What to see in Nantes ?

Nantes holds a singular position in France: a former Breton capital claimed as such, an industrial city reconverting itself, an urban laboratory by design. The creative quarter on Île de Nantes and the Machines of the Isle-mechanical sculptures born of Jules Verne and Dada-say more than any speech could about what the city chose to do with its defunct docks: inhabit them differently. This isn't a museum town, it's a city constructing itself before your eyes.

Spring and early autumn offer the best conditions for visiting, with temperate Atlantic weather and fewer crowds than July brings. Budget two full days to get beyond the surface. The tram network covers the centre without needing a car. Don't concentrate your stay on the Passage Pommeraye alone: this nineteenth-century covered passage warrants a detour, but it poorly captures a city whose appeal lies precisely in its margins.