Lorient Agglomération

With an exceptional natural heritage, Lorient Agglomération is very active in supporting sustainable development of the territory, which is a daily reality for all of its inhabitants (recycling waste, saving water and energy, prioritising public transport, etc.).

Economic development, together with protection of the environment, are areas in which Lorient Agglomeration applies the most diverse range of policies. These include being a majority shareholder in the fishing port; supporting shipbuilding and repairs; establishing enterprise parks, business incubators, a technology park and a university.

The Lorient basin has occupied a position of excellence in the field of shipbuilding since its origins. Qualified and trained personnel as well as the quality and diversity of businesses make this an outstanding area within Europe for the design, construction, maintenance and repair of all types of civil and military ships.

In the last 15 years the nautical sector has also become an area of economic diversification. At the heart of Brittany's Sailing Valley, the region boasts 80% of France's technical and sporting talents in the field of offshore racing. Lorient La Base has thus become an internationally recognised centre, attracting top skippers from the offshore circuit with its large scale industrial facilities (Plastimo, Lorima, CDK Technology, etc.), and tourist attractions (City of Sailing - Eric Tabarly centre, the Flore submarine and museum).

The project to create a venue dedicated to contemporary music at the Lorient La Base site, "Hydrophone", brings a new cultural dimension to the regeneration of a location that has become iconic in the region.

WHAT TO SEE?

First and foremost, Lorient La Base, which has become one of the main tourist attractions in Morbihan with the opening in 2008 of the City of Sailing - Eric Tabarly centre, a multimedia exhibition space dedicated to sailing and offshore racing. Just a stone's throw from this figurehead, visitors can tour the Flore submarine and discover the secrets of life on board. The tour takes place in one of the bunkers of the old submarine base which has been given new life as a home to businesses, a dry dock, and soon a new contemporary music venue, the Hydrophone.

A mecca of modern sailing

While the City of Sailing - Eric Tabarly centre celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, the museum space provides an in-depth journey into the world of offshore racing. The site presents methods of constructing sailing ships, both modern and old, in a lively and educational way, as well as sailing stories and techniques. www.citevoile-tabarly.com/en

All the Celts of the world…

Ten days of shows, 4,500 musicians from all over the world, 750,000 visitors. Voted best city festival on several occasions, the Interceltique Festival in Lorient takes place during the first fortnight of August: an amazing mix of Celtic culture in all its forms - music, dance, songs, games, sports, parades and Breton bagadoù bands. A great popular celebration runs alongside Interceltique thanks to the many concerts and celebrations across the bars and streets of the city.

A trip back in time

Nestled in the Blavet valley, about 30 kilometres from Lorient, the village of Poul-Fétan invites you to take a trip back in time. Completely restored by the inhabitants of Quistinic, this little Breton hamlet with its typical thatched cottages is a true reflection of peasant life in the 19th century.

From Lorient to the Orient

The museum of the “Compagnie des Indes” brings to life the extraordinary history of the great trading companies of the 17th and 18th centuries which saw the birth of Lorient in 1666. Models of vessels, prints, ancient maps, Indo-European furniture and porcelain from China bear witness to the maritime saga that led sailors across the oceans of the world to the shores of the African and Asian continents.