Visit the River Loire outdoor art show

The regions around the Loire River in France are well known for their excellent food and wine, small villages and bustling cities, and opportunities for taking to the water.

However, this summer the area is set to be a major arts centre with the opening of a new outdoor art show.

Stretching over 40 miles with 40 artists involved, the Loire Estuary Project 2007 will feature French and international artists, including British sculptor Anish Kapoor, as well as artists from Mexico, Cuba, the Netherlands and Belgium.

The open-air artworks will be installed between the towns from Nantes to St Nazaire, in locations in the cities, at the ports, river banks and in the water.

Highlights include an 80-foot duck, a floating house and dramatic water fountains.

All the works will be available to see free of charge on foot or by bike.

However, holidaymakers will be offered a Loire Estuary 2007 pass (€30 per adult, €20 for under-18s), which includes a three-hour river cruise on a specially-built mirrored boat that will tour the artworks.

The pass also includes coupons providing free access to each of the participating venues.

These include Le Grand Café art centre in St Nazaire, Nantes' Museum of Fine Arts, the recently reopened Chateau of the Dukes of Brittany and the Gallery of Machines, which has the star-attraction of a 40-foot tall animated mechanical elephant.

St Nazaire is known for having 20 beaches, which range from Saint-Marc and Villès-Martin, which are more tourist-orientated and busier, to surfing beaches such as La Courance to quieter beaches such as Géorama or Trébézy, and the nudist beach Les Jaunais.

In Nantes, holidaymakers can learn about the town's most famous son, the writer Jules Verne, with a museum and dedicated walking tour devoted to the author.

Some city-centre hotels will be offering special rates over the summer, with one campsite going one step further and becoming a live-in artwork. The campsite will feature amphibious caravans, floating saucers, tree houses and cardboard houses. Rates start from €10 per person per night.

The project will also be repeated in 2009 and 2011.

For more information in English on the Loire Estuary Project 2007 see www.estuaire.info

For more information on visiting the Loire River see www.westernloire.com