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Brittany, France has a wonderful selection of towns to visit. Quimper and Dinan delight visitors with their medieval quarters, Josselin with its castle and St Malo with its spectacular coastal setting. Our guide to the top ten towns in Brittany comes complete with links to Holiday France Direct and ideas for holidays in Brittany. What more could be finer than a holiday in a medieval town house in Dinan or a holiday home in Josselin?
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Brittany holiday accommodation near St Malo » |
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St Malo was built as a fortified island in the middle ages at the mouth of the Rance Estuary to control the open sea. It is built with the same grey granite stone as Mont St Michel. In later centuries, St Malo became notorious as the home of a fierce pirate-mariners, and as the birthplace of Robert Surcouf (born in December 1773) a famous French privateer. During his legendary career, he captured 47 ships and was renowned for his gallantry and chivalry earning him the nick-name of ‘Roi des Corsaires’ (King of the Privateers). |
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St Malo was severely damaged during WW2 and the town that you see today has been beautifully rebuilt. It is one of the most visited places in Brittany. Passing through the ancient walls to the inside, it is easy to see why. You are greeted with a busy, lively town full of character and atmosphere, packed with restaurants, bars and shops. The walk along St Malo’s ramparts around the town is delightful and the clean, sandy beaches are a real plus if you are visiting with children. Visits include the cathedral of St Vincent and the aquarium. St Malo is easily accessible from the UK via Brittany Ferries’ service from Portsmouth. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Vannes » |
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Vannes, 20km east of Auray, is one of Southern Brittany’s key tourist towns. Modern Vannes is a thriving community but it’s the old walled town of Vieux Vannes that is of particular interest to visitors. Its focal point is Porte St-Vincent, which houses a busy little square at the northern end of the long canalized port. Once inside Vannes’s ramparts, the old town is mostly pedestrianised and charms visitors with its quaint streets around the cathedral
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Outside the medieval quarter, the place de la Republique has the grandest of the public buildings including the Hotel de Ville, guarded by a pair of fine bronze lions.
Things to see and do in Vannes include the Musee Archeologique, said to have one of the world’s finest collections of pre-historic artefacts, and Vannes’ modern aquarium in the Parc du Golfe claims to have the best collection of tropical fish in Europe including a Nile crocodile found in the Paris sewers in 1984 that shares its tank with a group of piranhas. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Rennes » |
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Rennes is a picturesque city that sits on a hill between the rivers Ille and Vilaine and is well known as a centre of art and history. Capital of Brittany, Rennes is home to the impressive Parliament of Brittany building and the Basilica Saint-Sauveur, and is also famous for its picturesque half-timbered houses.
Head south from the Palais de Justice to the River Vilaine, which flows through the centre of Rennes, and head over to the south |
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bank for a lively atmosphere. Head south away from the river to rue Vasselot to see the half timbered houses, while the giant Colombier Centre is a prime example of modern Rennes. It is a shopping centre packed with shops of all kinds, plus cafes and snack bars, and features an amazing crystal model of itself in its main entrance hall.
Rennes is the perfect city to visit if looking for art, history and medieval quarters to discover or to simply shop and relax.
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Saint-Brieuc » |
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Saint-Brieuc is especially attractive because of its setting between the steep sided valleys of the River Gouedic to the east and the River. Gouet to the west. The best place from which to admire the view is the Notre-Dame mound to the north west. From here, you can visit the Outdoor Theatre and the Grandes Promenades Gardens by the Law Courts.
St-Brieuc was one of the Welsh missionaries who came to Armorica |
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in the 6th century. He is said to have landed with 84 companions in what is now known as Legue, and he built his monastery on the triangular plateau overlooking the bay.
The main shopping street in Saint-Brieuc is the rue Saint-Guillaume named after the 13th century bishop of the town. Not far from this is St Stephen’s Cathedral, an impressive building, reminiscent of a fortress, and was once used as a stronghold. The 2 towers date from the 14th century and have slit-windows and a parapet walk. St Brieuc’s streets around the cathedral contain several houses with beautiful overhanging upper levels.
From the town centre, you can go down to the pretty Legue Harbour and, from there, take a stroll in the picturesque Gouet Valley.
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Quimper » |
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Quimper is the oldest Breton city, founded by St Corentin after crossing the Channel with his Bretons sometime between the 4th and 7th centuries. Legend states that St Corentin lived by eating a regenerating and immortal fish all his life.
Quimper, pronounced ‘Kemper’ is situated on the junction of the Rivers Steir and Odet, around which are the cobbled streets of the medieval quarter dominated by Quimper’s impressive St Corentin cathedral. |
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There are numerous low flat bridges crossing the Odet (strictly speaking, a sea inlet rather than a river), covered with geraniums in the summer. The wooded slopes of Mont Frugy, overlooking Quimper also offer an inviting walk. There is no great pressure in Quimper to rush around monuments or museums, and one enjoyable option is to take a boat trip down the Odet to the open sea at Benodet.
