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Brittany Best routes (Depends where you live!)

France is a very large country...... to drive comfortably, plan in terms of days rather than hours. Yes, you can use the motorways....but what a waste.....think of all those medieval towns, timeless unspoilt countryside and roadside bars....the choice is yours. There are two major routes .....use the tunnel...but expect a long drive through Normandy...... go by ferry from Poole, Portsmouth or Plymouth....for this region your destination ports are St Malo or better still Roscoff.FOR FERRY INFO CLICK HERERoads in Brittany are more orbital than direct, From St Malo use the n176 via Jugon-les-lacs then join the n12 westbound.. From Roscoff..... join the n12(30 mins)go eastbound for Morlaix, Dinan and Rennes.....Westbound for Brest and southern Brittany....remember secondary roads, although very quite can take 2-3 times longer.....(crossing the Black Mountain is a case in point!)....Its a pity that o.s.maps do not extend to Europe...however.... dependable as ever are the Michelin (carte routiere et touristique, 1/200000...1cm:2km) maps..... to cover the whole region you will need no58, no59 and no63.

Try not to miss! Brittany is the home of short breaks, the weather is not disimilar to Cornwall....The coastline is unexceptional....Best is around Treguier, east of Roscoff and possibly the beaches stretching from Benodet to Port Manech just below Pont Avon and Concarneau..........Towns not to miss are Dinan(the old part of the town is tucked away in a deep valley)....Concarneau....Pont Avon...Rennes....Quimper.....any village especially Locronan (between Brest and Quimper)

WHERE TO STAY AND WHEN TO STAY If you want the whole local experience....stay in a town....both Dinan and Morlaix offer a good introduction to French life....go to the markets, visit the creperie.......be open minded.....try a few phrases! Expect to pay about £25/night/pp........or Chambres D'hotes, (B&B) £11/14/night/pp, look for special deals off season. Some Ferry packages offer good value....but for flexibility off season go on spec....... Summers are warm but unpredictable......better in the south towards Lorient....avoid July and August.....as all of France is on holiday ! ACCOMMODATION Brittany Ferries has a useful directory of properties, most to a high standard or run a search usingaskjeeves.com A FEW TIPS Buying wine.......don't wait until you are about to depart....the best deals are rarely within 10km of the ferry port, hyper markets such as E'LECLERC offer good deals on spirits as well as wine....and don't forget those crepes and cheeses!...Supermarkets shut for lunch and some shops,( especially bread), close on Mondays......All those things you hear about the French are simply not true!, they are like us.... a proud country.....so remember be polite, French humour is very visual, don't expect any sympathy on animal rights! don't expect people to react like home! don't expect sympathy from the police....just try and stick to common sense.....Relax and have a good holiday. For more information Contact Andrew & Di CLICK HERE all items copyright..........all items are the authors own views. HOME PAGE.

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