Brest, bound for the Atlantic
Rebuilt after the war, Brest looks firmly out to the ocean. You explore the castle, home to the National Maritime Museum, the lanes of Recouvrance and its famous lift bridge. At Océanopolis, a park dedicated to the oceans, you share wonder in front of penguins and sharks. A great setting for a curious date, nicely extended on a terrace along the renovated commercial port.
Quimper and Cornouaille
Capital of Cornouaille, Quimper gathers its half-timbered houses around Saint-Corentin Cathedral and the banks of the Odet. You buy the famous hand-painted faience and nibble a warm kouign-amann. Every summer, the Cornouaille Festival celebrates Breton music and dance for a week: a vibrant setting for cheerful dates to the sound of the biniou pipes.
Artists’ villages and ports
Among the most beautiful villages in France, Locronan amazes with its cobblestones and intact Renaissance square. In Pont-Aven, Gauguin’s footsteps linger along the Aven. Concarneau shelters its walled town inside ramparts facing the fishing harbour. On Lyad, Finistère members share their favourite lanes; it is up to you to find someone to slip your hand into theirs by a crêperie.
Date ideas
- Brest
- Quimper
- Locronan
- Pont-Aven
- Concarneau
- Océanopolis
- Cornouaille Festival
- Quimper faience