Saint-Meen-le-Grand: esta pequeña localidad es una joya oculta de Bretaña, donde podrás dar paseos con vistas y disfrutar de un ambiente tranquilo. Sus pintorescos senderos forestales son perfectos para los amantes de la naturaleza. Es el lugar ideal para quienes buscan tranquilidad, lejos de las bulliciosas rutas del Tour. Disfruta de una tarde relajante en la encantadora plaza del pueblo, donde podrás saborear pasteles locales y café.
Laval: conocida por su castillo medieval y su animada escena artística, Laval combina a la perfección historia y cultura. Sus callejuelas, repletas de encanto y donde se mezcla la arquitectura histórica y el arte moderno, son perfectas para explorar sin prisa. Puedes dar un paseo a orillas del río y descubrir galerías locales, donde encontrarás arte contemporáneo y obras clásicas.
Brittany Region
Departments : Côtes d'Armor, Finistère, Ille-et-Vilaine, Morbihan.
Population : 3.42 million
Prefecture : Rennes
Surface area : 27,209 km²
Specialities : apples, cider, galette-saucisse (pancake+sausage), far breton, kouign-amann (cakes), chouchen (alcohol), Breton whisky, sablé Breton (cake), Plougastel strawberries, cotriade (fish soup), andouille of Guémené, coco de Paimpol (beans), seafood and fish.
Sports clubs : Stade Rennais, Stade Brestois, En Avant Guingamp, FC Lorient (football). RC Vannes (rugby).
Competitions : Tro Bro Léon, Bretagne Classic, Route Adélie, Boucles de l'Aulne (cycling), Arkea-Ultim Challenge Brest, Spi-Ouest France, Transat Québec-Saint-Malo (sailing), Dinard International showjumping.
Festivals : Vielles Charrues in Carhaix, Route du Rock in Saint-Malo, Transmusicales in Rennes, Interceltic Festival in Lorient, Cornouaille Festival in Quimper, Fest-Jazz in Châteauneuf-du-Faou, Festival du bout du monde in Crozon, Photography Festival in La Gacilly, Étonnants voyageurs in Saint-Malo, Dinan Ramparts Festival.
Economy : The region produces 12% of France's agricultural output, making it the second-largest region in France behind Nouvelle-Aquitaine: livestock farming (84% of the region's farms), primarily dairy production, pork (58% of French tonnage) and poultry (43% of French egg production). Brittany is France's leading fishing region, accounting for almost half of national production. Food industry. Tourism. Defence (French Navy). Telecommunications.
Sights : Saint-Malo, Rennes, Vannes, Quimper, Brest, Dinan, Dinard, Concarneau. Pointe du Raz, Cap Fréhel. Brocéliande forest. Fougères castle. The alignments of Carnac. Belle-Île-en-Mer. Islands of Groix, Ouessant, Bréhat. Locronan. Gulf of Morbihan. Océanopolis.
Websites and social networks :www.bretagne.bzh
Ille-et-Vilaine (35)
Population : 1.11 million, spread over 27 cantons and 333 communes.
Prefecture : Rennes (Pop: 216,815).
Sub-prefectures : Fougères, Redon, Saint-Malo.
Surface area : 6,775 km²
Specialities : Cancale oysters, Roellinger spices, PDO mussels from the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel, PDO salt-meadow lamb from the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel, Rennes cuckoo chickens, Janzé chickens, Bordier butter, Saint-Malo crackers, sausage-stuffed pancakes, Redon chestnuts. The Lices market (2nd largest in France and one of the oldest).
Festivals : Quai des Bulles (comic strip and projected image festival) and Étonnants Voyageurs (book and film festival) in Saint-Malo. Dinard Film Festival - film festival devoted to British films. Transmusicales in Rennes, La Route du Rock, summer (August) and winter (February) collections - Yaouank, Breton music festival in Rennes.
Tourist attractions : Rennes, capital of Brittany and its parliament, the bay of Mont Saint-Michel, a UNESCO World Heritage site, Broceliande forest and the legends of King Arthur and Merlin, Marches of Brittany and medieval fortresses of Vitré and Fougères, spectacular eleven-lock staircase on the Ille-et-Rance canal at Hédé-Bazouges, Bécherel cité du livre® and its annual Book Festival on Easter weekend, the valleys of the Rance, Vilaine and Couesnon rivers, the megalithic site of Saint-Just, the 2nd most diverse megalithic site in Brittany.
