Loire-Atlantique (French pronunciation: [lwaʁ atlɑ̃tik]; Gallo: Louére-Atantique; Breton: Liger-Atlantel; before 1957: Loire-Inférieure,[3] Breton: Liger-Izelañ) is a department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean.

Loire-Atlantique is part of the current region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the department of Morbihan, Ille-et-Vilaine, Maine-et-Loire, and Vendée, with the Atlantic on the west.

[7][8] The département operates the Lila network (fr) of interurban buses, which link its villages, towns and cities.

Nantes is on the TGV network, with high speed trains running to Paris by the LGV Atlantique in just over 2 hours.

It is the biggest airport in northwestern France, linking with several French, North African and European cities, as well as Montreal in Canada.