Activities in Brittany + Normandy

Bayeux’s famous 230-foot-long tapestry—displayed in this well-run little museum—tells the story of the Norman conquest of England.

The island is monopolized by normal, regular French people of average means in the normal, regular business of being on holiday: riding bikes, picnick

Five miles northwest of Quimper, a first-generation cider maker produces top-notch brews and distilled lambigs.

Yes, it's touristy, but how can you miss the chance to see the gardens? Grounds stay open till November 1 and are ablaze in autumn hues.

During the festival, the population of Deauville swells from some 4,000 to 40,000—more than a few of them royals and retainers, though now more often

Eugène Boudin, a landscape painter from the area, met a young artist named Claude Monet and taught him to use oil paints and to work outdoors. It’s be

To the modern visitor, the island offers a small but exquisite menu of simple pleasures: walking, cycling, birding, glancing over garden walls to dote

Pick up provisions from this esteemed shop and picnic on the St.-Malo seawall.

Among today's tourists, the most popular souvenir is a half-dozen cans of prized millimisée sardines (they're dated, like wine) from this La Belle-Îlo

The local specialty is a layered praline paillardise.

The shop specializes in butter biscuits.

The birthplace of the avant-garde composer Erik Satie houses a series of odd but amusing tableaux vivants that tell of his life and times. The odd hou

This compact museum brings to life the 300-plus years of artisanal glazed-ware production in Quimper.

No matter how jaded you are, you just have to cry, seeing those crosses stretch into the horizon.

The Celtic origins of Breizh are audible in the rollicking Friday-night live music sessions at this pub, which is also serious about local beers.

Score some of the best Breton striped shirts in the region.

Honfleur’s greatest surviving building, and its separate bell tower date back to the 15th century. The largest, most unusual wooden church in France,

This homey boutique makes stylish furnishings and tote bags out of recycled sailcloth.