What/Where are the "Must See/Must Do's" in Brittany please?

[jaiymes]

We are visiting Brittany in late August and early September for three weeks.

We have been to France a few times, but never to Brittany. It is often referred to as a beautiful area with lots of gorgeous scenery and lovely villages and towns, but as it is our first time we do not have a clue where to start.

Can anyone recommend some visits and good days out, whether to town, village,beach or even a nice route to drive for the scenery please, it would be appreciated very much.

Thank you in anticipation.

James

 

[NickinFrance]

Where in Brittany are you planning on going to ?, it's a big place (almost twice the area of Wales).

In the North, the costal drive along the 'Pink Granite' coast between Tr

 

[jaiymes]

Hi Nick.

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate you taking the time to do this.

We have been to France four times in the last five years, but always just settled into two sites on each visit, so not moving around too much. This time we intend to travel more, but concentrating in Brittany as we kept hearing how lovely it is.

We appreciate tht it is a large area, and we are looking forward to seeing quite a bit of it, but the potential problem is that we do not know very much about it, hence the question about must see villages/sites etc to help us to plan our trip for the best holiday possible.

We would like to travel to the south to Vannes and Lorient (visited there when I was in the RN), and hopefully the weather in the south will be a bit like the Vendee where we were last year - hot !!

Basically there is nowhere we would not go to for the joy of being there if it is a nice place to be (I hope you understand the gist of that lol)

Thank you again.

Kind regards

James

 

[NickinFrance]

Hi Nick.

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate you taking the time to do this.

We have been to France four times in the last five years, but always just settled into two sites on each visit, so not moving around too much. This time we intend to travel more, but concentrating in Brittany as we kept hearing how lovely it is.

We appreciate tht it is a large area, and we are looking forward to seeing quite a bit of it, but the potential problem is that we do not know very much about it, hence the question about must see villages/sites etc to help us to plan our trip for the best holiday possible.

We would like to travel to the south to Vannes and Lorient (visited there when I was in the RN), and hopefully the weather in the south will be a bit like the Vendee where we were last year - hot !!

Basically there is nowhere we would not go to for the joy of being there if it is a nice place to be (I hope you understand the gist of that lol)

Thank you again.

Kind regards

James

It's actually a surprisingly difficult question to answer, after we made the decision to move to France & then Brittany, we made 12 or 15 visits looking at houses, so saw most of it, & about the only area we didn't like was the area around Redon, had we found the right house we could have lived anywhere.

I would avoid Brest city centre, if you have been to Plymouth or any of the UK rebuilt cities after 1945, you have been there.

In general the weather is slightly better in the middle or south of Brittany but because we are between the Atlantic & Continental weather systems, most days it's anybodies guess

In no particular order, the towns & cities I would recommend are:

Mont Saint Michel

Saint Malo

Dinan

Combourg (Chateau)

Rennes

Saint Brieuc

Paimpol (Ile-de-Brehat & Abbaye de Beauport)

Perros-Guirec (Pink Granite Drive)

Lannion

Pontrieux

La Roche Jagu

Locquirec

The Atlantic Coast between Brignogan & Plougonvelin (with aboat trip to Quessant)

Quimper

Lac de Guerledan

Lorient

Larmor Plage

Carnac

Vannes

La Roche-Barnard

Josselin

Pontivy

Chateau de la Hunaudave at Pledeliac

Chateau Rosanbo at Lanvellec

The Megalithiques at Barnenez (north of Morlaix), Carnac & Locmariaquer near Vannes

The car musee at Loheac

The Resistance Musee at Saint-Marcel near Malestroit

If you want country side with views of Wind Turbines, almost anywhere but IMHO the areas just inland from the coast can be flat & a bit boring.

 

[NickinFrance]

It's actually a surprisingly difficult question to answer, after we made the decision to move to France & then Brittany, we made 12 or 15 visits looking at houses, so saw most of it, & about the only area we didn't like was the area around Redon, had we found the right house we could have lived anywhere.

I would avoid Brest city centre, if you have been to Plymouth or any of the UK rebuilt cities after 1945, you have been there.

In general the weather is slightly better in the middle or south of Brittany but because we are between the Atlantic & Continental weather systems, most days it's anybodies guess

In no particular order, the towns & cities I would recommend are:

Mont Saint Michel

Saint Malo

Dinan

Combourg (Chateau)

Rennes

Saint Brieuc

Paimpol (Ile-de-Brehat & Abbaye de Beauport)

Perros-Guirec (Pink Granite Drive)

Lannion

Pontrieux

La Roche Jagu

Locquirec

The Atlantic Coast between Brignogan & Plougonvelin (with aboat trip to Quessant)

Quimper

Lac de Guerledan

Lorient

Larmor Plage

Carnac

Vannes

La Roche-Barnard

Josselin

Pontivy

Chateau de la Hunaudave at Pledeliac

Chateau Rosanbo at Lanvellec

The Megalithiques at Barnenez (north of Morlaix), Carnac & Locmariaquer near Vannes

The car musee at Loheac

The Resistance Musee at Saint-Marcel near Malestroit

If you want country side with views of Wind Turbines, almost anywhere but IMHO the areas just inland from the coast can be flat & a bit boring.

