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Pro
A lived in working town with lots of appeal to visitors.
Con
Much busier in July/August
In a nutshell
Oysters!
ranger49 Says: Everyone likes to take a gentle stroll down the jetty - whatever the Notice says!There are no restrictions on the beach but beware that many of the beaches have very soft sands and become dunes in in some parts around the coast. After a high tide they quickly turn to a muddy...
Some 20th century history/La Force du destin.
ranger49 Says: As you wander along the waterfront, turn up the hill at the corner where the restaurant/ hotel "La Mere Champlain" stands and stroll up Rue du Port.This long avenue will take you to the centre of the old town and beyond, passing on the way a number of small restaurants and...
Les laveuses d'huîtres de Cancale- seen by artists
ranger49 Says: The Oyster Washers of Cancale.Immediately in front of St Meen Church in the main square of the old town there is a rather charming bronze fountain. The sculptor was a Breton - Jean Fréour (1919 -2010). It depicts two young women busy at work at the turn of the 19th Century...
Visit the oyster beds and sample the produce.
ranger49 Says: Most people, specially those on jholiday, seem to enjoy watching other people working! Here, right at the end of the Quai in Cancale you can see the oyster beds and the great activity that takes place in order to farm the oysters and prepare them for sale. Huge sacks leave...
hquittner Says: The Pointe marks the beginning of the Bay of Mont St.-Michel and the Abbey can be seen in the distance from there as well as along the succeding coast. At the Pointe is a solitary small hotel (Logis de France) and restaurant (often with rooms readily available). There are...
Walk Out On the Jetty and Look Around
hquittner Says: There is nothing much to do in Cancale when the tide is in (as it was when we arrived and left), but we came to eat the oysters. When the tide is out the bay just above the jetty is a busy place tending and harvesting the oysters that Parisians look forward to. There are...
ryuhome Says: If you are facing the bay, the oyster stalls are all the way to the left side. We went the other way and at the end of the way was this store. They're just as cheap.
ryuhome Says: I guess the big tidal difference makes it easy to harvest the oysters. At low tide, you can see tractors going way out into the bay. The oyster field is set up neatly like rice paddies.
Marche aux Huitres (Oyster Market)
sue_stone Says: When you visit Cancale make sure you check out the Marche aux Huitres (Oyster Market).The market is located at the end of the road, close to the small lighthouse, and while it consists of only handful of stalls, it is worth a look.The oysters are all laid out, according to...
sue_stone Says: Oysters are everywhere in Cancale, which probably has something to do with the fact that Cancale labels itself the 'Oyster capital of Brittany'.There are lots of restaurants where you can sample the local fare, and rumour has it that some of the top restaurants in Paris use...
34 Opinions
2 Reviews and 9 Opinions
Le Phare: Rooms are now a restaurant with a view!
ranger49 Says: Update July 2012 We wanted to book this hotel for a 3-night stay at the end of July 2012 but discovered it no longer offers rooms and functions exclusively as a restaurant. The dining areas have been enlarged and updated and the first floor which once had the nicest bedrooms...
Restaurant des Parcs: Oysters and More
hquittner Says: The name of this restaurant at first confused us since parc means "park", but the original meaning of parc was (and still is) sheep-pen, but it also means a bed for raising something, hence the bay just beyond containing the oyster beds is called "Parcs a huitres" (note it...
Chez Victor: comme si comme sa
sandyland Says: Most of the restaurants in Cancale are a bit on the touristy side with a similar seafood menu (fresh oyster!crabs! mussels!), it's hard to decide which restaurant to sit at, they all seem the same. We landed at Chez Victor because we noticed that there were a lot of people...
sue_stone Says: When we visited Cancale it was conveniently lunch time and we were very keen to sample some of the local speciality - oysters!We decided to eat at Chez Victor as it had a friendly feel and a lovely shady table on the terrace just made for us. Everyone around us was eating...
Helpfulness
In June/July 2006 we had a 9 day driving holiday in France. We caught a car ferry from Dover to Calais, drove down through Normandy, popped into Brittany and then caught the ferry back to Dover from Boulogne-sur-Mer.
We chose to take our own car over, as the cost of the ferry and petrol was significantly cheaper than flying from London and hiring a car in France. I also feel a lot more comfortable travelling in our own car as opposed to a hire car.
The only negative thing about driving our car in France is that it is a right hand drive car, and French cars are left hand drive, which means that tolls/tickets machines etc are on the wrong side of the car for the driver to operate…luckily I was able to assist in these duties from the passenger seat, but I do feel sorry for the solo traveller in these situations.
Driving in France is great. The roads are good and the sign posting is excellent. You can hoon along on the wide tollways/freeways, or travel along pretty coastal roads, soaking up the atmosphere of the French countryside. Just remember which side of the road you have to drive on if you come over from the UK.
When driving into Cancale, try to take the scenic road that goes along the cliff edge giving you fabulous views over the town.
Updated Apr 4, 2011
Favorite thing: Cancale is known as a fishing port, famous for its oysters. In fact, it's unoficially named as "France's Capital of Oysters".
But it also has lovely beaches. Be aware although that the tides here are among the greatest in France, with a swing of up to 14m between the high and low water marks.
Fondest memory: It was fun to go further and further in order to swim in the sea between high tide at about 10.00a.m. and low tide at about 4 p.m.
By 4 p.m. I was already swimming between the fishing boats.
Updated Nov 11, 2003
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Cancale is a lovely little fishing port located on the Emerald Coast of Brittany. The town is famous for its oysters and is a great place to stop for lunch and sample some of the local produce! On a...
Our first visit to Cancale was a little bit of serendipity. We needed an overnight stop before an early departure from St. Malo and, using the trusty Logis de France Hotel Guide, we found just the...
We were poorly informed oyster lovers when we first visited Brittany and did not know about Cancale. We knew that hedonistic royaly in Rome and France gorged themselves on these fine mollusks, but did...
Where Marie Antoinette got her oysters
This is a nice stop when you're on your way from Mount Saint Michel to St. Malo or vice versa. Besides being famous for its oyster, there're some nice waterfront stores and resturants. Too bad we came...
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