Brittany holidays

Where to stay in Brittany

Brittany is a diverse region that caters to all types of travellers, whether you're seeking a peaceful retreat by the coast, a cultural experience in historic towns, or an adventurous getaway in the great outdoors. Here’s a guide to the best places to stay based on the type of holiday you’re planning:

For a beach holiday: Dinard

If you're looking for sun, sand, and sea, holidays to Dinard are ideal. Known for its beautiful beaches and elegant Victorian architecture, Dinard offers a classic seaside experience. Enjoy long walks along the promenade, sunbathe on the sandy beaches, or take part in water sports like sailing and windsurfing.

• Highlights:

  • Stunning beaches with clear waters

  • Charming cafes and restaurants along the coast

For a cultural getaway: Rennes

Rennes, the capital of Brittany, is perfect for those interested in culture and history. With its medieval streets, vibrant markets, and impressive architecture, our deals on holidays to Rennes provide a rich cultural experience. Explore the historic old town, visit the stunning Parliament building, and enjoy local delicacies in traditional bistros.

• Highlights:

  • Rich history and architecture

  • Lively atmosphere with local events and festivals

For a tranquil retreat: Quiberon

For a peaceful escape, our cheap holidays to Quiberon offer breathtaking coastal views and a laid-back atmosphere. This charming peninsula is perfect for relaxing on the beach, hiking along the dramatic coastline, or enjoying fresh seafood at local restaurants. Quiberon is also a great base for exploring nearby islands.

• Highlights:

  • Secluded beaches and scenic walks

  • Local seafood markets and quaint eateries

For outdoor adventures: Paimpont

For those who love the great outdoors, Paimpont provides access to the enchanting Broceliande Forest. This mystical forest is steeped in Arthurian legend and offers numerous hiking and cycling trails. Stay in cosy cottages or guesthouses and immerse yourself in nature.

• Highlights:

  • Stunning natural landscapes and wildlife

  • Rich folklore and historical sites

For exploring the coast: Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo, a fortified coastal city, is a must-visit for those wanting to experience Brittany's maritime heritage. Our deals on holidays to Saint-Malo allow you to explore its historic ramparts, sandy beaches, and bustling port. Enjoy local crepes and seafood while soaking in the vibrant atmosphere of this historic city.

• Highlights:

  • Beautiful beaches and historic architecture

  • Vibrant markets and delicious local cuisine

Brittany’s diverse destinations ensure that every traveller can find the perfect place to stay, whether you're after relaxation, culture, or adventure. With so much to offer, your holidays in Brittany are sure to be memorable.

How to reach Brittany

Flight time: Flights to Brittany from London take about 1 hour 30 minutes. The region’s main airport is Rennes.

Transfer time:

• From Rennes Airport, bus C6 takes you to the city centre in 20 minutes.

• The SNCF stop in Saint-Jacques de la Lande (a 15-minute walk from the airport) allows you to reach the centre in only 5 minutes.

Price:

• A bus from the airport to the city centre costs €1.50, a train €2.

Weather and best time to visit Brittany

Choosing the best time to visit Brittany will depend on whether you like a bustling atmosphere or a quieter time, as well as the weather of course!

April to June:

• Spring is a lovely time for your holidays to Brittany. You’ll avoid the worst of the high-season traffic and you should also more or less have your pick of accommodation, which will generally still be available at low-season prices.

• The weather is mild, temperatures ranging from 12°C to 20°C and you can enjoy 6–8 hours of sunshine daily. The region, however, is known for its wet weather.

July to August:

• Summer is peak season, so many of the region’s coastal towns and beaches can be full to bursting; advance bookings are essential wherever you go.

• Temperatures range from 18°C to 25°C and you can expect 8–10 hours of sunshine each day.

September to November:

• The best time to visit Brittany is during the shoulder season (September and October), which offers a balance between tranquillity and action.

• Temperatures drop from 20°C in September to 10°C in November, rainfall increases to 50–70mm, and sunshine hours decrease to 4–6 hours.

