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For a completely relaxing holiday, Miramar Crouesty offers numrous free activities: sauna, Turkish bath, heated sea-water swimming pool, fitness, aerobics on the beach and mountain bike excursions with a sports coach… You can also go off on your own: our concierges will take care of everything.
Port-Navalo :
• On the Bilcroix headland at the mouth of the Gulf
• Coastal path...
• Gavrinis Island
• Port Navalo harbour at low tide
• The beach at Les Fontaines
• Kerners point/ sea kayak centre
• The Petit Mont on the Atlantic coast, can be seen from Houat and Belle île on a clear day
• Port-Crouesty
• Kerners Harbour
• Pine trees at Petit Mont overlooking Fogeo beach, on the Atlantic side of the Gulf
• Fogéo beach on the Atlantic side
• Tidal mill at Pen-Castel
L'île au Moines :
• A beach on the 'île aux Moines
• The harbour on the île aux Moines
Bono :
• Foot bridge over the Auray river at Bono
• Bono Harbour
La Trinité :
• La Trinité Harbour
L'île d'Arz :
• The small harbour at Houat at low tide
• Tidal mill on Arz island
Houat :
• Le petit port de Houat à marée basse
• North coast of the island of Houat
• Houat, a small quiet village
• Large beaches on the island of Houat
• The Logéo, oyster harbour and park
EXCURSIONS
A number of trips can be made from the Miramar Crouesty hotel:
• KERNERS WALK:
The oldest village, with the highest population, in the Arzon district.
Its church architecture is much admired and the mill at Pencastel, is one of the very few tidal mills to remain in good repair.
• RHUYS WALK:
This takes you all around the Rhuys peninsula, partly on paths, partly on the beach. After walking round the old salt marshes by way of the beach, you come to the château of Suscino, which is well worth a visit.
In the middle of the Gulf of Morbihan there are a number of places worth exploring, such as the Île aux Moines (Monks' island), Arz island, etc.
• BIRD WATCHING:
The highest numbers of seabirds on the Channel and Atlantic coasts can be seen in the Gulf of Morbihan and their numbers are greatest from November to February when barnacle geese, ducks and shore birds gather.
Guided tours are arranged periodically by the SEPNB (Breton nature and wildlife preservation society) and Arzon tourist office (Tel - 02 97 53 69 69).
• OYSTER TRAIL:
OSTREANE, an association of oyster farmers, has created an oyster trail on the Rhuys peninsula for visitors to explore the oyster farms. Guided tours and oyster tasting in the company of local oyster farmers. Tasty!!
• THE "MUSÉE DES VIEUX MÉTIERS" (Old crafts museum):
The manor house at Kerguet (owned in the 16th century by the governors of Suscino) houses an unusual museum of crafts and trades and an interesting exhibition of "coiffes" (Breton headdresses) and old lace.
• VANNES:
Vannes is the main town on the Gulf of Morbihan and has a well-preserved old centre with half-timbered houses, narrow alleys, properous town houses, a superb cathedral and 14th century ramparts with fortified towers and gates.
• TIDAL MILLS:
The Gulf of Morbihan, with its deeply indented coastline and realtively wide tidal range, was a perfect place for tidal mills. The mill at Pen-Castel dates back to the 12th century and is noteworthy for its architecture with its finely wrought skylights and cornices …
• ST ANNE D'AURAY: centre for pilgrimage
ST GOUSTAN: picturesque little harbour
ST AVOYE: extraordinary Breton chapel in its village setting.
Don't miss St Goustan with its delightful little harbour, nestling in a bend of the Auray river. It's a wonderfully peaceful place full of half-timbered houses and narrow streets winding up to Saint-Goustan, patron saint of fishermen. It feels like another world! Some of the scenes in Philippe de Broca's film "Les Chouans" were filmed here. Not surprising really when you remember that Georges Cadoucal was born in the Auray region. Ste Anne d'Auray is also worth a visit. It has been a centre of pilgrimage in Brittany since the 17th century, as evidenced by its Renaissance style basilica …
… which contrasts strongly with the simple chapel of St Avoye, with its beaten earth floor and timber roof built like the hull of a boat. Its greatest treasure is its unusual polychrome rood-screen.
• THE CHÂTEAU OF SUSCINIO:
In the middle ages this château was one of the favourite residences of the Dukes of Brittany and their court. Its turbulent history, architecture and imposing coastal location all contribute to its reputation as one of the foremost of Brittany's historical buildings. It also houses a real treasure: 13th and 14th century mediaeval paving.
• THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST GILDAS DE RHUYS
This has been the peninsula's spiritual centre since the 6th century and the chancel of the abbey church is one of the rare examples of Romanesque architecture in Brittany.
The sacristy houses one of the finest collections of religious artefacts in the region.
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
• SHORT WALKS:
There are a number of paths and sign-posted tracks on the Rhuys peninsula.
Places to visit at Arzon:
• Petit-Mont (protected site) with its exceptional cairn - 3 kilometres - 1 hour
• Tomb of the cabin-boy at Port-Navalo - 5 kilometres - 2 hours
• Pen-Castel tidal mill (17th century)
• The "Butte de César" (a burial mound) with viewpoint
• Covered avenue at Le Graniol
• Port-Navalo fish market (exhibition in Summer)
• Chapels at Croisty and Kerners
• Arzon church (stained glass windows and thanksgiving plaque)
• Traditional villages (Béninze, Kerners, le Monténo, Poh-Nèze, Tumiac, …).
• TOURS OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL REMAINS AT PETIT-MONT:
The Petit-Mont archeological site at Arzon is one of the most interesting megaliths in the Gulf of Morbihan area. It is one of three mosr renowned cairns, along with the "Table des Marchands" at Locmariaquer and the dolmen on Gavrinis island in Larmor-Baden. But Petit-Mont has the only cairn whose construction was spread over three millennia (from 5,000 to 2,500 BC).
On a rocky headland, over 110 feet above sea level, the immense dry stone cairn is nearly 20 feet high and guards a monumental complex consisting of 3 separate funeral chambers, one of which them was completely destroyed when a German pillbox was built there in 1943. The two remaining chambers contain a wide range of neolithic carvings and two rather more unusual sculptures of a goddess and a solar circle.
Guided tours, lasting about an hour, are a good way to get the most from the carvings and to find out something about the neolithic period. (For more information, contact the tourist office on 02 97 53 69 69.)
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