Anyone in a long-term international relationship knows that vacations are often conflated with visiting family, especially when both partners are living far from home. Often, what ends up happening is a trip home gets called a vacation, usually in response to what is probably the most popular question in France between the months of May and September: “Where are you going for vacation this year?”
I lost track of how many times I responded to this question with some variation of, “Oh, we’re headed to Brittany to visit my husband’s family.” And while I know I’m lucky to have in-laws who live in a very pretty place in the world, my husband and I have realized in recent years that the trips go best when we can peel off and get some proper alone time together to recharge. So, when we’re visiting family, we essentially build in a mini-vacation within our vacation.
The last summer we were in Brittany visiting my husband’s family, we spent three days exploring northern Brittany, semi-wild camping and sleeping in the roof tent strapped to the family Pathfinder. This time, when Thibault said he was thinking of planning our mini trip to Belle Île, I asked for a little more structure and comfort, with two key parameters: hotel beds and lots of time with my butt in the sand. (I think of these as pretty basic creature comforts for someone who is now in her 30s, but if you don’t precisé with my husband, the likelihood that you end up in a tent is high.)
The trip ended up being phenomenal; Belle Île seems to be, shockingly enough, truly still somewhat of a niche and “hidden gem” type destination — we heard almost entirely French during our trip. While there were some crowds (it was August, after all), it was nothing compared to the congestion on the mainland. Below is my attempt to memorialize the trip, sharing some photos and tips along the way for anyone who finds themselves tenté to visit the island.
Where is Belle Île in France?
Something I’m incredibly guilty of when my husband plans literally anything is simply Jesus-take-the-wheeling everything. You know those Instagram reels spotlighting dopey husbands who show up to the airport with nothing but their passport and a wife with the entire itinerary? I was the husband on this trip (and it was so nice to be able to turn off my brain).
Anyway, all this to say that it’s a good thing I’m doing this post, because it’s forcing me to Google and check myself on these objectively important details.
Belle Île is located directly south of a little port city called Quiberon (a place that I would personally be open to going back to for a dedicated visit).
How to get to Belle Île
Quiberon serves as the launching-off point from the mainland to get to Belle Île (as well as two other islands, Houat and Hoëdic). Well, to be more precise, the ferry port is where you leave from, and there are a couple of ways to get there.
The first is by car, which is how we did it. My in-laws kindly allowed us to borrow their car to drive to the dedicated parking lot for tourists headed to the island, where we left it for the duration of our trip. There is no payment to make at drop-off; you pay on your way out. Make sure you hold onto the ticket the parking lot attendant gives to you until the end of the trip.
From the parking lot, there is a paid shuttle that takes you directly to the ferry port. In August, it came every 60 minutes and was clean and reliable. We were surrounded by all sorts of different travelers — backpackers, bougie out-of-towners (who we always refer to as Parisians) with well-coiffed dogs, young parents with babies strapped to their backs and chests, other couples.
To purchase a ferry ticket, you can do so online or at the terminal. In high season, you’ll obviously want to book in advance. Our tickets cost about 20 euros per person, each way.
Other ways to get to the ferry port at Quiberon
If you don’t have access to a car as a tourist in the region, you can take a train to Auray, the nearest city with a train stop, and then take a bus directly to Quiberon. Basically, you want to get to Quiberon; from there, you can walk, take a taxi, or (probably safely) hitchhike to the ferry port. This option obviously suits backpackers or budget travelers best, as it involves blocking far more time and navigating the various travel hurdles that can arise when there are multiple transportation links to connect.
Some tips for the ferry ride
The ferry ride to Belle Île isn’t very long, around 30 minutes. However, it gets quite windy. I was glad to have brought a sweatshirt, and Thibault got pretty cold in his T-shirt and shorts. I think, at a minimum, you will probably want long sleeves, plus, sunglasses. If you tend to get chilly easily, definitely close-toed shoes, comfortable pants, and some sort of long-sleeve that blocks wind. You can also try to plan to sit inside, though with so many families during high season, you might get squeezed out onto the roof deck whether you like it or not. That being said, I do think the unobstructed view from outside is nice.
Arriving to Belle Île
The ferry we took dropped us off at Sauzon, a very cute little port town with cafes, bike rentals, and hotels. You can also take the ferry from Quiberon directly to Le Palais, another port on Belle Île.
