Three weeks in June 2008 - starting with a week in Dordogne, ending with a week near Rouen, Brittany suggestions in between please?
Nov 26th, 2007, 06:19 PM
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Three weeks in June 2008 - starting with a week in Dordogne, ending with a week near Rouen, Brittany suggestions in between please?
Hello everyone, after considerable perusal and research we have decided to drop the idea of Provence and instead concentrate our travels on the Dordogne, Brittany and Normandy.
A few considerations...
a) we will be leaving Toulon (conference) on a Friday and would like to do a weekly rental in the Dordogne. With most starting on Friday or Saturday it will have to be a quick trip unfortunately
b)Week 3 is confirmed at Interval property at Connelles - looks nice but as others have suggested, too far to do Normandy beaches effectively, will do other trips from here
Question... would prefer another weekly rental for Week 2 but need to be near Bayeux at the end of week 2 in order to book Battlebus trip.
Should we abandon the idea of a whole week somewhere and do maybe 5 days near ? Dinan (am basing best area on Stu Dudley recommendations!)and then maybe two in Bayeux/Honfleur or stick to a week, but closer to Bayeux for tour?
My other must see is Mont St Michel and it appears that everyone recommends a night there?
Could week 2 involve Southern Brittany/MSM/Dinan and end in Bayeux perhaps?
Would very much appreciate thoughts of those that have any experience here?
(Will be a party of three inc. adult son so having our own facilities preferable to booking two rooms in B&B etc. where possible.)
A few considerations...
a) we will be leaving Toulon (conference) on a Friday and would like to do a weekly rental in the Dordogne. With most starting on Friday or Saturday it will have to be a quick trip unfortunately
b)Week 3 is confirmed at Interval property at Connelles - looks nice but as others have suggested, too far to do Normandy beaches effectively, will do other trips from here
Question... would prefer another weekly rental for Week 2 but need to be near Bayeux at the end of week 2 in order to book Battlebus trip.
Should we abandon the idea of a whole week somewhere and do maybe 5 days near ? Dinan (am basing best area on Stu Dudley recommendations!)and then maybe two in Bayeux/Honfleur or stick to a week, but closer to Bayeux for tour?
My other must see is Mont St Michel and it appears that everyone recommends a night there?
Could week 2 involve Southern Brittany/MSM/Dinan and end in Bayeux perhaps?
Would very much appreciate thoughts of those that have any experience here?
(Will be a party of three inc. adult son so having our own facilities preferable to booking two rooms in B&B etc. where possible.)
Nov 27th, 2007, 01:28 PM
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ozgirl, we drove from Bayeux to Dinan this fall. If you check on www.viamichelin.com you will see that it's not very far. We stopped in Fougeres to walk around the Chateau.
The area around Dinan is wonderful but not a good location if what interests you is in the "Westernmost" part of Brittany .
We spent two weeks in Brittany based in Dinan, Roscoff and Locmariaquer and felt it gave us access to most of our "really want to sees". Still not enough time for everything
If the Emeraude coast, Mont St. Michel, St. Malo are on your highlights list Dinan is an excellent choice.
If you are interested in the Parish Encloses, Granit Rose coast then the area around Roscoff would be a better base.
In Normandy my husband and I found a very reasonable B&B in Bayeux that I would recommend. Manoir Guerin de la Houssaye was 60 euros per night for a double. Francois is also a WWII licensed guide. We were there 4 nights so did our own tour of the battlefields.
Bayuex is an excellent base for touring the area.
Have fun planning your trip. Deborah
The area around Dinan is wonderful but not a good location if what interests you is in the "Westernmost" part of Brittany .
We spent two weeks in Brittany based in Dinan, Roscoff and Locmariaquer and felt it gave us access to most of our "really want to sees". Still not enough time for everything
If the Emeraude coast, Mont St. Michel, St. Malo are on your highlights list Dinan is an excellent choice.
