The city of Poitiers is strategically situated on the Seuil du Poitou, a shallow gap between the Armorican and the Central Massif. The Seuil du Poitou connects the Aquitaine Basin to the South to the Paris Basin to the North. This area is an important geographic crossroads in France and Western Europe.

Poitiers's primary site sits on a vast promontory between the valleys of the Boivre and the Clain. The old town occupies the slopes and the summit of a plateau which rises 130 feet (40 m) above the streams which surround it on three sides. Thus Poitiers benefits from a very strong tactical situation. This was an especially important factor before and throughout the Middle Ages.

Landmarks and attractions

• BaptistÈre Saint-Jean (4th century), the oldest church in France
• Palace of Poitiers, the seat of the dukes of Aquitaine
• Église Notre-Dame-la-Grande, oldest romanesque architecture church in Europe
• Cathédrale Saint-Pierre, Poitiers's cathedral (12th century)
• Musée Sainte-Croix, the largest museum in Poitiers
• Church of St. Radegonde (6th century)
• Église Saint-Hilaire-le-Grand (11th century)
• Hypogée des Dunes (underground chapel)
• Jardin des Plantes de Poitiers, a park and botanical garden
• Église de Montierneuf
• Théâtre Municipal de Poitiers, by the French architect Édouard Lardillier
• Parc du Futuroscope (European Park of the Moving Image, some 10 km (6.2 mi) north of Poitiers; theme is visual communication technology in ultramodern buildings)
• Le Confort Moderne

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