Hi All,
I have two nights in the area of MSM - Saint-Malo - Dinan.
Please advice me where to spend these two nights:
Thank you very much for your inputs.
I vote stay one night at Mont Saint Michel. It is a fantastic place to spend the night and is great fun watching the tide come in and cutting you off from the mainland. :-)
Good question, I have a similar quandary.
We will be traveling with a 2yo and 4yo which means bringing some extra stuff but I think/hope it will be worth it.
Time of year makes a difference, due to summer crowds. If you have visited a few medieval towns already, it may not be necessary to stay in the limited options on or beside MSM. In summer, Dinard, with a beach, might be better for a 4 year old than Dinan or St Malo. Personally, I think there is more to do in and around Dinan, especially with a car. St. Malo is just lovely, but seems to be 150 restaurants, plus a big marina. And it's on a peninsula, which can restrict car movement in the summer. I hate changing hotels daily.
I've only been there once, but I would say the best, maybe only time to be in MSM, is early in the morning before the hordes arrive and it retains some of the serene, reflective mood that was the reason for creating the place. So definitely stay the (one) night and leave at midday.
La Jacotiere is a B&B within walking distance of the MSM shuttle. The family room is large and comfortable (not fancy) with a view of MSM through the skylight. I would stay 2 nights there and use it as a base. That would be extremely comfortable for small children. There is a great restaurant within walking distance too. You can go and come from MSM as often as you like on free shuttle. We loved it in June, 2015.
To Michael: A second for La Jacotiere. We had a car and arrived around mid day. We drove to MSM and parked right in front of the abbey, then spent the night at La Jacotiere. The view of the abbey at night made it worth the overnight for us. We visited in March so if you are going in a high tourist season it may be crowded at mid day. From there we drove to Dinan via Cancale (for the oysters), Pointe du Grouin, St Malo, and Dinard. We were there in March so no large crowds and the weather was comfortable. We didn't spend much time at St Malo (a walk around the walls and through a couple of the streets), or Dinard. We spent two nights in Dinan, arriving late afternoon. That gave us time to explore the small town and spend the next day exploring the countryside.
Bottom line - one night in MSM and one Dinan.
