St Georges de Didonne
for your holidays

Presentation

During the Middle-Ages the territory of the present town was composed of two main poles : on one side Saint Georges village living on agriculture and fishing and on the other side "Didonne" where the seignory was based. At the end of the 17th century taking advantage of its privileged situation at the mouth of the Gironde, the village became an important piloting station : its harbour was used to be a refuge for the pilots which needed guides to cross the Estuary.
The golden age started with the 19th century when the sea-bathing was extremely fashionable. So an important wave of urbanization and modernization started and the village became a city.
Its inhabitants are called "Saint-Georgeais" and "Saint-Georgeaises".
Saint-Georges wants to play the card of a "familial" tourism.Taking advantage of a sandy “intra-muros” beach it is labeled as "Famille plus" . The great tourist attractions and cultural activities ("Humour et eau salée" festival, music bands, gastronomy...) are very important. The town develops its cultural heritage taking advantage of a vast pine tree forest (Suzac forest).

Informations

Activities and cultural heritage

Situated in the heart of the town Saint Goerges church was built during the 12th century but it was then modified. Its neo-roman steeple was edified in 1877.
 
Le logis de Lussinet est une construction du XVIIe siècle consécutive à l'aliénation de certaines terres appartenant au prieuré Saint-Georges lors des guerres de religion. Seul subsiste de nos jours le corps de logis principal et quelques dépendances reprises au XVIIIe siècle.
 
The dwelling of Lussinet was built in the 12th century after the alienation of some grounds belonging to Saint-Georges priory during the religion wars. Nowadays only the main part and some outbuildings still remain.
The fort : during the second world war TODT organization was in charge of building a fort to protect the coast from a possible landing. It is composed of many blockhouses made of reinforce concrete. It was damaged by the american bombs in 1945. Nowadays it is protected by the conservatory of the littoral and still in the process of rehabilitation.
 
The forest of Suzac covers an area of 350 ha. It is situated on a penisula made of chalky cliffs overlooking the Estuary. 83 ha belong to the conservatory of the littoral. The management is entrusted to the towns Meschers and Saint-Georges de Didonne.
A competitive course (CRAPA = physical activities in the forest) and a nature pole have been created by the regional council in order to develop the site. A path runs all along the sea, and there is a leisure park with two lakes and a fishing area.
 
A pond situated in La Briqueterie in the south est of the town is reserved for fishing and a lake (Enlias) in the north of the town is used as a leisure park. This park is composed of another lake which is bordered by a foot path snaking down through the vegetation mainly composed of oaks and poplar trees. You can find there a picnic area.