Know-it-alls say travelers prefer to visit museums, climb mountains, and avoid beach vacations. Fiddle-de-dee. French beaches are still popular because they have Europe’s greatest assortment.
The sands under northern cliffs, headlands, and heathlands seem to take up too much space. Brittany’s beautiful rocky coastlines provide oysters and other shellfish essential to coastal food. Huge Atlantic beaches in the south can fit all of Europe’s towels and surfers. The Basque birthplace of European surfing was Biarritz in 1957, in the far south.
Breeze in Wissant
Nobody informed you that the Côte-d’Opale, minutes from Calais, was so spectacular. The heath and farms rock and roll to the Cap Blanc Nez and Cap Gris Nez headlands. These Channel sentinels expose the seven-mile white-sand beach to sand-yachters, kite-surfers, family cricketers, and those who enjoy nature in magnificent mode. Of course, bathers. Some think Caesar left here in 55BC to conquer Britain. From here, he’d have seen our nation well. Germans did too, using Atlantic wall remnants. It’s strangely captivating. We then visit Wissant, which, like other coastal communities, is unaware of how disarming its humility is.
Barneville-Carteret bust
Barneville-Carteret has an Edwardian charm on the west coast of the Cotentin, the French thumb in the Channel. Fitting in requires bustles, crinolines, parasols, boaters, and cover-all cossies. Blue and white huts on the major, south-facing beach, La Potinière, and houses on the hill behind like an early-20th-century postcard. Yes, more. Barneville beach runs further south, while the plage de la Vieille Eglise begins a seven-mile length of sandy beaches backed by natural dunes from the Cap de Carteret peninsula. Wind-powered beach activities abound. Since there’s no business here, you’ll have to eat in town. Family-friendly seafood eateries are abundant in the area.
A hotel stay The best hotel in town is La Marine, overlooking the harbour, renovated in nautical style and with a Michelin-starred restaurant.
Celebrate in Fouesnant
Fouesnant to Bénodet is the finest of south Brittany’s gentler beach, hence they call it the “Breton Riviera”. Fouesnant was “an enchanting spot” for Marcel Proust, but 21st-century family fun-seekers may not agree. Do not notice. The key is that this “riviera” offers great beach vacations. There are nine kilometers of sand from Cap Coz plage to Beg-Meil streams. The coast swings headland-to-headland beyond Fouesnant, offering great walking, cycling, motorcycling, and most beach and water activities. Beg-Meil’s nighttime scene, especially at Bistrot Chez Hubert, is lively. The same family has run it since 1903, so they’re proficient.
A hotel stay The same family has owned Hôtel Belle-Vue on Cap Coz beach for generations. Nice gardens and a vehicle park are pluses.
Relax in Noirmoutier
Going to an island is always fascinating. Taking the three-mile causeway without checking the tide tables is particularly risky in Noirmoutier. High tide will maroon or sweep you away. More excitement than you need. Take the bridge instead to avoid looking silly and to see Noirmoutier, France’s most beautiful island, off the west coast. According to Chocolat author Joanne Harris, her grandparents resided there.
If not for the ocean vistas, the island’s white cottages with blue shutters and hollyhocks would suggest you were near the sea. Twenty-five miles of beaches are free. Beach activity is most intense on the Plage des Dames, backed by oak, eucalyptus, and pine trees within walking distance from the hamlet. Beach bungalows and La Potinière restaurant provide appeal. However, the 12-mile island is flat, and larger, less crowded beaches are a short bike ride away. This four-mile route from Barbatre to La Guérinière is worth consideration. For Michelin-starred eating at night, return to Noirmoutier-en-Ile or push out the bateau to Alexandre Couillon’s La Marine on the harbor at les Herbaudières.