Activities & Discovery
Vannes and the Morbihan Gulf ...
Reknown for its micro-climate , it is an acclaimed destination for a holiday or short break you’ll find all together invigorating, stimulating, cosy and warm . With a rich heritage (historical, architectural, natural, cultural) it is the perfect place to enjoy your holiday !
Visit the Gulf and its many islands and islets (Ile Aux Moines, Ile d’Arz, Belle Ile…), the fascinating mediaval city of Vannes with museums, remparts, wash-houses along the moat-like river, its well preserved half timbered buildings, the striking 15th-century Tour du Connétable, the marina, to name a few. It is also a lively city with a wide choice of entertainements and festivals.
Within easy reach, there are some wonderful sceneries : the stunning megaliths of Carnac, the picturesque city of Rochefort en Terre, St Goustan leisure harbour in Auray, St Anne d’Auray clustered round its enormous basilica, the sorcery of the forest of Broceliande and without taking too much of your time, you can even wander as far as Mont Saint Michel .
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VANNES
The medieval Vannes , city of Art and History, with its prize position cradled in the Morbihan Gulf welcomes you for a discovery of its historical and cultural heritage. Along the marina, looking down the water, you’ll watch the merging reflections of the sails , the café terraces and the timbered-houses. Take a stroll through the cobbled pedestrian area to reach the market in the old town, visit the museums, the cathedral …
Follow a guided tour of the city . Pursue your discovery with a cruise around the Gulf, a magic place where sea, earth and sky mix together to offer extraordinary sceneries everytime different.
LUNCH OR DINNER CRUISE ON THE MORBIHAN GULF
Share a unique moment enjoying a traditional and innovative meal on board of the floating restaurant “Le Morbihan”. Cast off to navigate across the Gulf scattered with 42 islands and islets . Double the pleasure watching Islands of megaliths, the takeoff of wild geese, egrets and other wild birds nesting in the Gulf .
BELLE ILE EN MER
82km², 20 km long, 10km wide and 100 km of coastal paths .
Belle-Île, the largest offshore island abound in spots of striking beauty.
Whatever the season, between calm tides , rough seas, tormented skies, Belle Ile will touch you with unforgettable landscapes. On foot, cycling or driving across the 20 kms of small roads will take you to its many creeks, beaches, beautiful hamlets and fishermen villages.
THE MORBIHAN GULF – ILE AUX MOINES – ILE D’ARZ
While cruising the Gulf on board of our comfortable motor launches, take the opportunity of a free time stop over at Ile aux Moines or Ile d’Arz.
Member of the “World’s Most Beautiful Bays”, the Morbihan Gulf is a genuine inland sea over 12,000 ha, sheltered from the Atlantic swell where according to the legend, one can count 365 islands.
Ile aux Moines, “ the pearl of the Morbihan Gulf” is well known for its quietness and gentle pace of life .
Ile d’Arz is a real paradise for hikers. It’s a rural and green island with many beaches.
QUIBERON AND THE CÔTE SAUVAGE (literally ‘wild coast’)
Quiberon peninsula (14 kms from north to south) presents a cut up landscape , linked to the continent by an isthmus.
Facing the islands of Belle Ile and Houat, the wind-blown, spray-swept wild coast offers 8 kms of low cliffs fretworked with intricate bays and scarred with narrow, vertical ravines. A real thrill that will awake all your senses with the smell of the carnations from the dunes filling your nostrils…
ETEL RIA AND ST CADO
At the entrance of the ‘Ria’ (a narrow inlet from the shoreline formed by sea flood) where stands the famous “Barre d’Etel” that guards the access to the sea, the little harbour of Etel welcomes you in its typical oceanic light.
To see: the harbour, the maritime coop shop, the ‘Musée des Thoniers’(tuna boat museum), the rescue boat, the Barre d’Etel moving sandbank….
Between land and sea, discover one of the most authentic preserved site of Morbihan , an exceptional classified site : Saint Cado peninsula. With its chapel partly dating from the XIc and its monumental calvary, Saint Cado’s outstanding beauty attracts many painters who get their inspiration from the exceptional colors of the landscape.
Little Cities of Character and historical interest
The prestigious stamp ‘petites Cités de Caractère’(little cities of character) is given to places who pay the uppermost attention to the preservation and highlight of their heritage . They demonstrate the rich diversity and quality of Brittany’s urban heritage. JOSSELIN
A town of contrast between the cobbled old town with half-timbered houses spreading up the hill, surrounding the gargoyled Basilique Notre Dame du Roncier and its impressive granite castle that belongs to the Rohan family .
Built on a rocky spur, its three majestic towers dating from the Middle Age overlook the river Oust, whilst on the courtyard side, a Renaissance façade in the flaming gothic style make it a fine example of ancient architecture.
LA ROCHE BERNARD
Founded by Viking raiders struck by its defensive position over the maritime river Vilaine, La Roche-Bernard has retained the past splendours of a wealthy protestant town .
LIZIO
Lizio, another Brittany’s little city of character is a proud and beautiful rural village with old houses dressed in ivy, stone ovens where the bread was once baked, old mills, witnesses of time gone by .
A visit to Lizio is a must for its well kept architectural heritage including at the church, typical of 17th century breton architecture.
Sainte Catherine chapel and its fountain , once a halt for pilgrims travelling to Compostela and a former Templar site is worth a visit . Other places of interest include : the Museum of Ancient Trades (Musée des Vieux Métiers) , the Insectarium, the museum of the Iron Poet(Musée du Poète Ferrailleur) presenting a spectacular collection of automats made from recycled iron, the cider factory (La cidrerie du Terroir) , the Lancelot brewery, the workshops of potters Alain Guillard and Chantal Delage ….
MALESTROIT
A bridge town over the Oust, Malestroit is another typical mediaval market town which played an important role in the Hundred Years War: the Malestroit treaty of peace (unfortunately an illusion) was signed in 1343 in the chapel of La Madeleine .
Its from this period that Malestroit started to flourish with the expansion of shops, half-timbered houses and carved granite buildings with peculiar polychromatic sculptures hanging on the facades.
If you pay attention while standing in the impressive Place du Bouffay around 3 pm, you’ll see the shadow of a carved ox reflecting on the amazing St Gilles church that looks like Voltaire’s profile…
ROCHEFORT –EN-TERRE
One of Brittany’s most famous places. Standing on an outcrop of shists, it’s a small market town of some hundred houses
surrounded by deep valleys. Rochefort-en-Terre is a picturesque fortified city ideally located between the forest of Broceliande, the low Vilaine, Malestroit and La Roche Bernard.
Exploring the city, you’ll enjoy its 16th and 17th century residences along the main street giving an impression of unity and simplicity, its display of geraniums throughout the village, its castle and collegiate church . Take an evening stroll along the ‘Chemin Lumineux’ (a lit up trail) and be won over by the diversity Rochefort-en-Terre has to offer !
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