If you are interested in the Parish Encloses, Granit Rose coast then the area around Roscoff would be a better base.
In Normandy my husband and I found a very reasonable B&B in Bayeux that I would recommend. Manoir Guerin de la Houssaye was 60 euros per night for a double. Francois is also a WWII licensed guide. We were there 4 nights so did our own tour of the battlefields.
Bayuex is an excellent base for touring the area.
Have fun planning your trip. Deborah
Nov 27th, 2007, 01:32 PM
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Me again !!!
Dinan isn't that far away from Bayeux (viamichelin says 2 hrs). We left the Dinan area early one morning (not ridiculously early - around 7am or so), and made it to the Caen Peace Museum 15 mins before it opened at 9. I think you could stay near Dinan at the end of week 2 and make it to Bayeux at a reasonable time.
I think the northern Brittany Coast is a lot more scenic than the coast of Normandy. Too much of the Normandy coast is overdeveloped, IMO. I also think the inland countryside is a tad prettier in Brittany. I would just stick with Brittany. We spent 2 weeks around Dinan and never ran out of things to see & do - but were a lttle bored in Normandy after 5 days (not including 1 1/2 days on WWII stuff). It's easy to visit MSM from Dinan and get there at 8 before they haul out the postcard stands & the hoards arrive.
Gite rental rates are so much less expensive than most nice hotels, that we have often left our gite a day early to stay someplace that we "needed" to be - and not felt guilty about paying for 2 different places on the same night. We've even taken several overnight trips from our various gite.
Do you have my Normandy & Brittany itinerary? e-mail me at [email protected] if you would like it. We spent 2 weeks in northwest Brittany this past Sept - that's in addition to 2 weeks near Dinan & 1 week near Pont Aven a few years ago. I will probably be updating my Brittany itinerary this winter, so e-mail me just before you go if you want the updated copy also.
The Gite we stayed in near Dinan has been "enhanced", and is now the most expensive Gite in Brittany in the Cotes d'Amour dept - ridiculous actually - over 1,000E per week.
You better get your Gites nailed down soon - we reserved our gites for '08 last month, and a friend who is staying in Brittany reserved her Gite near Dinan this past Sept.
Stu Dudley
Dinan isn't that far away from Bayeux (viamichelin says 2 hrs). We left the Dinan area early one morning (not ridiculously early - around 7am or so), and made it to the Caen Peace Museum 15 mins before it opened at 9. I think you could stay near Dinan at the end of week 2 and make it to Bayeux at a reasonable time.
I think the northern Brittany Coast is a lot more scenic than the coast of Normandy. Too much of the Normandy coast is overdeveloped, IMO. I also think the inland countryside is a tad prettier in Brittany. I would just stick with Brittany. We spent 2 weeks around Dinan and never ran out of things to see & do - but were a lttle bored in Normandy after 5 days (not including 1 1/2 days on WWII stuff). It's easy to visit MSM from Dinan and get there at 8 before they haul out the postcard stands & the hoards arrive.
Gite rental rates are so much less expensive than most nice hotels, that we have often left our gite a day early to stay someplace that we "needed" to be - and not felt guilty about paying for 2 different places on the same night. We've even taken several overnight trips from our various gite.
Do you have my Normandy & Brittany itinerary? e-mail me at [email protected] if you would like it. We spent 2 weeks in northwest Brittany this past Sept - that's in addition to 2 weeks near Dinan & 1 week near Pont Aven a few years ago. I will probably be updating my Brittany itinerary this winter, so e-mail me just before you go if you want the updated copy also.
The Gite we stayed in near Dinan has been "enhanced", and is now the most expensive Gite in Brittany in the Cotes d'Amour dept - ridiculous actually - over 1,000E per week.
You better get your Gites nailed down soon - we reserved our gites for '08 last month, and a friend who is staying in Brittany reserved her Gite near Dinan this past Sept.