 

[John_miller]

I wouldn't disagree with Nick's list, but I'm a bit surprised that Concarneau isn't on it. We've just returned from Brittany and spent 2 weeks at Concarneau, using it as a base to travel to many of the places listed above. We also liked the little village of Locronan, just north of Quimper and Pont Aven is well worth a visit despite the hordes of tourists. Strictly speaking, Mont St Michel is in Normandy, but only just! When we visited Josselin, we stayed at La Vallee du Ninian site (ACSI). Really nice site and the friendly owner is a singing Druid who comes around the site at night with his accordion. He also holds campfires with singsongs in the season and cider-making later in the year.

John M

 

[NickinFrance]

John,

I deliberately left out Pont-Aven, it's far too much of a tourist clip joint for me.

I'm sure there are other towns & villages I missed.

Regards

Nick

p.s. I know a few Bretons who would disagree with your statement about Mont Saint-Michel being in Normandy

 

[JulieT1]

Brittany is lovely but we've had mixed weather in both the north and south, its maybe a degree or so warmer the further south you go but not guaranteed. From the places mentioned already I think Mont St Michel, Dinan, St Malo are well worth seeing, also the St Cast area, & Roscoff. Not done the pink granite coast yet but it has been recommended.

Further south we liked Quimper, Concarneau, Pont Aven (busy but pretty, Pt Du Raz, & Benodet. Enjoyed Vannes but not so keen on the area, Carnac seemed more touristy.

 

[GillC1]

Julie

we are off to Brittany in two weeks, Benodet to be exact, just hoping the weather is going to improve

 

[wattie]

Hi James,

Last year we stayed near Quimper and visited the beautiful

village of Locronan(named after the celtic Saint Ronan).

This village is a member of les plus beaux villages de france.

that is a good web site also.

Hope this helps.

Walt

 

[jaiymes]

It's actually a surprisingly difficult question to answer, after we made the decision to move to France & then Brittany, we made 12 or 15 visits looking at houses, so saw most of it, & about the only area we didn't like was the area around Redon, had we found the right house we could have lived anywhere.

I would avoid Brest city centre, if you have been to Plymouth or any of the UK rebuilt cities after 1945, you have been there.

In general the weather is slightly better in the middle or south of Brittany but because we are between the Atlantic & Continental weather systems, most days it's anybodies guess

In no particular order, the towns & cities I would recommend are:

Mont Saint Michel

Saint Malo

Dinan

Combourg (Chateau)

Rennes

Saint Brieuc

Paimpol (Ile-de-Brehat & Abbaye de Beauport)

Perros-Guirec (Pink Granite Drive)

Lannion

Pontrieux

La Roche Jagu

Locquirec

The Atlantic Coast between Brignogan & Plougonvelin (with aboat trip to Quessant)

Quimper

Lac de Guerledan

Lorient

Larmor Plage

Carnac

Vannes

La Roche-Barnard

Josselin

Pontivy

Chateau de la Hunaudave at Pledeliac

Chateau Rosanbo at Lanvellec

The Megalithiques at Barnenez (north of Morlaix), Carnac & Locmariaquer near Vannes

The car musee at Loheac

The Resistance Musee at Saint-Marcel near Malestroit

If you want country side with views of Wind Turbines, almost anywhere but IMHO the areas just inland from the coast can be flat & a bit boring.

Hi Nick,

Thank you very much for that information, it really is invaluable to us.

I will be spending the weekend pouring over the map and guide books as well as the internet too ofcourse, soaking up as much as possible about the places you have listed.

We will be travelling with Camping Cheques and ACSI card so looking at those sites in Brittany best placed for our visits itinerary.

We are off in six weeks, and it cannot come soon enough (isn't it terrible to wishing your life away ???) we are looking forward to it so much.

Thank you once again Nick for your help with this information, and we do think you are so very fortunate to be able to live in that wonderful country that is France.

James

 

[jaiymes]

I wouldn't disagree with Nick's list, but I'm a bit surprised that Concarneau isn't on it. We've just returned from Brittany and spent 2 weeks at Concarneau, using it as a base to travel to many of the places listed above. We also liked the little village of Locronan, just north of Quimper and Pont Aven is well worth a visit despite the hordes of tourists. Strictly speaking, Mont St Michel is in Normandy, but only just! When we visited Josselin, we stayed at La Vallee du Ninian site (ACSI). Really nice site and the friendly owner is a singing Druid who comes around the site at night with his accordion. He also holds campfires with singsongs in the season and cider-making later in the year.

John M

Hello John M.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to our question, it is very kind of you.

We are taking it all onboard while planning the trip, and it is a great help you have given us too. We visited Mont St Michel last year while staying near Bayeaux and found it a most fabulous place to spend time - one exception being the steps, but that said, it was worth every one of them.

