Belle-Ile-en-Mer lies in the
Atlantic Ocean, off the tip of the narrow Quiberon peninsula in
south-western Brittany. It is the largest of Brittany's islands at 18 km
(11 miles) long, and true to its name, it is indeed beautiful. The
sheltered. eastern coast of the island is carved with deep estuaries, and
there are a number of small fishing villages surrounded by fertile,
cultivated land. The island is hilly, and the north-western coast, the
Côte Sauvage, is a place of high cliffs, lashed by fierce seas.
The ferry drops its passengers at Le Palais, a town dominated by the
Citadelle Vauban, built in the sixteenth century by Henri II to protect
the monks of Redon from pirates. A prison until the 1960s, it now houses
the island's museum. Later, the island belonged to Nicolas Fouquet and
from 1761-63 to the British, but was returned as part of the Treaty of
Paris.
The island is a lovely, peaceful place on which to spend a holiday. There
are 90 beaches to explore - Dormant beach on the western shore is
probably the most popular, and south east of Le Palais you will find the
while sands of Grands Sables, which is the longest on the island. Sauzon
is a picturesque fishing village running down one side of an estuary to
the west of Le Palais, with picture-postcard houses looking at the rocky
cliffs opposite. There are several major rock formations in the north of
the island – Monet even painted one.
To get there, travel by ferry
from Quiberon and the weather is best between May and September. So plan
to have your vacation during these period.
Belle-Ile-en-Mer lies in the
Atlantic Ocean, off the tip of the narrow Quiberon peninsula in
south-western Brittany. It is the largest of Brittany's islands at 18 km
(11 miles) long, and true to its name, it is indeed beautiful. The
sheltered. eastern coast of the island is carved with deep estuaries, and
there are a number of small fishing villages surrounded by fertile,
cultivated land. The island is hilly, and the north-western coast, the
Côte Sauvage, is a place of high cliffs, lashed by fierce seas.