History

Situated at the north-western tip of Noirmoutier Island,the cove at Herbaudière has been sheltering pilot boats at the entrance to the Loire River since the 17th century.

At the request of Nantes Chamber of Commerce, the first seawall was built in 1869, followed by a second in 1950, which provided a sheltered haven: Herbaudière harbour was born!

At the beginning of the 20th century, the fishing port of Herbaudière was a sardine port. Many “pinasses” (traditional, small, low boats), tillered by crews of islanders, provided a large catch. At the time the island boasted 4 canneries, which processed nearly the whole catch of sardines. When the last cannery closed in 1965, activity continued thanks to crab and spider crab.

In 1973, a marina was built – the first in Vendée. In 1976, a large dredging operation turned the harbour into a deep sea port, no longer constrained by tides. Today, the marina has 574 berths.