Local amenities & attractions
Civray offers everything for your daily needs.
The town centre features several cafes (at least one is open every day!), restaurants and take-aways, two bakeries, a pharmacy, several banks with ATMs, a tourist information office, library, news agents and a local cinema, which screens a range of French and international films in both original and sub-titled versions.
There are weekly produce markets in the main square on a Tuesday and Friday. From the square you can also pick up the route for a history walk around the town, starting with a visit to the fabulous Saint Nicholas Church. There are also walks along the river towards Savigné (east) and Saint Pierre d'Exideuil (west) leading further on to the lake at Saint Macoux.
The town also features the Oda Aquatic Centre, which has an all-year-round indoor swimming pool, seasonal outdoor swimming pool, plus a small fitness suite and spa. During school term times, public access is limited to after school hours and weekends.
There are two shopping centres on the edge of the town just a couple of minutes drive away featuring larger supermarkets (Intermarché, Super U, Lidl and Aldi), plus further pharmacies, household stores, petrol stations, garages, laundry machines, pizza take-away and a veterinary practice.
Transport and Getting here
- By road: Civray is 10 minutes drive from junction 45 on the RN10 via the D948 in the direction of Limoges. The D948 is also the east-west road linking Niort (for La Rochelle) to Limoges.
- By train: the nearest railway station is approximately 6km away at Saint Saviol, which is on a branch line connecting Poitiers (for services to Paris, La Rochelle, Strasbourg) and Angoulême (for services to Cognac, Saintes, Bordeaux) via Ruffec. The Saint Saviol service runs mainly peak times. There is a bus connecting the station with Civray or we can usually arrange to transport guests to and from the station for a small extra charge.
- By Air: there are seasonal international services to and from Poitiers Biard and Limoges airports, and more regular extensive European services from Bordeaux.
- Car hire: most larger supermarkets in France also offer reasonably priced car hire. These can usually be booked via their app or website (for Intermarché or Super U in Civray) or there is a wider "walk-in" choice usually available at the LeClerc superstore in Ruffec.