We have an ACSI card this year for the first time, and will be looking at that site too, it does sound interesting and fun for sure.

Thanks againg John, and we hope you have wonderful holidays this year too.

James

 

[jaiymes]

Brittany is lovely but we've had mixed weather in both the north and south, its maybe a degree or so warmer the further south you go but not guaranteed. From the places mentioned already I think Mont St Michel, Dinan, St Malo are well worth seeing, also the St Cast area, & Roscoff. Not done the pink granite coast yet but it has been recommended.

Further south we liked Quimper, Concarneau, Pont Aven (busy but pretty, Pt Du Raz, & Benodet. Enjoyed Vannes but not so keen on the area, Carnac seemed more touristy.

Hi Julie

Thank you for your response to my post. We hope you have a lovely holiday in Brittany when you go there.

The weather is something we just hve to accept wherever we go huh, but here's hoping for all of us.

We are travelling to Roscoff from Plymouth, but will make the trip to St Malo area - we went Portsmouth to St Malo last year going to the Vendee, but did not visit the town, which was such a shame, so we plan on a visit this time - crazy huh ?

Thankyou once again Julie, and have a fab time.

James

 

[jaiymes]

Hi James,

Last year we stayed near Quimper and visited the beautiful

village of Locronan(named after the celtic Saint Ronan).

This village is a member of les plus beaux villages de france.

that is a good web site also.

Hope this helps.

Walt

Hi Walt.

Thank you for your information, you are very kind. We definately plan on a visit to these places from what we have seen so far.

I am so pleased with the overall response to our request for information, and it is a great help to us.

That website is also a very interesting site thank you.

We wish you and yours a wonderful holiday this year and all years . . . .

James

 

[JulieT1]

James, we stayed at St Pol de leon on the way home last year so that we could have a look at Roscoff (Camping de Trologot). Also, near Vannes is Auray, quite a pretty spot for lunch (try a Galette) down by the river. We also went to Quiberon, there is one main road down the middle that gets very busy when everyone leaves the beaches, queued for ages to get back to the main roads.

Gill have a great time in Benodet and hopefully the weather will be good. If you are still there on the 15th there is usually a very good firework display on rafts in the bay.

I would quite happily go to Brittany every year and can understand why Nick has moved there. We're having a change this year, going to Paris for a few days and then up near Bayeux. We usually only pass through Normandy on the way to ferry so decided to have a proper look...only 2 and a bit weeks to go.

Enjoy your holidays

best wishes

Julie

 

[NickinFrance]

Gill C, not sure what you mean about the weather improving, until last night we haven't had any rain for about 6 weeks & temperatures in the mid-high 20's, our lawns are like straw.

 

[GillC1]

Nick,

Thats brilliant news, lets hope the sun continues to shine then.

 

[GillC1]

Nick,

Leaving for Brittany in the morning, is the weather good there?

Getting a little excited now.

Thanks

 

[NickinFrance]

It's a bit cloudy & temps are low 20's but still no rain to speak of, where we are in Northern Central Brittany.

 

[ed1]

hello nick,

we are thinking of coming to brittany next year, maybe april due to dog passports delay... is it good for dogs, we would be coming via the tunnel (so the dogs can be with us) is the route to brittany an ok route, as we have never taken the van over to france before, what about dogs on beaches and sites...thankyou regards edwina

 

[NickinFrance]

Ed,

The road from the Tunnel to Brittany is very good, dual carriageway all the way but it is a long journey I would guess 8 hours + with a caravan.

When we take our dogs back to the UK, we normally use the Dieppe - Newhaven crossing, it's a good compromise between, driving distance, time on the boat (about 4 hours) & price.

There are some fantastic beaches in Brittany for dogs, ours love it, almost all the beaches are closed to dogs during August & some in July.

I've only been to a couple of camp sites in Brittany but there was no problem with our 2 dogs but I understand that 2 is the limit on a lot of sites in France.

 

[CharltonChestwig]

Hi James,

To maximise the potential of your visit I'd fully recommend a little literary help. I can personally recommend the Lonely Planet range, or if you have children, I'd recommend Frommer's 'Brittany with your family' (this is still a good buy, even if you don't have children). With books such as these and other tools like Google Earth, you can really begin to structure your visit to a new area. Amazon is a good place to make a search and purchase.

Hope this helps,

Charlton Chestwig (the third).

 

[ed1]

Ed,

The road from the Tunnel to Brittany is very good, dual carriageway all the way but it is a long journey I would guess 8 hours + with a caravan.

When we take our dogs back to the UK, we normally use the Dieppe - Newhaven crossing, it's a good compromise between, driving distance, time on the boat (about 4 hours) & price.

There are some fantastic beaches in Brittany for dogs, ours love it, almost all the beaches are closed to dogs during August & some in July.

I've only been to a couple of camp sites in Brittany but there was no problem with our 2 dogs but I understand that 2 is the limit on a lot of sites in France.

thankyou nick, very helpful information,