Seaside towns around Lorient
All around Lorient, sea on both sides
There’s so much to say about the sea around Lorient! From Larmor-Plage to Guidel-Plages, from Riantec to Gâvres. Not forgetting the island of Groix. There’s so much to do: walking, fishing, swimming, sunbathing, sailing, windsurfing, surfing, bird-watching…
Fancy a drink on the seafront? In Larmor-Plage, the port of Kernével is a nice place, especially the bar in the majestic Villa Margaret and its terrace overlooking the boats. Do you have children? The promenade of Port-Maria, with its lively bars and restaurants, is a place to have a drink and enjoy yourself while watching your kids play on the beach just opposite!
Plœmeur: beach, water sports, fishing, restaurants, walking
Further west, head towards Plœmeur. Here too there’s a wide choice of things to do at the seaside! There are plenty of beaches: Anse du Stole, Lomener harbour, Port Fontaine, Petit and Grand Pérello, Kerroc’h, Kaolins, Courégant and Fort-Bloqué… As for water sports, they are all available in Plœmeur. There are also many places to fish.
Plœmeur is where the famous coastal road of the Pays de Lorient starts, which goes as far as Guidel-Plages. You can do it by car, or even by bike or on foot (a pedestrian-bike path runs alongside the road). It’s definitely worth the trip.
For a drink or a meal out in Plœmeur, Lomener offers a beautiful picturesque setting of a typical Breton port. The bar-restaurant in Fort-Bloqué offers a beautiful view of the Fort de Keragan.
Guidel, surf town
After Plœmeur, you’ll find Guidel-Plages. Guidel and its beautiful beaches, for relaxation, swimming, and also surfing (the town is labelled “Ville surf”). The beaches of La Falaise and Le Loch are popular with bodyboarders and surfers. If you don’t have the equipment, the surf shop in the small shopping centre of Guidel-Plages rents equipment, as do the surf schools.
In the port of Guidel-Plages, the bars and restaurants have a beautiful view of the Finistère coast on the other side of the Laïta : getting to Le Pouldu during the summer is easy thanks to the ferry boat.
Shellfish gathering in the Petite Mer de Gâvres
East of Lorient, the sea gets better and better. You can get there by batobus from Lorient in 10 minutes, either from the Quai des Indes in Lorient, or from the fishing port, for the price of a bus ticket. You can also drive all the way around the bay but it’s twice as long: count 20 minutes.
Riantec and Gâvres have a coastline overlooking the petite mer de Gâvres, an inland sea with a preserved coastline, where gathering shellfish at low tide is a real tradition (cockles, clams, periwinkles…). From the coast, on the Petite Mer, you’ll see superb migratory seabirds. Gâvres also has an ocean-side, with long, wide beach that is part of the Grand site dunaire Gâvres-Quiberon.
Port-Louis, its citadel and museums
At the Locmiquélic/Sainte-Catherine marina, the view of the commercial port of Lorient and its cranes is quite spectacular. You can take the batobus to Lorient, as well as from the port of Pen Mané (also in Locmiquélic).
Port-Louis, also accessible by boat-bus, deserves a visit for its 16th century citadel, the Museum of the French East India Company, and the Marine Museum. A high walk along the ramparts is a must in Port Louis. It’s also nice to have a drink at the bar on the beach. A wonderful spot for admiring the whole bay of Lorient!
Groix, a gem!
There is a wide choice of seascapes in Lorient Bretagne Sud and we may almost forget to mention the island of Groix!
45 minutes away by boat, you are literally thrown into another dimension. There’s always something magical about an island, quite different from the mainland. Groix is a true concentrate of the most beautiful things Brittany has to offer, and can be explored on foot or by bike. Lighthouses, cliffs, rugged coastline, wildlife, rare minerals, creeks and beaches… Everything on the island of Groix is a feast for the eyes. It’s a paradise, in fact!
