A spacious holiday home with a large inner courtyard in Loix

Loix is the island’s smallest village, lying off the beaten track on a spur of land to the north of the island, surrounded by salt marshes. Once an island in its own right, Loix can be reached by a single road.

Loix has managed to retain the charm of a true rural community and is appreciated by holiday makers and those inhabitants who live there all year round. Even in the summer months, when other cycle paths and beaches are crowded, Loix remains somewhat apart from it all.

Right at the end of the spur of land where this tiny village is perched, looking over Saint-Martin, at the tip of land called le Grouin, you’ll discover a sandy beach where you can either bathe or dig for shell fish and molluscs, depending on the tide.

By cycling back towards La Couarde you will see working salt marshes and oyster huts and discover the work of the salt farmers who, at the first sign of sun, labour over their rectangles of clay to ensure the sun and wind do their work to produce “white gold” – both the coarse sea salt and the finer crust of salt known as “fleur de sel”.

Loix is surrounded by a wilderness that is biologically rich and diverse, where more than 300 species of bird flourish in the calm environment which lends itself to rest and nest making. See if you can spot egrets, avocets and shelducks in this magical area which stretches to the port where you will see the last tidal mill on the Ile de Ré with its delicate wooden walkway.