Saint Malo what to see, what to do, where to sleep, where to eat and how to get there
What to know before visiting Saint-Malo?
Saint Bad to see. Saint-Malo France the medieval city of privateers and spectacular tides
Saint Malo to see in French Brittany. It is one of the essential cities to visit the Bretagne. A city of about 50.000 inhabitants that is distributed in the city Intra-Muros and Extra-Muros. Well connected by train with other important cities such as Rennes or Nantes. And well communicated internally by its bus network. Although walking in half an hour we reach almost all places.
It is the French city of corsairs, pirates with royal permission, par excellence. With an old town within impressive walls, of good diameter. It will take an hour to go around the walls.
Walls, through which you can stroll above, contemplating on one side the beautiful city and on the other the great spectacle of the Atlantic tides of French Brittany.
Saint Bad to see. Essential visits
The islands of Saint-Malo, What to see in Saint Malo on the islands.
1 The islands of Gran Be, Petit Be and Gran Fort are a must-see in Saint Malo Fracia.
The islands of Great Be, Petit Be and the Grand Fort, national fort, built in 1689 by Vauban and Garangeau,are a must see. They are all a spectacle in itself, for the incredible tides, for the incredible prints and landscapes and for their calm and peace.
Everything is uninhabited islands. And Gran Be's has the peculiarity of having the grave of the great writer Francois Rene de Chateaubriand.
You will get the best photographs of Saint Malo on these islands.
Think that you can only access them at low tide, so plan your visit before going. In ours, in winter we were able to access in the morning and noon, in the evening the tide rose and the islands were not accessible.
Some different visits
2 A walk along the walls of Saint Malo: see the beaches and the city within the walls from the heights of the towers
Something you should not miss if you go to Saint Malo is to go all the way around the walls of Saint Malo.
It is approximately one turn of an hour and you see the best landscapes of the city within and outside the walls.
The walk of the Saint Malo wall jumps from bastion to tower to bastion to tower. On the one hand, the bustling streets of the city and, on the other, magnificent fine sandy beaches, port and forts on the islands. From the Saint-Vincent gate, at the entrance of the citadel, the route that we propose begins.
The view even dazzles Dinard. In front of Saint-Malo, on the other side of the mouth of the Rance river, is another of the typical tourist cities of French Brittany. The city receives the name of Dinard and we could say that it bears a certain resemblance to the Mediterranean capital of French cinema, such as Cannes. Since it has a characteristic Belle Epoque style, with a multitude of XNUMXth century houses, and also to host, during each month of October, the British Film Festival
All the beaches at the foot of the ramparts of Saint Malo, at the foot of the ramparts, there is a beautiful tower called Bidouane. And in front of the castle the great Sillon beach that you cannot miss after a good walk along the ramparts. Right at the foot of Fort National is born what is considered the main beach of the city, beyond the two protected by the walls of the historic part of Saint-Malo. A 3-kilometer beach, ideal for resting after a hard day visiting Intramuros. Hopefully you'll end up getting a little brown if you're lucky with the day.
3 Intramuros, what to see in Saint Malo within the walls
Inside the walls Saint Malo houses alleys full of tourist shops, some beautiful, and walks between tall elegant buildings. When one admires their style, it is difficult to believe that most of them were rebuilt after the bombings of 1944. From the entrance to the city you are tempted to stand on a terrace in one of its squares.
Some essential things to see in Saint Malo intramuros are:
- El castle with its great keep from 1424, the general tower from 1475, the Quic-en-Groigne tower (1498 - 1501) and the XNUMXth-century tower des Dames and des Moulins
- La Saint-Vincent cathedral
- La Quic-en-Groigne tower
- La Pélicot house built like the rear castle of a ship
- All the shipowners' houses
- The heights of the Hotel d'Asfeld
- The Sainte-Croix and Saint-Ideuc churches
4 Outside the walls Saint Malo what to see: the Solidor Tower, the corsair ship Roy and more
Outside the inner city there is much more to see in Saint Malo. Some essentials are:
- La Solidor tower, former prison and museum.
- El privateer ship Roy.
- Cite d'Aleth, bunkers, beach and good walks.
La solidor tower it was built between 1369 to 1382 on a rocky ledge overlooking the outlet of the Rance river, something to see in Saint-Malo as essential
It was a dungeon made up of three towers connected by fortified walls. A building built on behalf of the Duke of Brittany who controlled the river and estuary at a time when the city of Saint-Malo was out of his control.
During the Revolution, the tower's initial vocation became obsolete and became a prison.
Today it is listed as a Historical Monument and the Solidor Tower has been the headquarters of the Long Course Museum and Cap Hornier since 1970. It presents collections of objects, models, instruments and marine charts from the late 1840th century to the early XNUMXth century and the history of commercial navigation along the Cape Horn route, mainly from XNUMX to the first. Quarter of the XNUMXth century.
It is worth visiting the museum and seeing the exceptional view of the Saint-Malo bay from one of its three towers. The price is not excessively expensive, 6 euros per adult.
El roy's privateer ship, a little expensive for what you see. 20 4 and you only see the deck, cellar and the captain's cabin and dining room. Not bad, but we found it expensive for what it is.
La Cite d'Aleth It is a very complete "neighborhood", as it has the old Saint Malo church that was destroyed and caused the city where it is currently to be founded, the museum of German defense bunkers, a beach, a defense fort and several restaurants in the beach with a terrace for dining. It is very pleasant to walk there, and less crowded than in the inner city.
5 A special time to visit Saint Malo. What to see Saint Malo at Christmas: Christmas markets and ice rink
Saint Malo at Christmas is beautiful. It is a very cool time to visit the city. Everything is decorated, there is a beautiful Village de Noel, with paraditas and an ice skating rink until January 5.
Sleeping in a motorhome or camper in the Salut de Terrades: haven of peace
Extra: Saint-Malo by motorhome
In a motorhome, there is a area in a fenced parking lot with all services except electricity. Although the services are outside and you can make free use of them even if you are not in the area.
For 7,5 eur 24 hours it's great. It even includes the bus to the center. Of course, it includes the bus on the same day that puts the ticket, so if you arrive at night, on the bus you do not show the ticket much or it will not be valid. The bus is number 2, you take it in front of the parking lot on the first line marked on the ground and it is the last stop where you must get off: «intramuros».
Photos Saint Malo to see
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It is very interesting what you share. Thank you, we will use it.
We congratulate you
Thanks Eduard. Since this blog was born, that was the idea: to help you on your trips and share experiences together. You will tell us when you go! Regards!