The West coast of France, including most of the North Sea coast line and the biggest portion of the Atlantic Coast. Home of the famous Normandy and Brittany regions.
Noirmoutier-en-l’Ile is a popular summer holiday destination for the French. The island is littered with salt marshes and bird sanctuaries. A massive castle can be found in the village centre. Here’s how to get there, what to see and where to sleep/eat.
The Chateau de Noirmoutier-en-l’Ile, on the Noirmoutier island, is quite amazing for such a small village. Today, it’s a museum
Noirmoutier-en-l’Ile is a small village on the island of Noirmoutier in the region of “Pays de la Loire”. Located below Brittany the island is a popular summer holiday destination for the French. The village, with its 4800 inhabitants, lies on the Northern part of the Noirmoutier island. The island itself is located in the Atlantic …
Built: 17th centuryStatus: PrivateVisitable?: Yes, only the gardensNotable: Property of Prince and Princess Kayali (Syria). The castle has not been modified since the 18th century. Known for the largest rose garden in Normandy.Web: None In a small town in Upper Normandy called Ermenouville you will find this quite spectacular castle. Ermenouville is a very small …
Transport Getting there Air: Nantes has a big international airport, and they are building an even bigger one (which is highly controversial). Flights are served throughout Europe and Africa, North America and the Middle East. Click here to access the Nantes airport website Ferry: There are no direct ferry services to and from the UK. …
The Sainte-Croix church is not a church you are going to go out of your way to admire, but the bell tower is something to be seen. This also happens to be the church where the famous sci-fi writer Jules Verne was baptised. The church was built in the 17th century, but they have found …
The “Machines de l’Isle” is an entertainment area on the island of Nantes (located on the Loire river). It includes a massive steampunk mechanical elephant that regularly walks around the area. The area is located in the former Nante shipyards, and is a cross between Jules Verne, Leonardo De Vinci and the industrial history of …
The building of the cathedral of Nantes, named the Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Nantes, started in the 15th century, and like most cathedrals, work lasted for hundreds of years. In this case, the cathedral was officially complete 457 years after it was started. However, this is the 3rd cathedral to be built on this spot. The cathedral …
The Duke of Brittany’s castle is located in Nantes and can be visited, partially for free, partially wby paying a fee.
Nantes is France’s 6th largest city with some 300,000 inhabitants and 950,000 in the metropolitan area, and it was once the capital of Brittany (that was in the 15th century). Although over the centuries it was part of the Brittany region, nowadays it is no longer considered as such, much to the displeasure of its …
Transport Getting there The railroads do not come to Camaret-sur-Mer anymore. The closest railway stations are Brest and Quimper (both about an hour drive, bus services are available). Air: Camaret-sur-Mer does not have an airport, but there are two airports serving international flights closeby. One is the airport of Brest (about 1 hour car drive), …
Camaret-sur-Mer in Brittany is a small town, some 2700 inhabitants, with a very scenic harbour, enormous dramatic cliffs and a very big monument. The village/town is old, very old. Traces of habitation can be found as far back as 2500 years BC! In those days, the place was for druides and their magical stone, the …
Transport Getting there Air: Lorient has an airport, but it does not offer international flights. The majority of domestic flights go to Paris or Lyon. From there you can transfer internationally. Click here to access the airport’s website (in English) Ferry: No international ferry operations can be found in Lorient. In fact, only a ferry …
If you are into sailing, then the name “Eric Tabarly” will probably be known to you. For those of you who don’t know the legendary French sailor, you can read more about him by clicking here. The museum doesn’t just look at his life and sail races, but explores mostly the art of sailing. The …
The Submarine museum (in French “Musee Sous-Marin“) is NOT a museum of submarines (for that you can visit the Flore submarine next door, click here to read more about it), but for a look at the life of the divers underwater. The most interesting part of this museum (a private and volunteer endeavour) is the …
The Flore submarine museum (a diesel submarine) in Lorient is located in the former German WWII submarine base, which includes 3 enormous submarine pens (which could host up to 30 submarines). Next to the 2nd German submarine pen (K2) you can immediately see the Flore submarine. This sub can be visited. You can see the …
Lorient in Brittany is not a place you want to visit for the beauty of the city, since it’s not. But the La Base is very interesting since it was the main submarine base of the Germans during WWII. There’s even a submarine you can visit.
Built: 1866Status: PrivateVisitable?: NoNotable: Web: Although this castle can not be visited on the inside, you can walk in the gardens and look around the castle on the outside. The castle is located close to one of Dinard‘s beaches. The city had ordered the chateau to be built for the Royal couple, Napoleon III and …
Transport Getting there Air: The airport, close to Dinard, is shared with Saint-Malo and offers international flights, particularly those of Ryanair. Other international destinations will require changing in London. Click here to access the airport’s website. Ferry: There is no ferry service from Dinard. To go to/from the UK, you will need to go to …
Dinard in Brittany is a fantastic place to stay for a few days. The seaside promenade is an incredible walk, alongside a narrow winding pedestrian area, covering the beaches and rock formations. Dinard is located just a few kilometers from the more well known city of Saint Malo. They are divided by the “La Rance” …
Transport Getting there There is NO train service from/to Concarneau to the big cities in France. If you are coming from one of the ferry harbours, you’ll need to change twice and then take a bus. Air: There is NO airport serving Concarneau. Ferry: There are no international ferries serving Concarneau. Closest ferry harbour would …
Concarneau as a city is nothing to write home about if it weren’t for its walled city (Citadelle or Ville Close). The walled city, located in the harbour, is beautiful and intact. One has to assume that walking the old cobblestone streets is like walking them centuries ago. Concarneau’s walled city is a bit like …
If ever there was a castle/fortress that merits a detour to go and visit, it’s this one, belonging to the Duke of Brittany. Stunning.
Built: 12th centuryStatus: PrivateVisitable?: Yes (sometimes)Notable: –Web: – The castle at the seatown of Pornic in Pays de Loire is the most visible item in the scenic landscape. It dominates the town. The castle is located partially on the sea promenade, partially on the public beach. So although the castle is in private hands, you …
