Challans

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Challans

Total population

22,494

Elevation1 m

Land area64.84 km²

Coordinates46.85°, -1.88°

Demographic figures from INSEE. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.

City facts

Facts from Wikidata (CC0).

Overview

Challans is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Challans station has rail connections to Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie and Nantes.

History & geography

Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).

Geography

Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.

Notable people from here

Jacqueline Auriol

French aviator (1917–2000)

Olivier Perraudeau

cyclist

Alfred Dauvergne

French architect (1824-1885)

Armand Charles de Baudry d'Asson

French politician (1862–1945)

Charles-François de La Rochefoucauld-Bayers

French politician

Charles Milcendeau

French painter (1872–1919)

C

Claude Moreau

French bicycle racer

F

François-Alexandre Tardiveau

French politician

H

Henri Pitaud

Jean-Charles Gaudin

French screenwriter

Jean Yole

French politician (1878–1956)

Joseph-Alexis Robert de Lézardière

French politician

J

Julie Delafosse

French actress

L

Lucien Dodin

French inventor (1900–1989)

P

Philippe Violeau

footballer

T

Thierry Béthys

French motorcycle racer

People born within ~10 km, from Wikidata (CC0). Click any name for their Wikipedia article.

Nearby places in Pays de la Loire

• Sallertaine
  3.9 mi away · pop. 3,265
• Froidfond
  5.9 mi away · pop. 2,049
• Notre-Dame-de-Riez
  7.2 mi away · pop. 2,161
• Saint-Maixent-sur-Vie
  7.8 mi away · pop. 1,161
• Le Fenouiller
  8.9 mi away · pop. 4,937
• Beauvoir-sur-Mer
  9.1 mi away · pop. 3,876
• Coëx
  11.7 mi away · pop. 3,383
• Saint-Cyr-en-Retz
  12.8 mi away
• Bretignolles-sur-Mer
  15.2 mi away · pop. 5,112
• Barbâtre
  15.8 mi away · pop. 1,755
• Saint-Julien-des-Landes
  16.3 mi away · pop. 1,952
• Saint-Philbert-de-Grand-Lieu
  17.1 mi away · pop. 9,400

Browse all places in Pays de la Loire →

Geography & sun

Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.

Public attention

Pageview totals from the Wikimedia Pageviews API.

Recently spotted species

Scalloped Oak

Crocallis elinguaria

Seen 2026-09-12

Marbled Piercer

Cydia splendana

Seen 2026-09-12

Dumeril's Rustic

Luperina dumerilii

Seen 2026-09-12

Pine Leaf-mining Moth

Clavigesta purdeyi

Seen 2026-09-12

Brussels Lace

Cleorodes lichenaria

Seen 2026-09-12

Chinese Character

Cilix glaucata

Seen 2026-09-12

Maiden's Blush

Cyclophora punctaria

Seen 2026-09-12

Flounced Rustic

Luperina testacea

Seen 2026-09-12

Pine Bolete

Boletus pinophilus

Seen 2026-09-12

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist (within ~15 mi).

Official Identifiers