Brittany

Brittany has more coastline than any other French region, and much of it is beach: wide sandy bays on the south coast around Carnac, Quiberon and Bénodet, the pink granite boulders and coves of Perros-Guirec and Ploumanac'h on the north, the long strands of the Crozon peninsula, and the resort beaches of Dinard and Saint-Malo, where the tide pulls back across huge flats. Summer here is a classic seaside vacation, with beach towns, sailing schools and striped wind shelters on the sand.

The catch is the water. The sea warms to about 17°C to 19°C in August, a little more in the sheltered Gulf of Morbihan and the south-facing bays, and a little less on the exposed west tip. Swimming is brisk rather than balmy, and the season runs properly from July to early September. The tides are large, so check them before choosing a beach for the day.

Eating in Brittany means the sea and the dairy. Oysters from Cancale and the Gulf of Morbihan, mussels, langoustines, scallops from the Bay of Saint-Brieuc and platters of shellfish in the harbour towns are the high points, alongside buckwheat galettes and sweet crêpes washed down with dry cider from a bowl. Salted butter runs through everything, from kouign-amann and butter biscuits to salted caramel, and every town has its crêperie and its weekly market.

Rennes has the deepest restaurant scene, with the large Saturday market at Place des Lices, while Saint-Malo, Cancale and the south-coast ports are best for seafood. Fine dining exists, often in coastal villages, but the range beyond Breton and classic French cooking is narrow outside the larger towns.

Brittany's heritage is spread across many small, well-kept places rather than gathered in one city. The standing stones of Carnac, thousands of menhirs in long rows, are among the great prehistoric sites of Europe, and the Gulf of Morbihan holds more dolmens and burial mounds. Saint-Malo's granite walls ring a rebuilt corsair city, and Dinan, Vannes, Vitré, Fougères and Josselin keep half-timbered streets, ramparts and castles.

In the west, the parish closes of Finistère, Quimper's cathedral and old town, the walled Ville Close of Concarneau and the granite village of Locronan show the distinct Breton Catholic and maritime culture. Rennes adds the Parliament of Brittany and the Musée des Beaux-Arts. Museums are modest in scale; this is a region for towns and monuments.

Going out in Brittany centres on Rennes, a large student city where the bars of Rue Saint-Michel and the old centre fill up from Thursday onwards and a few clubs run late. Brest and Lorient have harbour-side bars, and in summer the resorts of Saint-Malo, Quiberon and La Trinité-sur-Mer stay busy into the evening. Most of the coast is quiet by midnight, and a fest-noz, a traditional dance night in a village hall or square, is often the most memorable night out.

The coast is the landscape. The GR34 coastal path follows almost the whole shoreline, past the pink granite of the Côte de Granit Rose, the cliffs of Cap Fréhel and Fort la Latte, and the wild headlands of the far west at Pointe du Raz and the Crozon peninsula. Offshore, Belle-Île, Ouessant and the Glénan archipelago add more walking, and the Sept-Îles reserve holds a large gannet colony and puffins.

The Gulf of Morbihan, scattered with islands, is excellent for kayaking and sailing, and the Atlantic beaches of Finistère and Quiberon have reliable surf. Inland the land is low: the Monts d'Arrée moors, the Nantes-Brest canal towpath for cycling and the forest of Brocéliande. The weather is mild and changeable, with spring and early autumn the best walking months.

Wherever you stay, there are towns and islands within easy reach. From Saint-Malo, Mont-Saint-Michel is about an hour away just across the border in Normandy, and Dinan, Dinard, Cancale and Rennes are all closer. From Vannes or Auray, boats run into the Gulf of Morbihan to Île aux Moines and Île d'Arz, and ferries cross to Belle-Île from Quiberon.

In the west, Quimper, Locronan, Concarneau and Pont-Aven make an easy circuit, and boats leave Brest and Le Conquet for Ouessant and Molène. Île de Bréhat, car-free and covered in flowers, is a short crossing from the north coast. Nantes, the historic capital of the Breton dukes, is about an hour from the south-east of the region.

Brittany is a classic family seaside region. Children spend days on sandy beaches with rock pools exposed at low tide, learning to sail or kayak at the many sailing schools, and eating crêpes. Families stay in campsites, self-catering cottages, gîtes and small resorts that are easy to manage. Océanopolis in Brest and the aquarium in Saint-Malo are good wet-day options, and there are smaller animal parks and amusement parks inland.

The towns are safe and relaxed and distances between sights are short. The cool water and strong tides mean young swimmers need watching, and the weather can turn grey even in August, so plan some indoor days.

Fast trains link Rennes with Paris in about an hour and a half, and regional lines run on to Saint-Malo, Vannes, Quimper and Brest, whose old centres are compact and walkable. Beyond the main towns, the coast, villages and megalith sites are best reached by car, and the dual carriageways are free of tolls and easy to drive. Coastal roads clog in July and August, and island trips depend on ferry crossings, so a stay works best with one well-chosen base and a car.

Shopping here is about regional products rather than fashion. Quimper's hand-painted faience, striped sailor tops, woollen jumpers, salted butter caramels, biscuits, cider and fleur de sel from Guérande fill the shops of the old towns. The weekly markets, above all Rennes' Saturday market at Place des Lices, are the highlight. Rennes has the main high-street and department-store shopping; elsewhere it is boutiques and souvenir shops in the resorts.

Brittany is moderately priced for France. In July and August, rooms in Saint-Malo, Dinard and the Gulf of Morbihan resorts are in demand and cost more. Campsites, self-catering cottages, gîtes and inland villages keep a stay reasonable, and crêperies, markets and toll-free roads help. Seafood platters and the smarter coastal restaurants are where the bills climb. June and September are noticeably easier on the budget.

Live music in Brittany is rooted in its Celtic tradition. Bagad pipe bands, fest-noz dance nights and traditional singing are part of village life, and in summer the calendar fills with festivals: the Festival Interceltique in Lorient in August, one of the largest Celtic gatherings anywhere, the big rock and pop festival of Les Vieilles Charrues at Carhaix, and the Quimper Festival de Cornouaille. In December the Transmusicales bring new music to Rennes.

Rennes also has the region's opera house, a national theatre and a good concert programme through the year, and Brest has a large performance venue. Outside the festival season and the larger towns, the offer is modest.

Brittany is one of the homes of thalassotherapy, the French tradition of seawater cures, which began in Roscoff at the end of the nineteenth century. Seawater spas with heated pools, algae wraps and hydrotherapy sit on the seafront at Quiberon, Carnac, Saint-Malo, Dinard, Perros-Guirec and Bénodet, and some visitors build a whole stay around them, often outside the summer peak.

The pace beyond the spas helps too: quiet granite villages, harbour walks, long tidal views and islands without cars. It is restorative in a fresh, windy, Atlantic way rather than a warm one, and best in spring and autumn when the resorts are calm.