Economy : France's leading dairy-producing region. Research and training: 71,542 students, 56% of the total for Brittany. Businesses: 47.9% of establishments are in the services sector. The Rennes metropolitan area has been awarded the French Tech label. Tourism: 4.5 million overnight stays (hotels and open-air hotels).
Sport : SRFC Rennes (Stade Rennais) plays in Ligue 1 and has taken part in various European competitions in recent years. Cesson Rennes Métropole Handball (nickname, Les Irréductibles Cessonais) - French Pro D2 champions in 2009 and 2020.
Website :www.ille-et-vilaine.fr, www.ille-et-vilaine-tourisme.bzh
Km 8.4
Montauban-de-Bretagne
Set in the heart of a 580-hectare forest, Montauban-de-Bretagne is the result of the merger in 2019 of the communes of Montauban-de-Bretagne and Saint-M'Hervon. The fortified castle of Montauban is listed, as is the 15th-century chapel of Notre-Dame-de-Lannelou. According to legend, a poor cousin of the Baron of Montauban found a fountain where he could quench his thirst; years later, when he became rich, he had the chapel built on the site of the fountain.
Château de Montauban
Construction : 13th and 15th centuries.
Style : medieval fortress.
History and characteristics : Montauban castle is a unique example in Brittany of the development of a major defensive site during the Middle Ages. The first castle was built by the Montfort family between the 10th and 12th centuries, when the type of motte-and-bailey castles spread: the one at Montauban is still recognisable today. It was probably abandoned in the 13th century in favour of a castle built on the present site. The new stone castle was built on a hexagonal plan, taking advantage of the natural defence provided by the pond to the west, and supplementing the defence to the east with a major system of advanced defences: moats, cavaliers and successive entrances. The current keep, much altered since then, and probably the English tower remain from this 13th-century building. The ensemble was completed in 1430 with the imposing châtelet that still stands today. This defence system, partly based on the importance of the pond, became obsolete with the development of artillery in the 15th century, and Charles VIII had no difficulty in attacking the castle from its weakest point in 1487. The dwellings and their flanking tower were completely destroyed, and the keep partially. The castle subsequently lost its importance and was only summarily rebuilt.
Listed as : Historical Monument in 2003.
Km 22
Romillé (Pop: 4,150)
Romillé is the birthplace of Gérard Rué, former road captain to Laurent Fignon and then Miguel Indurain. Winner of the Grand Prix du Midi Libre in 1990, he took part in eight Tours de France and finished 10th in the event in 1991. Gérard Rué has had a successful post-cycling career, running sports shops and a clothing line in his native Brittany. Château de Perronnay (17th century, privately-owned) has been a listed historic monument since 1948.
Km 49.4
Saint-Sulpice-la-Forêt
Saint-Sulpice-la-Forêt was named one of the world's smallest Smart Cities in 2016. The abbey of Notre-Dame du Nid-au-Merle is located in the commune.
Abbey of Notre-Dame du Nid-au-Merle
Founded : 1112
History : Raoul de La Futaie was at the head of an already established community when he founded the monastery, which housed nuns and monks separately, under the authority of an abbess. The first abbess was Marie de Blois, daughter of Stephen of England, until 1156. In less than half a century, around thirty priories dependent on the abbey were founded, giving it a strong reputation. The abbey declined after Brittany became part of France, and suffered fires (1556, 1651, 1701), the plague (1583), the wars of religion (1595), famine (1661) and the ravages of the storm (1616). During the French Revolution, the nuns were forced to evacuate the abbey, which was sold as national property in 1796. The abbey was then pillaged. It was demolished between 1835 and 1902.
Characteristics : In the past, the abbey formed a vast complex, surrounded by high walls. The two cloisters and most of the conventual buildings have now disappeared. What remains is the transept of the 12th-century abbey church, located to the south-east, and a number of more recent buildings, many of which have become very dilapidated. The abbey church is a singular example of 12th-century Breton architecture, with a rare level of technical perfection. Most of its remains, in Romanesque architecture, sandstone, shale and granite, are original.
