Just imagine... Living

Because of its size and permanent activity, Nantes Saint-Nazaire has become the economic capital of western France: thanks to an international airport, about twenty daily TGV (high-speed trains) connecting it to Paris in two hours and an exceptional living environment on the banks of the Loire estuary, in the heart of the Val-de-Loire region, halfway between the Erdre river and the Atlantic Ocean beaches.

Nantes St-Nazaire a buoyant cultural life: with museums, opera, theatres and music venues, the metropolis offers everything you need to satisfy your desires and more.

Nantes has been designated "European Green Capital 2013" by the European Commission. This fitting title recognises the years of effort invested by the city in providing sustainable solutions to urban problems. The issues in this field are organised around 13 themes (water, air quality, transportation ...) on which Nantes proposes an original and festive focus of attention across Europe throughout the year. The Aéroflorale of Delarosière is the flagship.

Nantes Saint-Nazaire opted for a sustainable transport policy before all other major cities. It was one of the first to re-introduce the electric tramway in 1985, and today a large network of tramways and buses operates in the area. You’ll also find river cruises on the Loire river as well as a public bicycle and car sharing system. The goal is very ambitious: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2050. 

The metropolis is also a model area for its air quality and green spaces. And its efforts have been rewarded: Nantes has just been elected “Green capital 2013” by the European Commission and is planning on festive and original events to celebrate the protection of the environment all over Europe.

Solidarity is also one of the key words of the city’s identity. The social and solidarity economy is a major strategic priority: it has a very dense community life network thanks to Ecossolies and the International Permanent secretariat on Human Rights and Local Governments. 

The metropolis offers many education possibilities for children: three bilingual kindergartens (2 French-English and one French-German), European classes in many secondary schools and high schools. An international high school will open in 2014 to help foreign families settle in.

Nantes Saint-Nazaire has a teaching hospital, listed amongst the best in the country for about fifty different pathologies.  It also offers a great variety of private clinics and hospitals. A new hospital should open between 2020 and 2025.