Brittany in August? Am I nuts?

I personally don't see a problem since you are willing and able to book accomadtions well in advance . Just don't schedule driving day in August the 1 st and everything else is doable .

Even if August is a busy period, it is not more crowded in Brittany as in many other parts of France at this time (even less than in the south east of France for example). If the crowd is your main issue, you just have to avoid to book accommodation in a few places like St Malo intra muros, Quiberon, Carnac...

Agree with prior poster that St Malo and Carnac and Dinan may be crowded in August so plan your stays in smaller places and visit the more crowded places. I spent 12 days exploring Brittany from 3 different bases in small out of the way towns in 3 different areas because Brittany is quite large. One was near St Malo, one near Brest, and one near Carnac.

When you begin booking reservations here's a link to a bed and breakfast that we loved. It's a restored weaver's cottage at an old woolen mill. We wanted to be in an area where we could explore the parish closes. Location is remote but scenery is fantastic!
http://www.chambres-hotes-brezehant.fr/

Brittany is probably the least crowded part of France. I'm sure it will get busy around Carnac and St. Malo/Dinan, but most of the peninsula should be good and the weather should be nice too. Be sure to plan to visit a "pardon" or two. They are the local festivals with traditional costumes, music and dance.

Hi,

Are you nuts? No, in my view on choosing to go Brittany in August, I would. Normally, Brittany has the reputation of being the coldest place in France in the summer, , which might be a relief to you if you were baking in Paris or somewhere else in France. I've not been to Brittany but to beaches in the Pas-de-Calais area I've been to a few times in July and early August. ...nice in terms of the weather.

Wonderful. Thanks to all for your advice! And, I'd welcome any further comments, too!

Just a precision about the weather in Brittany in summer : it is not the coldest area in France, it is not colder than the whole north western quarter of France (Normandy, Picardie, Nord Pas de Calais...). In Brittany, there are variations too : it is colder in Brest and around, whereas you can expect a few degrees more on the south coast or inlands.

We just returned from Brittany (8/15 to 8/25). We stayed in Quimper, Morlaix, Loudeac and Mt St Michel and toured sites using those towns as bases. Crowds were not an issue anywhere except on Mt St Michel (at their worst between about 11:00 am and 4:00 pm) and St Malo (parking was scarce, so we just skipped it).

Our interests sound similar to yours so I think our experience is relevant for you. We shared some places with other tourists but not in overwhelming numbers. And some places (for example, the Abbey de Daoulas, the walled city of Moncontour and the Ecomusée des Monts d'Arrée) were almost deserted while we were there.

Hope your trip is as wonderful as ours was.

Like Bob, I was in Brittany last month. We were there from the 12th to the 20th.

We stayed at the beach, about 8kms from Locronan. We only visited around Finistere, mostly small villages, like Locronan, but also Quimper and Carnac, and the crowds were definitely manageable. Even the crowds in Nantes to visit the Machines de L'ile were not bad.
As for the weather, it was nice. Not suntanning weather, but the long, flat beaches made for lovely walks, both early in the morning, and in the evening watching some wonderful sunsets.
Two places, kind of off the beaten path, that we enjoyed were Landevennec Abbey and The Valley of the Saints.

The one thing I have to mention is the traffic. Getting there from Spain, going north to Nantes was incredible. It was the worst traffic I have ever seen. And I grew up going from San Diego to San Francisco for most holidays. After Nantes, going west, it really lightened up. And during the week we had no problems getting around in the car.

Excellent information. Thank you all!

@ korri...I'll defer to your conclusion since that is only what I've heard, having never been to Brittany myself. But Picarde and Nord Pas de Calais I am well familiar with regarding the weather in the summer over the years, even visited a few of the beach towns in Nord Pas de Calais.

I did a driving trip in Brittany last August and it was fine. Sure, St. Malo was crowded, but we stayed at an AMAZING B&B outside the city walls in a residential area that wasn't crowded at all, and we discovered where the locals eat and hang out. The hotel was Le Valmarin and it's probably the nicest place I've ever stayed at. It felt very relaxing on that side of town!