Sauzon seemed super cute, but I didn’t spend much time there. Soon after disembarking, we sat for a quick coffee and then launched directly into a 14-kilometer hike with Thibault’s brother, who took a break from a sailing trip to dock his boat, meet us in Sauzon, and hike back to Le Palais with us.
We walked for about three hours, hugging the coastline of the island and stopping once for a quick sea dip. We arrived in Le Palais at lunchtime and went directly to a SuperU minimart, grabbing a pack of sliced meats, Comte cheese, tomatoes, meat spread, pickles, and melon. From there, even though we were starving, we took the extra few minutes to go to a boulangerie and grab a couple of fresh baguettes.
Finally, we tore into lunch with my brother-in-law on the little sailboat, a restoration project undertaken by him and my father-in-law a couple of years ago. Personally, I’m much closer to the “seasick” end of the spectrum than “seafaring,” but I have to say, eating lunch on a docked boat under the sun, with nice cold drinks, was pretty nice.
Our first night in Belle Île
After lunch, Thibault and I headed to check into our first hotel for the trip, the Grande Hotel de Bretagne. It was under 150 euros for the night (breakfast not included, available for an additional 14 euros per person). We really appreciated our room, no. 9, with a view of the port where we’d had lunch on the boat. After settling in, we dipped out quickly to reserve a scooter for the next day. We were sternly instructed to collect the scooter before 9 AM so as to avoid the crowds coming in from the morning ferry, and paid 65 euros for a rental from 9 AM to 6 PM. (Thibault wants me to add that the insurance options on the scooter seemed pretty dubious and were kind of random looking, so we decided not to go with any and just proceed with caution.)
After successfully reserving the scooter, we washed up back at the hotel (I found the showerhead to be a bit heavy on the spray, light on the water pressure) and spent some time lounging before dinner.
Dinner was takeaway from Jojo’s, a nondescript-looking kebab place with cute branding fair prices, homemade sauces, and even veggie options (unusual in Brittany). The bar kitty-corner from Jojo’s let us bring our food and eat on the terrace, which was super nice and a great way to wind down after an objectively very busy day.
Tip: Jojo’s gives very generous portions of fries — in hindsight, I would have been fine nibbling from Thibault’s order rather than trying to work through an entire bag of my own. Food for thought! (Pun intended.)
Later, back at the hotel, things did get a little loud sleeping with the windows open, though that tends to be a feature of sleeping in the city center of a tourist destination in the summer in Europe writ large.
Day 2 on Belle Île
After breakfast, which was hearty and good and also had a view of the port, we packed up and left our bags in storage to collect later. (Explanation as to why we stored our stuff: Thibault found a last-minute room available in a nearby hotel for 100 euros cheaper, so we decided the slight inconvenience of moving our stuff was worth it.)
We arrived at the car/bike/scooter rental, Driv’in Belle-Île, the next morning at 8:50 AM. The guy managing the place spoke English and Spanish in addition to his native French, and easily dispatched us and the other early-morning group with helmets and gloves to his assistant, who drove us a few minutes inland to the yard where the rental vehicles were located.
Once there, he showed us how to use the e-scooters, signed off on Thibault’s scootering, and off we went. Our first stop was a beach called Les Aiguilles de Port Coton (in English “The Needles of Port Cotton), a scenic stretch of coast with the namesake rocks resembling the sharp objects.
Some notes about the scooter: There is not a lot of storage, just a small trunk that can comfortably accommodate a helmet. We had a backpack too, which Thibault wore on his chest and was a bit cumbersome. It is very bumpy for the person in the back, and Google Maps does not distinguish between paved roads and overgrown country roads on the island.
To the beach
After checking off a classic tourist destination, we headed to our first beach of the day, a more off-grid recommendation called Plage Yewyew (Yewyew Beach). While it does come up on Google Maps and is hardly secret (we were two of about ten people on the beach when we arrived), it’s not the most accessible beach. This was, to be honest, part of the appeal! After parking, you follow the path down a few switchbacks until it ends at the mouth of a descent that requires gripping a well-used rope to climb/slide down the packed sandbank. I highly don’t recommend doing this walk in flip-flops or bare feet, as we did, though this again raises issues of baggage throughout the day; closed-toed shoes are cumbersome. Maybe water shoes are the compromise here?