Stu Dudley
Nov 27th, 2007, 01:50 PM
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I just read DeborahAnn's post. Her comment about western Brittany vs. the Dinan area is important. Our Sept trip this year was 2 weeks in Penvenan - which is less than 30 mins from the Granit Rose section in Western Brittany (actually, more "central" coast Brittany).
I think for a first timer with only 1 week, I would choose the Dinan area. This gives you better access to MSM, St Malo, Rennes (must see, IMO), & Bayeux. Western Brittany's coast is a lot more "wild & wooley" than what you will see along the Cote d'Emeraude near Dinan - but the Cote d'Emeraude is still quite scenic. The Granit Rose area is very unique - we actually first visited this section as a day-trip from Dinan.
Stu Dudley
I think for a first timer with only 1 week, I would choose the Dinan area. This gives you better access to MSM, St Malo, Rennes (must see, IMO), & Bayeux. Western Brittany's coast is a lot more "wild & wooley" than what you will see along the Cote d'Emeraude near Dinan - but the Cote d'Emeraude is still quite scenic. The Granit Rose area is very unique - we actually first visited this section as a day-trip from Dinan.
Stu Dudley
Nov 28th, 2007, 04:25 AM
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Many thanks DeborahAnn and Stu Dudley, this has been very helpful. DeborahAnn, I realsie not a great distance between Dinan and Bayeux but if we go with Battlebus, they insist you are staying within 50km of Bayeux before they will accept you, hence we can't be in Dinan night before our proposed WWII day. However, I have had a look at the B&B you stayed in and it looks great as does Francois as a guide. I wonder if anyone else has used him at all? I have emailed them with the thought of staying two nights there (prior to moving on to Connelles) and the 5 previous in or near Dinan, either a gite or somewhere that will allow a 'short stay.' Stu I will email you separately for that itinerary , thank you for the offer.
On a separate note, do you have any comment about the area of Lignol (Morbihan) I have found a beautiful residence there that I would love to stay in because of its setting (on a river and very cute!) but sounds like not as practical as Dinan! Just thought I'd ask ....
Once again, thank you.
On a separate note, do you have any comment about the area of Lignol (Morbihan) I have found a beautiful residence there that I would love to stay in because of its setting (on a river and very cute!) but sounds like not as practical as Dinan! Just thought I'd ask ....
Once again, thank you.
Nov 28th, 2007, 04:55 AM
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ozgirl, what I found helpful when deciding on where to base ourselves in Brittany was to make a list of all the things we definitely wanted to visit and then check on www. viamichelin.com to see how long it would take to get there.
We stayed at a B&B in Locmariaquer which was on the golfe/Atlantic in the Morbihan. We were there 4 nights and used it as a base to visit Pont Aven area, Concarneau, Vannes, Josselin plus the megaliths.
My information is based on our first visit to Brittany, so I'm sure Stu will be able to give you more specific information.
Have fun planning and please enjoy a dessert crepe of caramel with beurre sale with ice cream for me Deborah
We stayed at a B&B in Locmariaquer which was on the golfe/Atlantic in the Morbihan. We were there 4 nights and used it as a base to visit Pont Aven area, Concarneau, Vannes, Josselin plus the megaliths.
My information is based on our first visit to Brittany, so I'm sure Stu will be able to give you more specific information.
Have fun planning and please enjoy a dessert crepe of caramel with beurre sale with ice cream for me
Deborah
Nov 28th, 2007, 08:39 AM
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Regarding Lignol.
Re-read the advice DeborahAnn gave you about making a list of the things you want to see, and then using viamichelin to determine how long it would take from a "planned" base to get to these spots. That's pretty much what I do when planning a trip. I'll take a red felt pen & circle all the towns, Chateaux, scenic drives, etc that I would like to visit. Then I find a base that is in the center of this field of circles. I don't like to drive more than 1 1/2 hrs to a location. For our upcoming trp to the French Jura next July, I used this method & decided we needed two bases instead of one.
