How to visit the Pink Granite Coast in Brittany ? For an idea for a weekend in the North of Brittany, here is my little 2-day road trip on the Corniche Bretonne road.
I share with you in this article the essentials of this magnificent coast and the detailed itinerary of this road trip with its Google Map that you can use in GPS mode.
Ce tourist circuit along the Pink Granite Coast crosses a natural heritage of incredible richness and splendor and allows you to discover one of the most interesting and beautiful routes in northern Brittany.
Pink Granite Coast in 2 days
Note that this road trip is ideal to schedule for un big weekend or to do on the occasion of your summer holidays in Brittany or to combine with a road trip in Northern Brittany or a Normandy-Brittany circuit or with a road trip in Normandy !
Where is the Pink Granite Coast in Brittany?
The road that allows you to discover the Pink Granite Coast is located in the North of Brittany in the Côtes d'Armor. This tourist route is called the Corniche Bretonne road. It connects Perros-Guirec to Trébeurden along the famous Pink Granite Coast. The Côte de Granit Rose can therefore be visited by car.
To get there, either:
- you will arrive by car and head to the starting point of my road trip to Perros-Guirec,
- you will arrive by plane from one of the nearest airports: Lannion, Saint Brieuc or Brest,
- you will arrive by train from one of the closest stations: Lannion, Morlaix, Plounérin, Plouaret-Trégor, Belle Isle-Bégard.
What to see on the Pink Granite Coast?
Where does this pronounced color of these rocks come from? I learned that it is the mixture of feldspar and quartz which, along with mica, gives this orange-pink color to the stones and rocks of this coast. The original shapes of these huge pink granite rocks that make the attraction of the Breton Corniche, are due to the phenomenon of natural erosion. And it is the contrast of this pink with the blue color of the ocean that contributes to the incredible beauty of the landscape.
This tourist circuit is home to major cultural sites, a diversity of sublime natural landscapes, emblematic maritime landscapes of Brittany (decorations of boulders, pink granite boulders, lighthouses, points, moors, creeks, beaches, etc.). Therefore, it is better to be organized by determining in advance the main stages of the circuit to do in 2 days. This is what I call my "must-haves" and that I will present to you below!
Côtes d'Armor - Video of Côte de Granit rose
To get an overview of my circuit, here is a video published on YouTube by the Côtes d'Armor tourist office. She really makes me want to visit the Pink Granite Coast but also to spend your holidays there!
The most beautiful places on the Pink Granite Coast
For this 40 kilometer road trip in the Côtes d'Armor, here are the most beautiful sites that I have listed as essential stops on the Pink Granite Coast:
- Perros-Guirec
- Chapel of Notre Dame de la Clarté by Perros Guirec
- Ploumanach
- Men Ruz Lighthouse
- Saint-Guirec beach and its oratory
- Renote Island
- Trégastel beach
- Kerguntuil Dolmen
- Menhir of Saint Uzec
- Grande Island
- Trébeurden
Route map to visit the Pink Granite Coast
Here is the map of the route that you can follow in GPS mode by clicking to enlarge it on "More options".
Tour to visit the Pink Granite Coast
Here are the details of the visits that you can make following the itinerary of my tour to visit the Pink Granite Coast:
DAY 1 – From Ploumanac’h to Ile Renote
Ploumanach from Perros-Guirrec
My tour starts from the seaside resort of Perros-Guirrec which has a small marina and two superb beaches (Trestrignel and Trestraou).
Boat trips are offered from Perros-Guirec to visit the Seven Islands, bird sanctuary in front of the seaside resort (one of the most important reserves in France).
But when we go to Perros-Guirrec it's mainly for go and visit the Great Ploumanach site nearby and its gigantic orange-pink granite chaos.
For this, 3 solutions are available to you to visit the site in the morning:
Visit Ploumanach via the Customs footpath
The hike that starts from the Trestaou beach in Perros Guirrec follows the old customs trail (GR 34) which was used by customs officers to fight against smuggling. This 8 km route connects Trestaou beach to the port of Ploumanac'h.
It is one of the most emblematic walks of the Côtes d'Armor which allows you to discover:
- the famous granite chaos,
- the natural port of Ploumanac'h,
- Saint-Guirec beach and its oratory,
- the Maison du Littoral (exhibitions on the natural site of Ploumanac'h).
Visit Ploumanach via the Chapelle de la Clarté
On the road that leads from Perros-Guirrec to the village of Ploumanac'h, you will find a beautiful pink granite chapel: La Chapelle Notre Dame de la Clarté.
