La Cotinière is the main fishing port on the island's western coast — a working harbour where trawlers and smaller boats land their catch daily. The port retains a genuine fisherman's village atmosphere that the tourist towns on the eastern side have largely lost, with fish auction smells, rubber boots, and nets drying on the quay.
The morning fish market here is the best place to buy fresh seafood on the island — open early, directly from the boats, with catch landed that morning. The village has a few good fish restaurants along the harbour front. From the beach at the southern end of the port, the long western beach stretches northward through the dunes — one of the better and less crowded swimming beaches on the island outside of peak season.