Location

"Les Environs"

La Belle France cottages is situated on the eastern edge of Brittany, with Normandy just a short drive away. Our position offers excellent access to all that both regions have to offer.

The village of Sains is a short walk away with sports field with goal posts and basketball hoops, and also three marked rambling trails. Fishing, walking and picnicking are available at the extensive communal lake - Le Pas Gerault, with two further fishing lakes nearby - Le Pissot and Le Grand Etang. The church of Sains was built in 1861 in a neo gothic style and dominates the surrounding landscape, and easy reference point!

Enjoy shopping for delicious local specialities (and basic provisions!) a short (5 minutes) drive away in Pleine Fougères. Bread, butchers, banks, bars, grocery store, hairdresser and creperie Les Polders.  Pontorson 10 minutes away boasts an open air market each Wednesday morning, many recommended restaurants and seafood shops, and two larger supermarkets for all your essentials. There are also several good "traiteurs" (delicatessens) and a specialist butchers, bakers and fishmongers. Pontorson also provides a gateway for visits to the famous Le-Mont-St-Michel, and a large tourist office with internet facilities.

Dol De Bretagne (a 15 minute drive west) is a very pretty market and cathedral town with half timbered houses, great "galette" (a traditional buckwheat savoury pancake) and gastronomic restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets. The cathedral dominates the view down to the coast, and has a "Cathédraloscope" exhibition for those interested in the history surrounding the cathedral. The shops are again superb, with a fantastic bakery "le Pain Doré", two beauticians, "traiteurs" and clothes shops, just a few of the many on offer. The Saturday morning market attracts many shoppers, offering all types of French produce, including cider, delicious local cheeses, organic vegetables, garlic and herbs, plus a wide range of clothes, knickknacks, pots and pans and souvenirs.

Activities

Le Mont St Michel

The most famous tourist attraction in northern France, Le-Mont-St-Michel is not to be missed! Experience spiritual calm in the cloisters garden, set high up in the Mont, and take in the fabulous views over the whole of the bay from the walls of the citadel. You can even follow in the footsteps of pilgrims and take a guided walk across the sands from Genêts, just round the coast east past Avranches.

Le-Mont-St-Michel also offers many restaurants, museums and souvenir shops in the winding streets below the abbey. You can sample superb "La Mère Poulard" omelettes (made with a dozen-whipped eggs, invented by Madame Poulard!), and taste the lamb "pré salé" (sheep raised on the local salt marshes). There are regular "son et lumière" shows and music recitals. Mass held regularly at published times.

The Coastline and Beaches

Drive along the picturesque coastal road, via St Marcan, past the sand yachting centre at Cherrueix around the Bay of Le-Mont-St-Michel to Vivier-Sur-Mer, and Cancale.... Both well known for their fresh seafood, especially oysters and "moules de bouchots" (mussels specially grown on posts sunk into the sand - a local speciality).

The colourful restaurants at the port of Cancale are particularly good, with a selection of medium priced set menus, as well as many offering gastronomic "assiette de fruits de mer" (huge platters of fresh seafood - mainly shellfish, lobsters, crab and oysters) that take all evening to polish off!

The best sandy beaches are to be found nearby at Guesclin (first photo), Rothéneuf, Cancale and St Malo. All are within 30 minutes drive of the property, most are sandy, some are nature reserves and dog free zones, and many have plenty of rock pools at low tide for exploring.

St Enogat (on the western edge of Dinard) is also a firm favourite, with a sandy sheltered beach, crazy golf, bar/restaurant, windsurfing, sailing, trampolines, showers and toilets.

Dinard, again with wide sandy beaches, is a smart resort at the head of La Rance (a wide tidal estuary), just on the opposite bank from St Malo. Here you will find markets, great shops and restaurants.There are also regular summer art exhibitions, and a Thalgo centre for those of you seeking to take a seaweed body pack and some luxurious pampering!
 