From there, you can take a 9 km hike that takes part of the customs path. It allows you to discover the washhouses of Traou Treuz and Grève Saint-Pierre, the Crac'h windmill, the Christian Gad and Daniel Chhe Sculptures Park, theOratory and Saint-Guirec chapel, Mean Ruz Lighthouse, the Devil's Rock and the Semaphore.
For more details see the official website of theSaint-Martin Tourist Office.
How to visit Ploumanach?
Now, head for the small town of Ploumanac'h, which in 2015 was elected “Favorite village of the French”!
But Ploumanac'h is also and above all one of the most beautiful natural sites in Brittany !!!
Some call it the pearl of the pink granite coast. This site includes in particular the mythical beach of Saint-Guirec, with turquoise waters, pink rocks and its Oratory and the castle of Costaérès.
For those who did not want or did not have the time to take the customs path (see above), you can visit the essential part of the Ploumanac'h site by taking a very short walk.
You will have to park your car on the parking lot of the port of Ploumanac'h in order to take the path whose departure is at the tip of the port. Thus, you will arrive at a magnificent point of view on Costaeres, follow the path along pink granite blocks to arrive at the "final bouquet": The postcard beach of Saint-Guirec with its chapel and oratory. Then the walk will take you to Men Ruz lighthouse and across the moor of Ploumanac'h.
Visit to Renote Island
Renote Island does not really have an island anymore because it has been connected since 1885 to the mainland. So it is now called the Renote peninsula. It is located 7 km from Ploumanac'h or around 30 minutes by car.
Huge blocks of granite with rounded shapes over time dotted here and there over a turquoise ocean, it is the enchanting setting of the peninsula!
I advise you to go there in the early afternoon to take the customs trail (still this GR 34) which allows you to around the island in just over an hour.
Take it swimsuit and towels because you will enjoy paradisiacal beaches and coves surrounded by pink granite rocks… Breathtaking panoramas on the bay of Sainte-Anne, on Coastérès and its castle and on the pink granite chaos of Ploumanac'h.
Very easy, this little hike is accessible to everyone, whatever your level.
Pink granite coast - Which hotel?
I advise you to return to Ploumanac'h to spend the night at Castel Beau Site. It is probably the hotel that has the best view:
DAY 2 – From Trégastel to Trébeurden
Tregastel
This morning, you will take the road towards Trégastel beach. Competitor, twin sister or mirror?… Trégastel offers an opposite side of the same superb landscapes of pink granite chaos as Ploumanach.
Trégastel and its beaches
Unlike Perros-Guirec which is a very chic and lively seaside resort, in Trégastel, there is a calmer atmosphere and less bling bling. You have to go there to enjoy the beaches and the beauty of the landscapes more quietly!
Indeed, with no less than twelve beaches in the town of Trégastel, you will have no trouble finding the small secret beach that will not be invaded by holidaymakers ...
And if you have kids, maybe a visit to the marine aquarium might interest them!
Kerguntuil Dolmen
Between 5000 and 2200 BC, human populations lived in Trégastel and left well-preserved Neolithic remains: dolmens, menhirs, covered alleys ...
The set of megaliths to visit this morning is the Kerguntuil Dolmen. You will find it on the edge of a road leaving near the ZA du Dolmen. The site is indicated by the sign: Covered alley - Dolmen.
Menhir of Saint Uzec
You will take the road which follows the edge of the coast towards the Menhir de Saint Uzec. The unfolding landscape is fantastic: wild beach, ridges, islets and reefs dotted around the ocean ...
On the left, you will arrive at the Menhir de Saint Uzec. He stands erect, with a cross on top.
Côtes d'Armor - Ile Grande
This island offers a landscape of moors with many shores whose tones of granite pass to bluish. The island is one of the most important bird sanctuaries in France.
Côtes d'Armor - Trébeurden
Here is the last (but not the least beautiful) stage of my road trip on the Corniche Bretonne road.
No one can deny the beauty of the great Tresmeur beach. Its fine white sand gives the sea emerald colors. With the points of Bihit on the left and the Castel on the right, it is a beach with a dream setting that awaits you for a little relaxation ...
And if you want to take a short hike, here is the passage to Millau Island to do at low tide (short walk of 2 hours round trip).
And if you stay a few more days, you can reach on foot in 30 minutes Castel. To do this, you have to take one of the paths that start from the car park on the Isthmus separating the beaches of Trozoul and Tresmeur.
Trébeurden – Which hotel?
If I had to recommend a hotel with good value for money and a great location on the seafront, I would tell you to book at Beach pavilion.
Want to discover southern France?
So here is my road trip from Montpellier to Perpignan
mon weekend around Carcassonne
un weekend in Saint Guilhem le Désert
ou the route of the most beautiful villages of Lot and Aveyron
And if you are looking for holiday destination ideas in France: Where to go in France this summer?