The Sables d’Olonne Institute for your benefit and well-being.
Directly linked to the Mercure hotel, our ground level institute is fitted with bright glazed booths giving onto the outside and features a full range of modern high-performance equipment. The Institute has two therapy pools, a rest-room, a Tisanerie a shop and a solarium.
In their supervisory role, caring experts, ranging from physicians to physiotherapists, from hydrotherapists to beauticians, deliver all the professional skills you need to be sure of a marvellous stay and enjoy an in-depth experience of well-being and vitality.
Active marine agents
Sea air, vivifying and bracing, is reputed for its anti-stress and revitalizing action.
Sea-water provides a three-way action that works wonders for our health. It contains almost a hundred mineral salts (Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium…) and trace elements (Zinc, Iron, Fluorine, Iodine...) that are vital to the organism. The lift you get from sea-water facilitates body movement and soothes the joints. Last but not least, heated sea-water helps to regulate the blood flow and procures relaxation.
Sea-plants are real concentrates of minerals and trace elements. When applied to the body, warm wraps of sea-plants give pure moments of relaxation.
Our therapy programmes are prepared with our thalassotherapy experts according to your needs and subject to availability.
Culture & Discovery
Step out into the light of a coastline cherished by artists and by lovers of nature and wide open spaces. The history and culture of Sables d’Olonne are sources of wonder. Take advantage of the various excursions on offer around the site and get a taste of some typical regional fare.
Gastronomy in La Vendée
Come discover delicious local food, enjoy a drink while tasting some odd-named regional dishes. Others includes “mogettes” (white beans in sauce), famous Vendée ham, mareuil, kamok and the renowned Vendée brioche.
Walks and excursions, guided tours or on your own
Excursions organized by the site:
• A visit to the oyster farms of la Guitière via Talmont and the medieval castle
• Hiking and mountain biking along the rugged coastline to the Bay of Cayola.
• A visit to Sables d’Olonne, the “quartier de la Chaume” with the Arundel Tower and Priory of Saint Nicolas, the pedestrian precincts and the large covered market building where you will find the whole range of typical local produce.
• A visit to the “Septième Continent” aquarium with feeding of the fish
• The “salt flats” road in summer: a guided tour and boat trip down the salt river
• A sea outing on a 60-foot sailing boat skippered by one of the Vendée Globe contestants.
And still more…
• Le Puy du Fou (1 hour from the hotel)
• The island of Noirmoutier and the passage du Gois (90 minutes from the hotel)
• The isle of Yeu and its old castle on the rugged coastline, plus the citadel and fishing museum. Journey by outboard launch (1h 48’ from the hotel)
• The Marais Poitevin; the mysterious and authentic wetlands called “Green Venice”. A protected natural park you visit in a boat (1h 20’ from the hotel).
Sport comes naturally
There are any number of sporting and leisure activities to enjoy on site or in the vicinity:
An 18-hole golf course 5 miles down the road, 20 tennis courts 50 yards away, gymnastics and aquagym courses, muscle building, stretching, stomach and buttock muscle exercises, mountain bike and bicycle rental, go-karts, paint-ball, deep-sea fishing, archery.
Plus a number of water sports: windsurfing, surfing, jet-skiing, water-skiing, canoeing.
Other activities: 2 casinos, including 1 a hundred yards from the hotel, 10-pin bowling, cinemas, discotheques and museums.
A welcome cocktail every Monday, theme evenings and appetizer cocktails with music at the Péruse bar, conferences on balanced diet and sophrology sessions.