Anyway, it was totally worth it.
After lounging in the sun like lizards and making periodic forays into the sea, we set off for lunch. Thibault had identified a restaurant on the map and, in theory, it should have only taken around 15 minutes to get there, but because we tried to memorize the route instead of risking dropping the phone, it took closer to 30. In the end, I ended up holding onto it from the back, calling instructions out, with Thibault driving a bit slower, and I’d definitely do it this way again to avoid making tons of wrong turns and ending up on roads decidedly inappropriate for an e-scooter.
Lunch outside of Borderhouat, Locmaria
We went to a restaurant called Mabalulu for a late lunch — and promptly had to get in line. Even arriving closer to 2 PM, which is toward the end of the usual lunchtime in France, the restaurant was absolutely packed. They also didn’t have a super efficient system, which required us to wait in line to order, pay, then go outside and try to find seating. As these things often do, it worked out that we got a seat on the outdoor terrace, mostly in the shade. Thibault ordered what an American would consider a beef kebab and I got a burger, and both of us were delighted by the quality of the meat, which was almost sensuously rare and flavorful.
I also appreciated their creative approach to salads: in lieu of the common cucumber, their salads included lettuce, tomato, small cubes of raw zucchini, and a light sesame seed oil dressing.
Back to the beach
Our final stop of the day before heading back was Plage de Borerdorée, which I chose solely because it was highly rated and just a few minutes outside of Le Palais. We really didn’t do much here besides snooze in the afternoon sun, but I would recommend it for snoozing, people watching, and swimming. It’s very family-friendly (read: easy to access), but there is also lots of coastline, so plenty of space for everyone.
Unexpectedly, I spiked a slight fever
After wrapping up at the beach, we scootered back, dropped it off, and took the shuttle back to Le Palais. From there, we collected our bags from the first hotel and went to check in at our new one, the Corto Maltese. Situated on a little square with a terrace beside a large church, it had a very convivial and pleasant atmosphere. We checked in easily, and the plan was to go out to dinner, but I got an unexpected headache and that feeling that nothing sounded better in the world than taking a big Doliprane and conking out at 9 PM to sleep off all the sun, sand, cider, and food of the day.
This was a little unfortunate because Thibault had booked us a date night at a renowned crêpe place called L’Annexe, but I felt less bad when they were apparently super rude to him on the phone when he gave them the courtesy of letting them know we wouldn’t make our reservation (over an hour in advance).
So, our final evening was a bit quiet, but I got to conk out and fully recharge, and Thibault reported spending a pleasant evening rambling around and grabbing a bite to eat on the waterfront.
Our final morning in Belle Île passed slowly
We checked out of the hotel, leaving our bags in storage. Opting to grab breakfast at a cafe, we strolled around until one caught our eye: Brûlerie de Belle Île. It ended up being postcard-perfect, with a gorgeous view of the moody morning harbor and nice strong coffee.
From there, we moved to a different terrace to read and write postcards.
Our ferry back to Quiberon wasn’t until 4 PM, so we were in need of a nice lunch. I thought for sure we’d be able to stop by the crêperie we’d intended to have our date night dinner at the night before, but as luck would have it, they were closed. On a random Wednesday, and apparently always on Wednesdays in the summer. Sigh.
Fortunately, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I won’t speak for my Breton, considering he’s had way more crêpes than I have, but I swear the crêpe I ended up having for lunch from La Touline was the best one I’ve had in my life. I had a galette complète with ham, egg, and Comté cheese, with a delicious, simple side salad.
After lunch, the weather was pretty gray and misty, so we went back to the hotel and loafed in the lobby until it was time to take the ferry back. It was absolutely packed, but we still managed to get seats. After the ferry, we took the shuttle bus back to the parking lot, paid for parking on the way out, and made the 2ish-hour drive back to my in-laws.
FAQ – Visiting Belle Île, France
How much does it cost to leave your car at the parking lot?
Prices vary depending on whether you’re visiting in low or high season. In high season, budget around 15-20 euros per day. Check the parking page of the website for the most up-to-date rates.
Can you take your car to Belle Île?
You can, but it’s very expensive and starts at 155 euros per day in the high season. You can check the cost of bringing any vehicles with you on the Breizgo website.
