Driving from Rennes to St. Malo - Dinan - Mt. St Michel

The roads are so nicely paved and road conditions are excellent. Some roads are two lane roads but not impossibly narrow and nothing so tight and narrow as the tight narrow turns you make getting out of the rental car parking structure at Rennes train station. I really enjoyed driving in Brittany and Normandy last spring. Read up on the rules of the road before you go and be sure you get your International Drivers Permit at AAA before departure.

"Are the stairs on the Mont really awful and is it worth it all to see the Abbey?"

I think they are difficult as there is often no railing and they are worn in places so a bit uneven. On the stairs up to the entrance there is a droopy rope that just divides the up and down traffic. You can try to hold on to it but it doesn't give you much balance. Keep in mind you need to descend the stairs as you leave. They are pretty slick if it's raining. Parts of the abbey on the way to the entrance are not covered so are wet if raining.

To get up to the Abbey front entrance you can go up the main street which is often crowded or you can divert to the route up around the wall on the right side. This does not really save any stairs as there are staircases there as well.

It's hard to judge "worth it" for others. Some feel like this is a must do and a highlight. I have been 3 times and each time hoped I would come away understanding what I was missing that everyone else was so crazy about. I've done 2 day trips and 1 overnight visit. I've done the early morning service (this was awful as there was no lighting on the stairs and it was raining). I've eaten on the island, I've walked from the island back to the parking area. For me it's a miss but I have been, lol. The view of the rock and abbey from the shore is wonderful, though!

On the other hand, I loved Saint-Malo! I loved watching the tide change and the paths out to the 3 islets emerge so you could walk out to them. I loved seeing the diving board to the salt water pool stick out of the water when the tide is in and then see the whole pool area when the tide ebbs. I like to stand on the City Wall and think of how Jacques Cartier's fishermen relatives discovered fishing on the Grand Banks off Newfoundland in the 1500's. Crazy!

What day of the week are you going to Dinan? The main parking lot in the old city area is turned into a market on some days. I say this not as a driver but as a person who stayed in a hotel on the square and saw the big signs in the hotel elevator imploring people to make sure their cars were moved so they were not towed!

It's impossible to say whether the stairs are "really awful" without knowing your physical capabilities or your level of interest. From my perspective, it's definitely worth the climb (late 60s male with no particular interest in Roman Catholicism), but I can attest that I saw a few people struggling on the steps who weren't as nimble as I am. When it comes down to deciding, It depends on you and whether you feel the need to see it. But really, if you can climb a few flights of stairs in a building when the power is out and you can't take an elevator, you probably can climb those stairs at Mont Saint-Michel with no problem.

With respect to driving, as long as you keep to major roads you should have no problem -- but I would educate yourself on the quirks of French driving laws; in particular the rule of priorité à droite. Know the signs that tell you when it's in effect and when it's not. And be aware that many towns have a sign at the entrance to the town that indicates priorité à droite is in effect within the town. Also, become aware of the importance of the signs when you're entering and leaving a town on speed limits.

The area in which you'll be driving is outside of the bocage of Normandie, where smaller roads have many blind curves and narrow pavement that may require a driver to go off the pavement or even back up to allow a large truck or tractor to pass. So, as long as you stick to major roads, you should be fine.

Lastly, about 20 minutes east southeast of Mont Saint-Michel is the town of Saint-James, which (despite being in Normandie) is the site of the Brittany-American cemetery. While smaller than the better-known cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer northwest of Bayeux, the cemetery at Saint-James is definitely worth a stop.

Month of year? St Malo can be short of parking. It's on a peninsula, which means 15 minutes in local traffic to get in and out. The "strip" approaching MSM (well, Pontorson, anyway) has everything from an alligator farm to Pizza Hut.

The MSM parking lot is endless. Please pay just before leaving, NOT at the exit gate. Long walk from your car to the island, or to the electric shuttle bus.

If you are staying on the island, inquire about a parking code well before you get there. Many hotels have a provision where you can park in the lot for free (in a special, closer section of the lot). But you need to enter a code to enter their closer which is otherwise hourly.

Thanks for all of the tips. I am almost done planning/worrying. Two weeks left to obsess over details.

Spend 2 nites an Dinan and take the boat to St Malo for the day. Nice cruise down the Rance River. Brad

Regarding driving, the biggest issue is traffic in Rennes.

