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Brittany : we need suggestions for home base and how long !

Bonjour! We are going to Brittany this coming June. The whole trip will start in Dinan June 12th, (already reserved for 2 nights) and will end in Gizeux (near Tours) then Paris (June 22nd) to come back home. We will have a car.

We are looking at discovering the area of Morlaix, Quimper (Concarneau) and Vannes (Rochefort en terre) in between.
Questions which places of those 3 should we stay for 3 nights ? The 2 other places would be for 2 nights.

Thank you so much!
P.s. Have done La loire (castles and MSM in 2011)
Cadette

Posted by
12172 posts

I personally preferred Vannes, mainly because it's on the bay, has a great medieval center, and is near many pre-history stone monument sights. I skipped Quimper because I thought it looked a little bigger than my taste, and Concerneau seemed a little less beautiful than Vannes. I highly recommend Locronan, near Quimper, for a short visit.

In the Morlaix area, I visited Saint-Thegonnec, Guimiliau, and Lampau-Guimiliau. I liked these little towns but hesitate to recommend them because the area is quite sleepy. If you can time your visit with a Pardon (local festivals that run all over Brittany from late Spring through early Fall), I think you would enjoy anywhere in the area more.

If you do stay in Vannes. I really liked Auray for a short stop. I also love Cairn du Gavrinis, it's fairly recently discovered and only available as a ferry tour (in French only) from Lamor-Baden but a real non-touristy treat for anyone who is fascinated with the pre-history of the area.

Another place worth a stop IMO is Ft. La Latte on the north coast. It's an old castle that was repurposed many times over the centuries but still retains much of its charm and makes a great visit.

Posted by
151 posts

All these 3 places would be worth staying 3 nights. Maybe I would advise Quimper to be able to go to different directions : Crozon, Pointe du Raz, Pont Aven, Douarnenez...
Or in case you would like to take a boat to go to a Breton island over one day : stay 1 night more in Morlaix to reach island of Batz, or in Vannes to reach Belle-Ile.
Enjoy your stay in Bretagne!

Posted by
19 posts

We loved our vacation in Brittany last September.
We stayed in:
Rennes - 3 nights (1 night too many)
Dinan - 2 nights (loved it!)
Douarnenez - 2 nights (didn't like the town-maybe should have stayed in Concarneau- but it was a good location to visit Locronan and spend a day hiking Pointes du Van and du Raz)
Carnac - 3 nights (loved it!)
We did a lot of hiking (good thing, because we ate kouign amann every day!) and ate the best moules I've ever had.
Since I came back I read a murder mystery by Jean-Luc Bannalec that was set in Concarneau. He has another book set in Pont Aven that I'm going to buy.
I hope you have a wonderful time. I look forward to returning to Brittany.