December to March:

• Winter in Brittany is mild but wet, with temperatures ranging from 5°C to 10°C, sunshine limited to 3–5 hours per day, and higher rainfall, around 60–80mm.

Practical information

• Spoken languages: French is the official language, but Breton is also spoken by some locals. Bilingual (Breton and French) road signs may be seen in some areas.

• Local habits and customs: Brittany has a unique culture with Celtic influences, and more generally, the pace of life here is pretty relaxed compared to most parts of France.

• Currency: The currency is the Euro (€). ATMs are widely available, and credit cards are accepted in most places.

• Getting around: Separate TGV train lines from Paris – one ending at Brest, the other at Quimper – serve the major cities along the north and south coasts respectively, and high-speed trains also connect Lille with Rennes. All are complemented by local buses. Driving, too, is straightforward, and none of Brittany’s autoroutes charge tolls.

• Electricity and plug types: Voltage is officially 230V, using plugs with two round pins. UK travellers will need an adaptor.

• Time zone: Brittany is on Central European Time (CET), which is 1 hour ahead of GMT.

Best things to do in Brittany

Deeply infused with Celtic culture, Brittany is renowned for its Celtic links, beautiful coastline, prehistoric sites and seafood.

Viewpoints and panoramas

• Pointe du Raz: Designated a “Grand Site National”, this wild landscape makes a magnificent spectacle, buffeted by wind and waves and peppered with deep gurgling fissures.

• Cap Fréhel: Located in the Côtes-d'Armor department, Cap Fréhel provides stunning views over the emerald coastline and the sea, especially from its towering lighthouse.

The best districts

• Dinan: Brittany’s most complete walled medieval town, perched in a gorgeous setting above the Rance River.

• Quimper: Capital of the ancient diocese, kingdom and later duchy of Cornouaille, this is the oldest city in Brittany, whose medieval quarter is among the finest in France.

• Vitré: Rivalling Dinan as the best-preserved medieval town in Brittany, the towers of the castle, which dominates the western end of the ramparts, have pointed slate-grey roofs in perfect fairy-tale fashion, looking like freshly sharpened pencils.

Museums

• Musée de Bretagne and Espace des Sciences, Rennes: This showpiece museum provides a high-tech overview of Breton history and culture, including the Celts, the Romans, and later still the spread of Christianity.

• Musée des Beaux-Arts, Quimper: This compelling museum focuses on an amazing assemblage of drawings by Max Jacob, but look out too for the museum’s solitary work by Gauguin, a goose he painted on the door of Marie Henry’s inn in Pont-Aven.

Parks and gardens

• Jardin des Remparts, Vannes: These abundant gardens offer a peaceful retreat with well-kept flower beds and pathways, set against the backdrop of medieval city walls.

Historical monuments

• Carnac Stones: Archeologically, Brittany is one of the richest regions in the world and the alignments at Carnac rival Stonehenge.

• Cairn du Barnenez: Ancient masonry has been laid bare by excavations, and provides a stunning sense of the architectural prowess of the megalith builders. Dated to 4500 BC, this is one of the oldest large monuments in the world.

Day trips in the area

• Finistère coast: With its ocean-fronting cliffs and headlands stretching all the way around the western tip of Brittany, it’s hard to resist the appeal of the Finistère coast.

• Belle-Île-en-Mer: The aptly named island offers a microcosm of Brittany, with wild coast in the south, beaches in the north, and beautiful countryside in between.

• Golfe du Morbihan: The sheltered Golfe du Morbihan – mor bihan means “little sea” in Breton – is one of the loveliest stretches of Brittany’s coast; its endlessly indented shoreline is the major attraction, with superb vistas at every turn, and countless secluded beaches.

Activities for families

With so much to see and do in this large region - especially around its varied coastline - you could spend weeks on your Brittany holidays and still not exhaust all the family-friendly things to do.

