the second stop on our week-long Sapphire Princess cruise) then you can present your boarding card at the desk for a small discount of two euros each. Weigh up the saving in money over the saving in time and make a decision there.

Tickets purchased, you enter a room simulating an elevator descent. After some rumblings and clankings a second door opens and you pass through a circular tunnel with cascading water around its edges.

From here on you’re in the main aquarium and you can expect the usual array of tanks filled with fishes and other forms of sealife plus plenty of information boards. La Rochelle aquarium is large, spread over two floors, and with very clean glass on the vast majority of tanks (commendable indeed with the number of children present during our visit) allowing for good, clear views of the aquatic life and plenty of chances for decent photo-taking. The ambient light – sensibly, like most aquariums – is very low, though, so you’ll need to ramp that ISO setting up on your camera.

I’m always pleased to see jellies in an aquarium. It’s long been a wish to have a wall of the peaceful, fluorescing creatures next to where I work so that any time I need a relaxation break I can just turn and look at them.

In addition to the marine-oriented nature of the majority of the exhibits in the aquarium there was also a tropical zone. We’ve been in some places like this before where the ambient heat and humidity plays havoc with your camera lens but I’m happy to report this wasn’t the case in La Rochelle. There wasn’t a huge amount to see in this area for me, although if you are a keen botanist you’re bound to find things of interest, but my wife has a thing for turtles, terrapins, and tortoises and she, at least, was pleased to see a fair few of the favoured creatures around.

There wasn’t anything unique about the variety of sealife on display in La Rochelle Aquarium but if you’re fond of this sort of diversion when you’re out and about then it’s a very good example and a recommended visit. The layout was particularly good, guiding you through the rooms with their tanks well, and even though the place was a little more child-heavy than I typically like (being a curmudgeon) it never felt crowded or too noisy.

By far the most impressive places were the full-wall tank-viewing rooms looking into impressively large volumes of water. In these rooms were rows of seating, much of which was filled when we were there by people quietly contemplating the view and immersing themselves in the serenity such an experience seems to exude. These were the places to see the sharks and turtles, both of which I’m always happy to see at an aquarium and both of which I’m sure are big draws for most people too.