Dinard – Introduction

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” river, and from the Eastern parts of Dinard, you can easily see St. Malo.

The city, counting some 11,000 inhabitants, is one of the most favored holiday spots in West France. It’s often considered the Cannes of the West. Many famous people have vacationed here, notably King Albert I from Belgium, Agatha Christie, Alfred Hitchcock (there’s even a statue of him), Winston Churchill, Kirk Douglas, Hugh Grant, Victor Hugo, Lawrence of Arabia, Picasso, and many, many others.

The Promenade

One of the nicest things to see and do in Dinard is walk the enormously long seaside promenade. It’s not a straight promenade since the coastline wiggles, turns and snakes alongside the city walls. The promenade itself is often narrow, but at every turn, the scenery changes.

TIP: Watchout when it’s high tide and there is a wind blowing, since you will get wet!

At times during your stroll along the sea there are places you can sit and take in the scenery, but most often you’ll need to keep walking to the next alcove.

Here are several photos of the promenade

Beaches

The promenade also, obviously, takes you along four beaches, some just a simple beach while others have huts, restaurants and other structures. The biggest and most visited is the “plage de l’Ecluse” with its casino, olympic swimming pool (heated sea water) and restaurants.

Swimming Pools

It’s not only beaches and rocks that make the promenade stroll interesting. There are even two natural swimming pools alongside the sea. These are real swimming pools, but they are not treated, nor warmed. So it’s 100% natural, i.e. sea water.

It’s not the only pool like this along the sea… here’s one not so far away:

The Forts

One thing you will see for sure along the coast are several forts built on islands. They were built several centuries ago to defend the city from attackers that would come from the sea.

The Isle Harbour fortress (above) was built on this island in the 17th century. It now is owned privately (it even used to belong to the French actor Alain Delon).

There are other island-based forts in front of Dinard:

Lighthouse Phare du Grand Jardin

There is even a rather big lighthouse located in between Dinard and Saint-Malo:

The lighthouse in front of Saint-Malo was built in 1865. The 32 meter high lighthouse was mostly destroyed towards the end of WWII by the Germans. In 1950 the new lighthouse went into operation.

The Rocks

All along the coastline around Dinard you will find many large rocks & boulders. This makes the Dinard seaside so attractive thanks to its ruggedness.

Here are but a few of the large boulders sticking out of the sea:

The Houses

Dinard is not only known for its coastline, pools and beaches; it has some 400 old style villas that are protected by French law (historic buildings). Many date back to the “Belle Epoque” when people built beautiful houses which were used at most once a year.

Here are some of the attractive houses you will find when walking along the promenade:

Another interesting building you will find when walking the promenade is one of France’s oldest yacht clubs

Yet another interesting building you will encounter is just around one of the corners. You will see the words Aquarium written but it’s not really an aquarium. In fact, it’s a 5-star hotel with a bar located inside the aquarium.

The hotel is called Castlebrac and it’s a “Soul Haven”… just have a look at the link of the hotel.

Inside Dinard

It’s not just on the outer ring, on the seaside, that you will find interesting buildings and houses. Inside the city, there are some pretty ones, but not as many. The rest of the inside is pretty bland.

The last photo above (Photo 3) is castle Villa Eugenie. It was built in 1868 for the wife of Napoleon III, but after a fight, they never came here. It’s now for sale.

More about this castle click here.

As is the case in almost every French city/town/village (and even hamlets) there is a food market. And like almost everywhere in France, it’s called “Les Halles”.

Outside the food market, on the square (and elsewhere in Dinard), you will find this “strange” object. It’s a mini public library. People can take out books and even put new books back. It’s free.

The streets in Dinard are a combination of older ones, with cobblestones and modern ones. Here are a few images of the kind of streets and shops you will find:

Some Churches

As you would expect, there are quite a number of churches in Dinard, but few standout. Here are two of them:

Summary

Dinard is THE place to visit when looking at staying somewhere in the West coast of France. It has been and will be for many years be an “in-spot” for vacations. Neighbouring Saint-Malo is very beautiful as well, so there’s plenty of choice since they are apart by 4 kilometers.

The walkway along the beach stretches all the way to Saint-Malo, so if you are into walking, it’s a 13 kilometers long walk.

The city has character and beauty. A MUST visit.

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