Musée Maritime La Rochelle

In a series of boldly coloured, red, blue and yellow canopied hangars at the Bassin à Flot, the Maritime Museum evokes the history of La Rochelle port, from the present to the days when Parisians would arrive by train in La Rochelle to then set sail on a steamer to South America and Africa. There are plenty of model ships, short films and the like to entertain younger minds, but the real highlight is the trio of retired boats moored here: meteorological research ship France 1, in service from 1958 until 1985, a chalutier (fishing boat) and a tug.