• Beaches: Brittany’s coastline is scattered with wonderful beaches: in particular, the Côte de Granit Rose, with its bizarre pink rock formations and gem-like beaches, is perfect for kids.

• Interactive museums: Rennes’ Espace des Sciences is a peculiar sort of scaly volcano that contains two floors of interactive scientific displays that change each year - and is brilliant for kids.

• Aquarium and zoos: St Malo’s Grand Aquarium is an entertaining place, where you can either learn interesting facts about slimy monsters of the deep or simply pull faces back at them. Océanopolis, in Brest, features a Tropical Pavilion, with a tankful of ferocious-looking sharks plus a myriad of rainbow-hued smaller fish and a Polar Pavilion, complete with penguins.

Free things to do in Brittany

With so many opportunities for coastal adventures, festivals galore, and ancient towns and villages to roam, Brittany can be as cheap as you want it to be.

• Free events: Brittany hosts numerous free cultural events and festivals throughout the year, none bigger (or with more free things to do) than the Inter-Celtic Festival which celebrates the music and culture of the Celtic nations at Lorient’s summer festival.

• Visit the markets: Marché des Lices in Rennes is the one to aim for but other good ones are Dinan’s large, central place du Guesclin, which hosts a large market on Thursdays, and the market in Questembert’s 16th-century halls, which always has a terrific atmosphere.

Nature and outdoor activities

The region’s warm white-sand beaches, towering cliffs, rock formations and offshore islands and islets mean that opportunities for outdoor recreation are plentiful and never very far away.

• Hiking: The region has numerous hiking trails, king of which is the GR34, which tracks the coastline from Mont-Saint-Michel to Saint Nazairem, a distance of some 2000km! Of course you don’t have to do it all, just a few sections.

• Mountain Biking: Away from the coast, Brittany’s mountains and moors offer superb mountain biking; the big draw is Monts d’Arrée, which has 15 marked circuits, although the Lanvaux Moors and the Crozon Peninsula are no less appealing.

• Water sports: With so much incredible coastline, activities like kayaking, sailing and paddleboarding are doable just about anywhere.

Fish and seafood are the main ingredients of the Breton diet, but the food scene here has many other delicious facets.

Some typical dishes

• Crêpes and galettes: Brittany’s proudest contribution to world cuisine has to be the crêpe, and its savoury equivalent the galette; enjoy them with a variety of fillings, from ham and cheese to Nutella and bananas.

• Assiette de fruits de mer: A mountainous heap of langoustines, crabs, oysters, mussels, clams, whelks and cockles, most raw and all delicious.

• Cotriade: A fish stew made with a variety of fresh fish, potatoes, and onions, often flavoured with cider or white wine.

Meat dishes

• Andouillette: An intestine crammed full of more intestines, all chopped up. It’s an acquired taste (and texture), but it really is better than it sounds.

• Kig ha farz: A classic Breton dish, similar to a pot-au-feu, made with meat, vegetables and a buckwheat pudding.

Fish and seafood dishes

• Oysters: Brittany’s oysters are renowned for their quality, best tasted from the sea in Cancale.

• Soupe de poissons: A rich fish soup traditionally served with garlicky rouille mayonnaise (coloured with sweet red pepper), a mound of grated gruyère and a bowl of croutons.

• Moules marinières: Giant bowls of succulent orange mussels steamed in white wine, shallots and parsley - and perhaps enriched with cream or crème fraîche to become moules à la crème.

Street food

• Galettes-saucisses: Sausages wrapped in buckwheat pancakes, the best ones of which are to be found at markets.

Sweets and desserts

Far Breton is considered a great delicacy, a baked concoction of sponge and custard dotted with chopped plums, while îles flottantes are soft meringue icebergs adrift in a sea of crème anglaise, a light egg custard.

Local drinks

• Cider: Brittany produces excellent - and copious amounts of - cider, typically of the dry variety; some to try include Cornouaille, Loic Raison and Melenig.

• Chouchen: A traditional Breton mead made from fermented honey, sometimes flavoured with herbs or spices.