kawh

We will now have 3 nights in st. Malo. Will have come from st. Michelle and Bayeux..

Want to spend one day just lounging around town...but looking for a great, scenic drive...or a worthy destination (and worthy could even mean 'best bakery/lunch/coffee ever'...

Your favs?? Thoughts. Thanks!
Kawh

bilboburgler

1) visit the hydro electric power station
2) ferry to Dinard
3) don't eat by the gates as this is tourist mecca
4) drive to Dinan spend whole day there

Padraig

One from my bucket list for you to consider: http://www.compagniecorsaire.com/en/...the-rance.html

traveller1959

Drive to Cap Frehel (about one hour), see the tall menhir, visit Fort La Latte, enjoy the bizarre scenery, drive D 34 along the coast and admire the beaches with the emerald sea even if you do not want to swim - it is breathtakingly scenic around there!

kja

I hate to say this, but honestly, I was a bit disappointed with St. Malo, and greatly preferred Dinan and Rennes. I'm sure that was just me....

I was glad to have seen Cap Frehel and Fort La Latte.

Enjoy!

traveller1959

We share exactly the same taste, kja!

Coquelicot

We were surprised by St Malo. Guidebooks and travel websites make the town sound interesting, but it wasn't our cup of tea. Just a mass of tourists shopping.

I say this not to discourage you, kawh. If it's one of the first towns you visit in France, it'll be fine.

But I predict that if you visit a few French towns you'll find others that you prefer.

Dinan seemed much nicer to us. It was crowded when we were there, but with students hanging out and parents taking kids shopping for shoes or going to the boulangerie.

You can walk from Dinan along the Rance to the very pretty village of Lehon.



We spent most of a day taking the circuit that Michelin shows around the Rance. We drove it backward, which made it harder to follow, but we saw the same things. It was fun driving down to the coves.

kawh

Thanks much for these...

don't eat by the gates - ha!

padraig-- yes... dinan is on my list and hope to do the boat... only problem is that it's TOO long round trip, but one way is a problem with how to return... they don't have a shuttle for one-way travellers (to keep it simple...) ??

traveller-- will look up the drive and towns... but what 'bizarre scenery" ??

kja and coque.. ok... won't get my hopes up. i had posted a couple of months ago about a location on the water where one can hear the waves... and this is the main reason for picking st. malo. must have that sound!! so really just a base and staying along the promenade outside of old town/shopping area.

thanks again... looks like dinan for sure, hopefully will find a way to get on the river, and maybe the towns listed along the coast. should easily fill the days!!

kja

"a location on the water where one can hear the waves"

I remember that thread, but would never have thought of St Malo -- and I had a room just inside the walls so I could see the tide, which came in and left very gently -- and was there for a spring tide!

Wishing you well!

kja

Out of curiosity, I just looked up that thread -- this is it, right?
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...d-normandy.cfm

I don't see any references to place <u>in</u> St. Malo there -- just bilboburgler's mention of some places nearby, off the Ile de Brehat, at least 2 hours by car from St. Malo by my mapping service, not counting the time to actually get to the Ile de Brehat by ferry....

Are you really sure that St. Malo suits your needs?

Whatever you decide, I hope you enjoy your trip!

traveller1959

"bizarre scenery": https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/C...hel?uselang=en

Padraig

kawh wrote: "dinan is on my list and hope to do the boat... only problem is that it's TOO long round trip, but one way is a problem with how to return... they don't have a shuttle for one-way travellers (to keep it simple...) ??"

You could make your own itinerary - just check the train timetable between Dinan and St. Malo.

bilboburgler

there is both a bus (line 10) and a train that makes the trip StM to Dinan

kawh

thanks all again. kja... yes... the 'waves' thread. i sort of gave up... lots of good suggestions... but i went through every one of them and couldn't absolutely confirm the wild sea factor. i was looking for something like, "when i stayed at hotel X, the waves were so loud that i couldn't sleep" but most of the suggestions were "maybe" and "probably"... or they were just not located to work with our needs. so.. i decided on st. malo with a big water view... where i can walk along the beach and hear the petite waves!!

shellio

I liked St. Malo and found it pretty and interesting, even though much of it was rebuilt in the original style after WWII. If you've ever been to Quebec City you might notice the resemblance, gray stone, stark, fortress-like, not surprising as Jacques Cartier set off from here for Quebec. I agree that staying away from the entry gates will give you a less touristy experience.

The tomb of the writer Chateaubriand is on a small island just off the seawall, and a visit there will get you out closer to the sea sounds and views you are looking for. Enjoy your visit.