Picnics & Wild Swimming

This is great fun, but be warned, La Vienne is a fairly fast-flowing river. It is easy to swim against the current though, in certain places, and La Belle Laveuse is Chinon’s designated swimming spot. Bring a picnic lunch and sit on the sandy riverbank after your dip. (If you’re planning to go here, check with us first as sometimes during the summer you can’t swim due to algae). Usually pretty deserted, it’s a lovely in-town picnic spot, even if you’re not swimming. The iron bridge that spans the river, that you duck under to reach La Belle Laveuse, was designed by none other than Gustave Eiffel.