If you’re looking for traditional shopping, Quimper is famous for its production of ceramics, a 300-year tradition and Quimper has a fine selection of shops selling a whole range of ceramics, gifts and cakes plus all things Breton. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Morlaix » |
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Morlaix is an old Breton port, built on the slopes of a steep valley with pretty stone houses. An 11th century castle and a circuit of walls once protected Morlaix. Little is left of either, but the old centre remains with medieval cobbled streets and half-timbered houses. A striking pink-granite viaduct carries trains from Paris to Brest way above the town centre. If coming into Morlaix by road from the north, the first view of the town is of tall yacht masts and the viaduct.
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A local speciality can be sampled at the Brasserie des Deux Rivieres where they make Coreff, a highly fermented bitter.
Morlaix was once notorious for its piracy, even more so than St Malo. It remains a delightful town to walk around - sights include the rue du Mur and La Maison de la Duchesse Anne with its intricate carvings and lantern roof. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Brest » |
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Set in a magnificent natural harbour, known as the Rade de Brest, the city of Brest is doubly sheltered from the ocean by the bulk of Léon to the north and by the Crozon Peninsula to the south. Brest has always played an important maritime role and is the base of the French Atlantic Fleet.
Brest was continually bombed during World War II to prevent the Germans from using it as a submarine base. When the town was |
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liberated by the Americans on September 18th 1944, they found Brest devastated beyond recognition.
Brest’s 15th century castle is an impressive sight and offers a superb panorama of the city. Three of its ornate towers house part of the collection of the Musée National de la Marine. The 14th century Tour Tanguy on the opposite bank of the River Penfeld serves as the Musee de Vieux. Here dioramas convey a vivid impression of how Brest used to be.
Brest’s most modern attraction is Oceanopolis beside the Port de Plaisance du Moulin-Blanc. This futuristic complex consists of 3 huge aquariums and a 3-D cinema. The aquarium in the main white dome focuses on Brittany and Finistere’s fishing industry and displays a variety of fish, seals, molluscs, seaweed and sea anemones. The second is the Tropical Pavilion,with sharks and a myriad of colourful fish that populate a coral reef, and a Polar Pavilion houses polar bears and penguins. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Dinan » |
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Dinan is one of France’s most attractive walled towns. Situated on a hillside overlooking the River Rance. Dinan’s 3km encirclement of walls remain virtually intact and houses street after street of late medieval houses. Like St Malo, 25km to the north, Dinan is best seen arriving by boat, with spectacular views of the castle and fortifications.
Time in Dinan may be best spent wandering from creperie to cafe, |
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admiring the beautiful overhanging houses along the way. Unfortunately, only one small stretch of the ramparts is walkable, from the Jardin Anglais behind St Sauveur church to a point just short of Tour Sillon overlooking the river. The Tour de l’Horloge offers impressive views of the town and surrounding area.
St Sauveur church is a real mixture of styles with its Romanesque porch and 18th century steeple. Even its 9 Gothic chapels feature 5 different patterns of vaulting.
Head down rue du Jerzual that descends to the gate of the same name and on down to the lovely port du Dinan. Here the river is calm and narrow and spanned by a splendid old stone bridge. Craft shops and restaurants line the quayside. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Auray » |
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Auray is well placed for exploring Carnac, the Quiberon Peninsula and the Gulf of Morbihan but first explore the beautiful town itself. The centre of Auray is the place de la Republique, with its 18th century Hotel de Ville. In a neighbouring square is the 17th century church of St Gildas, with its fine Renaissance porch. A covered market adjoins the Hotel de Ville and Mondays sees an open-air market where you can pick up some of the finest fresh local produce. |
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Auray features the picture-postcard ancient quarter of St-Goustan, with its delightful 15th and 16th century houses. The bend in the River Loch was a natural setting for the town and it soon became one of the busiest ports in Brittany. In 1776, Benjamin Franklin landed here on his way to seek the help of Louis XVI in the American War of Independence. A visit to Auray is sure to delight with numerous restaurants, bars and places to sit and watch the world go by. |
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Brittany holiday accommodation near Josselin » |
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Josselin is instantly recognisable due to the 3 ornate towers of its chateau. The duchess’s collection of dolls, housed in the Musee des Poupees behind Josselin’s castle, makes for a special visit or stop at the Basilica Notre Dame du Roncier with its wonderful architecture.
Josselin is full of medieval splendours, from the gargoyles of the |
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basilica to the castle ramparts, and the half-timbered houses in between.
Josselin has a busy centre where you will find shops, supermarkets, restaurants and cafes as well as a cinema. A bustling market is held in the town every Saturday.
Josselin offers a good choice of crafts, farm produce, green spaces, summer festivals and exhibitions. |
Copyright: Holiday France Direct 2008 |
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