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Travel guide
Lorient and South Brittany
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to September
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Welcome
Lorient and South Brittany, in a few days
Lorient was flattened in 1943, yet its harbour has never been busier: the Keroman submarine base now hosts offshore racing crews and the Éric Tabarly sailing centre. In August, the Interceltic Festival fills the town. Around it lie the citadel of Port-Louis, the island of Groix and the dunes of Gâvres.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Cité de la Voile Éric Tabarly · about 2 hA museum of ocean racing at the foot of the Keroman bunkers, with sailing simulators and displays on boat technology, weather and life aboard.
- Afternoon · Keroman submarine base free · about 1 h 30Three concrete blocks built by the German occupiers between 1941 and 1943, with roofs up to 7.5 metres thick that survived the bombing of Lorient.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Cleria€110 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Lorient Interceltic Festival free · a full dayTen days of Celtic music and dance every August since 1971, from Brittany, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, the Isle of Man, Galicia and Asturias.
- Afternoon · Port-Louis Citadel · 2 to 3 hA 16th and 17th-century bastioned fortress at the harbour mouth, home to the National Maritime Museum and the French East India Company museum.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Larmor Plage Hôtel€110 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Larmor-Plage free · 2 to 3 hLorient's own beach, a string of sandy coves joined by a coastal path, watching Groix ferries, racing yachts and fishing boats pass opposite Port-Louis.
- Afternoon · The Gâvres peninsula free · 2 to 3 hA fishing village at the end of a sand tombolo enclosing a lagoon where birds winter, with a long ocean beach popular with kitesurfers.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel de l'Escale€110 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Île de Groix · a full dayAbout 45 minutes by boat, an island of 8 by 3 km that was France's leading tuna port between 1870 and 1940.
- Afternoon · Guidel-Plages and the Laïta estuary free · 2 to 3 hTwenty minutes west of Lorient, where the Laïta separates Morbihan from Finistère, with dunes and surf beaches such as Pen er Malo.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Cleria€110 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €90 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to September
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/lorient
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.