Gujan-Mestras (; oc, Gujan e Mestràs) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Gironde Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,62 ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in southwestern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is twinned with

Santa María de Cayón Santa María de Cayón is a municipality in the Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Cantabria, northern Spain. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 9,167 inhabitants. The bigge ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Population

Geography

Gujan-Mestras is located in the southern part of the Arcachon bay. It is considered a major regional center for oyster farming, and is home to seven ports, which are from west to east: *The Port of La Hume which focuses both on oyster farming and yachting, *The Port of Meyran, *The Port of Gujan, *The Port of Larros which offers a promenade pier and is an active center for shipbuilding, *The Port of the Canal, *The Port of La Barbotière, a major oyster farming center close to the Technical High School for Maritime Science and Technologies *The Port of La Mole which has neither been dredged nor used due to its difficult topography. From the former windmill bordering the port, only a millstone has withstood time. It gave its name to the Port of La Mole, “mole” meaning millstone in Gascon.

Neighbourhing communes

Gujan-Mestras is surrounded by three communes. It is west of

Le Teich Le Teich () is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. In this commune, there is a park created in order to observe birds without putting them in danger. Population See also *Communes of the Gironde d ...

, east of

La Teste-de-Buch La Teste-de-Buch (; oc, La Tèsta (de Bug) ) is a commune in the Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Southwestern France. It is located on the south shore of Arcachon Bay, lying in the southwestern part of Gironde. It is the largest of fo ...

and north of

Sanguinet Sanguinet (; ''Sanguinet'' in Occitan) is a commune in the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is situated next to Étang de Cazaux et de Sanguinet. Geography The commune is situated in the north of the departm ...

Transports

The

TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine is the regional rail network serving the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It is operated by the French national railway company SNCF. It was formed in 2017 from the previous TER networks TER Aquitaine, TER ...

from Arcachon to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

has two stops in Gujan-Mestras (respectively named La Hume and Gujan-Mestras). The city is otherwise served by lines 4 to 7 of the Baïa bus network, the local public transport system of the Arcachon Bay which links the

Dune of Pilat The Dune of Pilat (French: ''Dune du Pilat'', official name), also called ''Grande Dune du Pilat'', is the tallest sand dune in Europe. It is located in La Teste-de-Buch in the Arcachon Bay area, France, 60 km (37.2 mi) southwest of Bor ...

to Facture-Biganos. Nearest airport is

Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac) is the international airport of Bordeaux, in south-western France. It is situated in the Communes of France, ''commune'' of Mérignac, Gironde, Mérignac, west o ...

, around 50 km away. Gare de La Hume bâtiment voyageur coté voies par mon.nini.jpg, La Hume train station. Gare de Gujan-Mestras.jpg, Gujan-Mestras main train station.

References

Communes of Gironde {{Gironde-geo-stub