Just like buying a house, the three most important things to consider are loction, location, and location. I never choose a place to stay based on how charming it is - unless my main objective is to "veg out" for several days at the hotel/gite. This past Sept, we drove through the area around Lignol on the way from Vannes (excellent town), to our gite in Penvenan. We visited Mur de Bretagne (major disappointment), Lake Guerledan, les Forges des Salles, Gorges du Daoulas (poor), Rostrenen & a few other places. I did not find this area nearly as intresting as other regions in Brittany. If you look at Michelin map 308 of Brittany, you'll see that there are no major roads accessing that area - so travel to more interesting sites would be very time consuming. I would not recommend staying there.
Stu Dudley
Re-read the advice DeborahAnn gave you about making a list of the things you want to see, and then using viamichelin to determine how long it would take from a "planned" base to get to these spots. That's pretty much what I do when planning a trip. I'll take a red felt pen & circle all the towns, Chateaux, scenic drives, etc that I would like to visit. Then I find a base that is in the center of this field of circles. I don't like to drive more than 1 1/2 hrs to a location. For our upcoming trp to the French Jura next July, I used this method & decided we needed two bases instead of one.
Just like buying a house, the three most important things to consider are loction, location, and location. I never choose a place to stay based on how charming it is - unless my main objective is to "veg out" for several days at the hotel/gite. This past Sept, we drove through the area around Lignol on the way from Vannes (excellent town), to our gite in Penvenan. We visited Mur de Bretagne (major disappointment), Lake Guerledan, les Forges des Salles, Gorges du Daoulas (poor), Rostrenen & a few other places. I did not find this area nearly as intresting as other regions in Brittany. If you look at Michelin map 308 of Brittany, you'll see that there are no major roads accessing that area - so travel to more interesting sites would be very time consuming. I would not recommend staying there.
Stu Dudley
Nov 28th, 2007, 09:22 AM
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For a week in the Dordogne, you might want to consider one of the two rental cottages at the Chateaux les Milandes (Josephine Baker's former home.) I think they are represented by [email protected]. They are in driving distance of Sarlat, Beynac-Cazanac, Drome and Rocamadour.
We stayed at the interval property in Connelles in 2005. It is within easy driving distance of Rouen and Caen, as well as the Normandy beaches because of the proximity to the autoroute. If I can answer any specific questions, my email is [email protected]
We stayed at the interval property in Connelles in 2005. It is within easy driving distance of Rouen and Caen, as well as the Normandy beaches because of the proximity to the autoroute. If I can answer any specific questions, my email is [email protected]
Nov 28th, 2007, 01:02 PM
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Thany you all again - OK Lignol is out and we will stick to Dinan area as I think using 'the red pen method' that is the way to go for us on our first trip to this area.
Jeff, I will email you separately, thank you for the offer.
DeborahAnn, (or anyone else) no other comments on Francois?
Jeff, I will email you separately, thank you for the offer.
DeborahAnn, (or anyone else) no other comments on Francois?
Nov 28th, 2007, 01:59 PM
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We stayed in a B&B near Cancale. Here's what I wrote a while back:
<i>Our B&B in Cancale is a converted farmhouse which now contains 5 individual rooms for shorter stays and two units for longer stays (gîtes). Taking care of the rooms is the full time occupation of the host--M.Marc Loisel <[email protected]> 02 99 89 73 61. A friendly man who gave us some good recommendations for restaurants.</i>
This would be closer to MSM than Dinan, might also be closer to St. Malo. Cancale is known for its oysters.
<i>Our B&B in Cancale is a converted farmhouse which now contains 5 individual rooms for shorter stays and two units for longer stays (gîtes). Taking care of the rooms is the full time occupation of the host--M.Marc Loisel <[email protected]> 02 99 89 73 61. A friendly man who gave us some good recommendations for restaurants.</i>
This would be closer to MSM than Dinan, might also be closer to St. Malo. Cancale is known for its oysters.