The historic port of St Malo has many beaches around its impressive city wall. Join the centre of town from Porte St Vincentand find numerous gastronomic and snack restaurants, as well as bars with large terraces for taking in the sun.

Walk further through narrow cobbled streets and find shops selling clothes, jewellery, nautical and seaside items, and antiques. Sandy beaches and marinas surround the town.

St Malo also offers a castle, huge marina, boat rides and "Le Grand Aquarium" at St Sevran, offering close up views of sea creatures, including some large turtles, sharks, colourful tropic fish, and a ride in a mini-submarine (Nauti-bus).
A further health spa can be found at Grande Plage du Sillon.

This beach is Dinard>>

The Bay of St Malo

On Offer Inland
Inland you will find extensive forests and lakes, and plenty of picnic spots. The forest de Ville-Cartier, at Trans La Forêt also offers a fitness nature trail, and for the children, a ride in electronic miniature boats, plus ducks to feed. Bicycles are also allowed on the paths. There are outdoor water parks at nearby Lanhélin and St Hilaire de Harcouët (both 20 minutes drive), which offer waterslides, restaurants, heated pools, and activities for the children. Indoor pools with slides, saunas, steam rooms and Jacuzzis can be found at Avranches and Dol De Bretagne.

Golf - There are many good 18 hole golf courses in the area. Golf des Ormes (15 minutes), a very scenic complex set around a chateau, offers a superb course, popular with our golfer guests, and also has a leisure water park, children's games area, hotel, club house bar and restaurant, swimming pool and extensive grounds. Le Tronchet (25 minutes), offers a full 18 hole landscaped course, new hotel wing and good restaurant. Other courses nearby include St Cast (45 minutes), St Briac (35 minutes), and Tréméuc (25 minutes).
Granville is just around the coast past Avranches (45 minutes). Other courses can be found near Dinard (9 hole), and Rennes (50 minutes). We can provide every assistance with advance booking, course details, score cards and negotiating discounted prices!

Other Activities - There are cycle hire shops in both Dol and Pontorson, for taking in the countryside at a more leisurely pace. The roads just around the property are very quiet and offer delightful rides, with gently rolling hills, lakes and woods. Other activities in the area include horse riding, antique fairs, seafood festivals, musical recitals, and museum visits. Rennes and Combourg are both well worth a visit, being within an hour's leisurely drive.
Combourg offers a beautiful medieval castle. Rennes is the capital of the region, and has great shopping, including the largest hypermarkets and a shopping mall. Nearby Fougères boasts the largest medieval castle still standing in the whole of Europe!

Travel details
The cottages are situated approximately five miles from the coast, near to Le-Mont-St-Michel, in the village of Sains. The nearest town is Pontorson.
The cottages can be reached easily from the ferry ports of St Malo (30 minutes), Cherbourg (2 hours), Caen (1 and 1/2 hours), Roscoff (2 hours) and Le Havre (2 hours). The drive from Calais via motorways is approximately 5/6 hours for those who prefer a shorter (and often cheaper!) ferry crossing. Recommended routes can be provided from each port.

The region can also be reached easily from UK by air (1-hour flight time), with regular daily flights with Ryanair from London Stansted or East Midlands to Dinard (30 minutes away): they have some fantastic special offers, especially out of season. Rennes (1 hour away) is also serviced from Southampton by Flybe. Travelling from further afield? Flights into Paris or Nantes. Travel from Rennes (1-hour drive, or train 45 minutes). The drive from Paris takes 4/5 hours, or 2 and a half-hours by train, via Rennes to Dol de Bretagne. Car hire is available from the airports, and we can assist with travel arrangements.

Discounted ferry fares are available from our own travel club for all routes, and also with our Brittany Ferries club membership. To secure the discount you need to provide confirmation of travel to our property and our reference number, which we will forward to you once you have made your booking with us. Ferries do get quickly booked up for peak months of August and late July, so early booking is advisable to secure your preferred route.