48 hours in Saint-Malo

Brittany/2024

While the corsair town's reputation is largely based on its famous 12th-century ramparts, Saint-Malo is more than just a fortified town. It has just as much to offer beyond its walls. Paramé, Rothéneuf and Saint-Servan are examples of rapidly expanding districts, where historic monuments, culture and gastronomy are all thriving.

Once you've discovered the granite wall that surrounds Saint-Malo's main district, it's time to take a stroll along the Sillon beach. The 2-kilometre stroll along the beach, which borders the upscale Paramé district, is ideal for witnessing the changing horizons created by the high tides. When the waves crash against the breakwaters (thousands of oak piles erected since 1698 to protect dwellings), they delight walkers who come to admire the spectacle of nature. Along the Sillon dike, you can also catch a glimpse offshore of the Ile de Cézembre, the last refuge of the German army after the liberation of Saint-Malo, partly crossed by a hiking trail, as well as the Fort de la Conchée, masterpiece of Louis XIV's famous architect, Vauban. The invigorating stroll, often subject to wind and sea spray, continues along the Minihic beach, linking the districts of Paramé and Rothéneuf. This former fishing village, which became part of the municipality of Saint-Malo in 1967 (along with Paramé and Saint-Servan), is the starting point for numerous walks offering some of the finest views of the Côte d'Émeraude. It was in this area that Abbé Fouré made his home, close to the cliffs, where he sculpted the famous portraits of his contemporaries, both famous people and chimeras, from 1894 to 1907. After a stroke, this "habitual priest" (discharged from his parish duties), now deaf and dumb, persisted in sculpting the rock (between the gouffre de l'Enfer and the anse du Paradis). In just under fifteen years, Abbé Fouré carved over 300 statues in an area of 500 m2, giving Saint-Malo one of its most visited local sites today. Rothéneuf is also home to the Manoir de Limoëlou, the former residence of Jacques Cartier, the famous navigator credited with the discovery of Canada in 1534. The building has since been converted into a museum, retracing the explorer's travels and daily life in the 16th century. Opposite Rothéneuf, on the other side of the ramparts, stands Saint-Servan. Just a ten-minute walk to the south-west of the walled city, it's the perfect place to start an urban stroll, discovering the narrow streets of Étoupe and Duport-Dutertre, with their old houses and many modern shops. But it's at the end of these strolls that Saint-Servan's greatest treasures are revealed. To the north of the district lies the Alet peninsula, overlooking the Bay of Saint-Malo and the Rance estuary. A visit here takes you back to ancient times, with the remains of a Gallo-Roman wall and World War II firing posts. A fort built in 1759, then converted into a blockhouse in 1942, now houses the Mémorial 39-45, a museum detailing the Battle of Saint-Malo, as well as the organization of German forces up to the Liberation. Finally, it's impossible to pass through Saint-Servan without stopping off at the beach of Port Solidor and its famous tower, erected in 1369 to watch over navigation on the Rance. A walk or even a picnic in the area allows you to admire the opposite shoreline in complete tranquillity, and to glimpse through the mist the bourgeois villas of Dinard... To be discovered on your next outing!