• Weekday rush hours are tougher than you'd expect for a city of this size, plan accordingly if you need to return the car at such a time (leaving Rennes is not as much of a problem).
• Rental car pick-up / return is at the top of a multi-story car park, it takes 5-10 minutes just to navigate it
• Watch out for bikes as you drive on the streets of Rennes.

Once you've left Rennes, it's smooth sailing!

Just reporting back to say driving in France is easier than driving in California! The roads are well paved - no potholes, trash, and no weaving or tailgating idiots! Everyone drives the speed limit and they are very courteous.

My only word of caution is look out for pedestrians! A girl was running (not jogging) at full speed into the intersection without hesitation or looking. Most other pedestrians paused momentarily to make eye contact before proceeding. Otherwise it was a pleasant drive to Cancale, Dinan, St Malo and Rennes. The parking payment box in Dinan was confounding. The three of us standing in line tried cash and credit to no avail. It took multiple attempts to get the machine to spit out a parking receipt.

Thanks everyone. Happy travels and may they be many!!!!

Happy wanderer, so happy you found your driving experience as wonderful as we did! Like you, we marveled at the road conditions; and wondered why in CA we can't have such nice road conditions; and the lack of roadside trash (and all that greenery)....I truly drove in awe while in Brittany and Normandy!

The roads are perfectly nice - I've been driven to Mont-St-Michel and St. Malo from Rennes by my friends who live there.

I'm going to be in the minority here, I already know that from another similar thread, but I'll tell you MY opinion of Mont-St-Michel and you can consider it along with all the others. Yes, there are a lot of stairs. A LOT of them! They wind past cheap souvenir shops, mediocre restaurants and snack bars, and a few little museums. When you finally get to the top, all you really see are marshes/water as far as the eye can see. It is a nice view, but mostly just featureless. If you have cranky knees like I do, coming back down is even worse than going up (might not apply to you!)

Seeing the Abbey from a distance is truly breathtaking, and you shouldn't miss it. It's up to you whether to go inside and walk to the top, but I personally wasn't that thrilled with it and that's all I can tell you.

So what were your thoughts on Mont Saint Michel? The stairs? The magic? The crowds? Would you do it again?

So what were your thoughts on Mont Saint Michel? The stairs? The
magic? The crowds? Would you do it again?

The stairs - a LOT of them. Be prepared

The magic- when you catch that first glimpse of it, YES, it is breathtaking. (Going inside didn't do much for me, though.)

The crowds - not the worst I've ever seen, but yes, it is crowded like any other popular attraction

Would I do it again? - as far as going inside of it, NO. But I guess I'm glad I did it at least once so I'd know what it was like (the second time was definitely anti-climactic and I could have happily skipped it that time if someone else with me hadn't insisted.)

We drove everywhere along that route except Rennes and found it easy, and we are very cautious drivers. If you enjoy oysters and the season coincides with your travels, Cancale is an easy and enjoyable stop. We sat on the sea wall and had a great time slurping up oysters and the vista. My oyster-averse nephew practically broke the bank once he tried his first bivalve but it was worth it all ( and a rare and cherished Told you so opportunity). Dinan was lovely. We also enjoyed Galettes Bretonnes or buckwheat crepes throughout the region..tasty, different and economical. Safe travels.

ABOUT MONT SAINT MICHEL
I spent about 90 minutes enjoying exploring the terraces, windy passages, the views, the cemetery, and the lower chapel before I even got to the line to the Abbey. By then I had squeezed past crowds of school children on narrow stairs, and climbed wide stairs without railings (needing to balance myself using the wall at times).
I saw elderly people in double knee braces, with canes, and even some who required two people to pull them up the stairs. After seeing this, I felt like I had no excuse not to continue on, EXCEPT I got separated from my husband - who was lost, and my cell phone battery was dying because of the many photos I took. So I can say it is beautiful to see the Mont and enjoy a ride on the shuttle that has no reverse, but I can't comment on the Abbey.
Overall the visit to this region was a welcome break from Paris (navigating the crowds and dealing with the RER which left us stranded). We got to enjoy nature and relax along the coast at our own pace and not worry about limited train schedules since we had a car. St Malo and Dinan were both beautiful and well preserved. You could easily imagine this region in medieval times and it feels like a more immersive and genuine experience. You feel less like a tourist.