La Pruneraie

Holiday cottages on the Normandy/Brittany border

Gites near Mont St Michel
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Places to visit 
    
 
Parc Floral is a fifty-acre country park, which was created in 1830.  Set among wooded hills, there are lakes and a dozen gardens.  It's a beautiful place to discover many varieties of plants and trees.   
 
 
 
 
 
Cancale lies along the coast to the east of Saint-Malo. It is a picturesque fishing village and is very popular with visitors drawn by its reputation for oysters. Though a small town it is well served with restaurants, many specialising in seafood.

There is a lovely coastal path where you can follow a circular walk from the town to the Pointe du Grouin, which has lovely views across the bay towards Mont St Michel.

   

 
  
 

Dol de Bretagne is an attractive town, particularly the pretty Grande Rue des Stuarts, which has many many 500-year-old half-timbered buildings.

  
  
 
Dinan is a beautiful medieval citadel with 13th-century ramparts and 15th-century half-timbered houses. It is best seen from the River Rance, from where the castle and fortifications are seen to their best advantage.  From the river, behind the houses on the left bank quay where the boats tie up, a steep, cobbled street leads up to the old town. 
 
Mortain perches high above the deep gorge of the Rance, 24 kilometres south of Vire.  The views from the town across the valley are lovely.  A short walk  through the town and up the hill leads to the "grande cascade"(large waterfall).  From here you can follow a footpath down the gorge to the "petite cascade" (little waterfall).
 
  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fougères has over a thousand years of history and boasts the largest medieval castle  in Europe as well as several other historic monuments and beautiful gardens.

 

 

 

 

Mont St Michel, the island at the frontier of Normandy and Brittany, is simply unmissable.  It  houses the eighth century abbey of Mont St Michel.  Three million visitors come to Mont St Michel each year, so it's worth getting there early to miss some of the crowds!

 

The bay of Mont St Michel has the highest tides in the world and many pilgrims were drowned or sucked into quicksand in medieval times.  For those who like walking, there are guided walks across the Bay of Mont St Michel.  

 

 

 

Honfleur is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine, very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie. It is particularly known for its old, beautiful and picturesque port, with its timber slate-faced houses. It has been painted many times by artists, such as Gustave Courbet, Claude Monet and Johan Jongkind. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Combourg is located south of Dol de Bretagne and is an attractive town.  The Château de Combourg (the childhood home of the writer, Chateaubriand) perches on a hill and dominates magnificent landscaped gardens.  Below the château and town, there is a cypress-lined lake.

 

 

 

Chausey is an archipelago of 365 unspoiled granite islands south of Guernsey and Jersey.  They have the strongest tides of the continent and very clear waters. Here, there are lovely long beaches of fine sand.   It was from these islands that the granite came to build Mont St Michel and to pave the streets of Paris.  Two Granville companies operate regular crossings from October to March and daily crossings from April to September: Vedettes Jolie France and Compagnie CorsaireThe crossing lasts 50 minutes.

 

 Other places of interest

 

Arromanches - Landing beaches • Mulberry Harbour • War museums

Avranches - Picturesque old town • Gardens with views of Mont St Michel • War museum

Bayeux - Pretty town • Shops • Bayeux tapestry • Cathedral • Museum

Caen - Castle • Memorial museum • Gardens
Ducey - Château de Montgomery

Falaise - William the Conqueror castle with sound and light display in English • War museum Granville - Chic port • Shops • Old walled town • Aquarium • Beaches • Market

Lake Dathée - Sailing • Golf • Walks around the lake
Les Roches de Ham (Domjean) - Les gorges de la Vire • Tourist route

St Claire sur Elle - Gardens

St James - American war cemetary

St Lô - National horse stud farm • Douve marshes • Bird watching

St Malo - Walled sea-side town • Aquarium • Port • Museum • Beaches
St Mère Eglise - Market • Airborne war museum

St Sever - Woodland park • Lake • Open-air swimming pool • National forest 
Souleuvre - Bungy jumping • Death slide • Karting • Café

Villedieu les Poêles - Copper shops • Bell foundry open to visitors • Market
Vire - Market • Shops • Swimming pool • Walking tours of ramparts 

Vitré - Château des Rochers-Sévigné • Castle • Museum • Picturesque town

 

For children
 
Champrepus Eight kilometres west of Villedieu is Normandy's finest zoo, displaying a vast array of animals in very natural surroundings.
Cobac Parc offers waterslides, mini golf, trampolines, quad bikes, train rides, swings, football, boat hire, swimming pools, etc.
Festyland is just an hour's drive away.  Here there are train rides, medieval themes, waterslides, big dippers, etc.
Forêt de Villecartier is a lovely forest with a lake.  It's a great place for walking, and it also offers boat hire and remote control boats on the lake.  There's an assault course in the forest, where you can climb in safety with a harness attached to the high wires.
Le Val des Cimes is an adventure park for all ages.  There are giant swings and zip rides.  Enjoy the forest and test your nerves in safety on the high wires.
Alligator Bay, near Mont St Michel, houses the largest group of alligators in Europe in its tropical glasshouse of 2,500 sq metres.  It's fun for all the family with the dragon labyrinth containing boas, iguanas, camelions and crocodiles.  Get up close and stroke a giant tortoise!
 
This page was last modified on 10 July 2011