The bay
Located between Armor and Argoat, between the land and the sea, Saint-Brieuc - capital of the Côtes d'Armor departement - today counts 50,000 inhabitants. Centre of local government, with a university and a rich industrial and working history, Saint-Brieuc is the centre of the dynamic economy of northern Britanny.
The town is the centre of a group of communities where more than 115 000 people live. It is the principal centre of events and attractions in the Côtes d'Armour. With more than 300 shops and businesses in the pedestrianised part of town, it is also the commercial centre of the area. Not forgetting "Les Champs" shopping centre with 27 retail outlets in the heart of the town open since September 2009.
The town is an unmissable crossroads among the attractions of northern Britanny - Paimpol and the isle of Bréhat, Fréhel cape, all the small, colourful towns and villages in the back-country such as Pontrieux, Quintin, Moncontour and the artistic and historical centre of Dinan.
The three valleys (Gouédic, Gouët et Douvenant), give a rhythmic structure to the town. The environment is privileged, opening onto the remarkable bay - which has the fifth highest tides in the world. The city of the Griffon is just three hours by train from Paris and one hour from Rennes by car.
A Unique atmosphere
The countryside
The bay has many paths and pathways, and many more detours from the beaten tracks where walkers can discover the back country of this fascinating spot. Walking through the bushy countryside you'll discover a new view and pleasure - just take your time, nobody here is in a hurry, and you'll find some of the surprises we have waiting for you!
Saint-Brieuc seen, and also heard...
Get out and about, you'll find musicians, actors, fairs, dancers, poets and storytellers...
A mime at the foot of a timber framed house will make you laugh, that knick-knack you've always been looking for will pop up at a second-hand stall, music from around the world rings on the street corners - as do violins in the unequalled acoustics of a forgotten chapel Check out the ambience of the little concert cafés, walk into a potter's or a fiddle-makers workshop. A bit overwhelmed? Come back tomorrow for more!
"What creates the greatest charm of Saint-Brieuc is the possibility to get out on any one of a thousand and one excursions on every side - from the heights of the cliffs a panorama unfolds of the ocean, specked with little black islets in the blue... in the interior the eye rests on a landscape with such a variety of admirable sites... valleys which appear, escape from view, hide and then suddenly reappear, fresh and splendid
…There are so few places where one would be so happy to live or where one tastes so much the charm of existence, like this little corner of britanny".
Garin de Lamorflan – in « Saint-Brieuc et ses plages » 1886
…There are so few places where one would be so happy to live or where one tastes so much the charm of existence, like this little corner of britanny".
Garin de Lamorflan – in « Saint-Brieuc et ses plages » 1886
