Towns
and Village of interest.Below are towns and villages found in Cotes D'Armor
that are worthy of special mention.
Côtes-d'Armor
Dinan
Dinan, with it's narrow, cobbled streets, is best explored on foot. The old
ramparts, castle and the river port are a delight to stroll around, with lots
of shops and restaurants to browse through.
If the hilly streets prove too tiring,
the Petit Train runs from the Tourist Office or Place Duclos to and from the port
with a commentary. Of particular interest are the château museum, Place des Merciers
et des Cordeliers and the ancient Rue du Jerzual with its craft shops. Weekly
market day is Thursday.
The town has attracted artists and craftsmen for years
and the rue du Jerzual is where you'll find the majority of them. Items designed
of glass, wood, silk, leather and clay are available. A great place for an original
gift.
La Baule
Star of the Côte d'Armor coast and gifted
with a breathtaking 5-km (3-miles) beach. Like Le Touquet and Dinard, La Baule
is a 19th-century creation, founded in 1879 to make the most of the excellent
sandy beaches that extend around the broad, sheltered bay between Pornichet and
Le Pouliguen. A pine forest, planted in 1840, keeps the shifting local sand dunes
firmly at bay. All in all, this can offer an idyllic stay for those who will enjoy
a day on the beach, an afternoon at the shops on avenue du Général-de-Gaulle and
avenue Louis-Lajarrige, and an evening at the Casino.
Lamballe
A large commercial centre, Lamballe is most famous for its national stud farm
in the centre of town. Guided tours can be arranged through the tourist office
to visit the stables, tack rooms and forge – the best time is after June when
the stallions are in residence.
Lannion
Lannion lies on the estuary of the River Léguer. The town is built on a hillside
and embraces both a host of medieval houses and narrow streets, and a thriving
telecommunications industry. The town also has an airport and the Pléumeur-Bodou
satellite communications centre, which can be visited between April and October.
Perros Guirec
Perros Guirec on the picturesque Pink Granite Coast, with its many sheltered
beaches, is a tourist trap in season. A thalasso spa centre, various water sports
and a casino add to the attractions. Boats leave here for Sept Iles, an important
bird sanctuary. St Jacques church is classed as a national monument and has a
wooden altarpiece dating from the 17th century. The wax museum, by the yacht harbour,
is open mid June to mid September.
St
Briac sur Mer Saint-Brieuc
Close
by the sea and Dinard and St Lunaire and on the estuary of the Fremur, St. Briac
has a lively seafront area which sports interesting restaurants. Looks very pretty
at nightime and has lots of little lanes to fascinate the visitor. Festival of
Breton music is held here in September of each year.
St
Malo
The outskirts aren’t so attractive; however, once you arrive
in the old town you will be enchanted by the place. The city walls were heavily
bombed during WWII but they have been completely restored and you can walk all
the way around the old town atop them. Inside the walls there are a wide range
of tourist shops to be browsed and restaurants to be savoured.
The walk around
the walls of St Malo's old town will take around an hour depending on how often
you stop to see the views (and there are plenty!).
St. Cast
The seaside resort of St. Cast has seven beaches, popular since the beginning
of the 20th century when seabathing began to catch on. Various artists such as
Buffet made it fashionable. At the end of the main beach is a small hill with
excellent views from the summit over the Emerald Coast and Cap Fréhel. Coastal
walks along the jagged cliffs are particularly impressive.
Trébeurden
A small, pleasant fishing village that is now a summer resort town, Trébeurden
makes a good base for exploring the pink-granite cliffs of the Corniche Bretonne,
starting with the rocky point at nearby Le Castel. Take a look at the profile
of the dramatic rocks off the coast near Trégastel and Perros-Guirec.
The scene
changes with the sunlight and the sweep and retreat of the tide, whose caprices
can strand fishing boats among islands that were, only hours before, hidden beneath
the sea. The famous footpath, the Sentier des Douaniers, starts up at the west
end of the Trestraou beach in the town of Perros-Guirec, 3 km east of Trébeurden;
from there it is a two-hour walk through fern forests and past cliffs and pink
granite boulders to the pretty beach at Ploumanac'h.
On a hillside perch above
Ploumanac'h is the village of La Clarté, home to the little Chapelle Notre Dame
de la Clarté, built of local pink granite and decorated with 14 stations of the
cross painted by the master of the Pont-Aven school, Maurice Denis.