Listed as : historical monument in 1926, 1992 and 1993.
Km 57.7
Liffré (Pop: 4,500)
Populated since Gallo-Roman times, the town of Liffré was founded in the 12th century and became a favourite hunting ground for the Counts of Rennes and the Dukes of Brittany. Its economy developed around forges, stone quarries and the forest. The scene of a violent battle between royalists and republican troops in 1794, it then returned to peace and quiet, even experiencing a major demographic boom from the 1970s onwards. Built in the first half of the 19th century, the Hôtel de Liffré still features a fine clock in its pediment. The building was constructed on the site of the town's former covered market.
Km 64.8
La Bouëxière (Pop: 4,500)
A small medieval village dominated by its 12th-century motte-and-bailey castle, with a 13th-century circular keep, a 15th-century priory church, a Romanesque bridge and typical, characterful houses. In the village and the hamlets that dot the area, other civil buildings are worth a look, including the 15th-century Château de Bertry, the 17th-century Château du Carrefour and the former manor house of La Bouëxière, the oldest parts of which date back to the 12th century. La Bouëxière is the birthplace of the Delamontagne brothers, Laurent and Patrick, who both played for Stade Rennais. Patrick has three caps for the French national football team. It is also the home of Resistance fighter and former minister Charles Tillon and his wife Raymonde, one of the first women elected to the French National Assembly.
Km 84
Vitré (Pop: 18,000)
Listed as a Town of Art and History. Listed as one of France's most beautiful detours. "To see an entire Gothic town, complete and homogeneous, such as there are still a few of, Nuremberg in Bavaria, Vitoria in Spain, or even smaller samples as long as they are well preserved, Vitré in Brittany, Nordhausen in Prussia". Victor Hugo, in Notre-Dame de Paris. Built around its castle, Vitré enjoyed a brilliant boom from the 14th century onwards, based mainly on the international trade in hemp cloth (or canvas). It was one of the busiest towns in Brittany. Its 16th-century Notre-Dame church and more than 70 buildings in the town are listed as Historic Monuments, including many of the houses in the historic centre, the town's fortified walls, the Saint-Nicolas monastery, etc. Vitré has hosted the Tour de France on four occasions, first in 1985 for the start of a team time trial, then for three sprint finishes, won by Mario Cippolini (1995), Marcel Wust (2000) and Robbie McEwen (2006). Since 1996, Vitré has also been the host town for the Route Adélie, which takes place in April and has seen the victories of Bryan Coquard (2016), Silvan Dillier (2018) and Axel Zingle (2022), among the riders likely to take part in the 2025 Tour.
Vitré Castle
Founded : second half of the 11th century by Robert I of Vitré.
Styles : Romanesque fortified castle with Gothic, Renaissance and neo-Gothic elements.
History : the first wooden castle was built by Baron Riwallon of Vitré. It was abandoned in favour of a new stone castle built on a promontory overlooking the Vilaine River. A Romanesque porch remains from this building. The reconstruction of the castle in its current form and the fortification of the town are attributed to the early 13th century. Between 1384 and 1430, the last defensive works were completed: châtelet with double drawbridge and arrow, Madeleine tower, Saint-Laurent tower. From the end of the 15th century and into the 16th century, the main focus was on comfort, with the construction of traffic galleries and a Renaissance-style oratory. The château was abandoned in the 17th century and fell into disrepair. At the beginning of the 19th century, a prison was built in place of the lord's residence. It became a barracks from 1867 to 1877. In 1872, it became one of the first châteaux in France to be listed as a historic monument and was restored from 1875 under the direction of architect Denis Darcy.
Characteristics : when it was extended, it was built on a triangular plan. The entrance gateway consists of two pepper-pot towers.
Current purpose : the Saint-Laurent tower is now a museum, founded in 1877 by Arthur Lemoyne de la Borderie, a local scholar who was the first historian of Brittany. Today, Vitré town hall is located within the castle walls, in a building rebuilt in 1912 according to the plans of the medieval dwelling.
Listed as : historical monument since 1872
Château des Rochers Sévigné
Founded : 15th century by the Sévigné family.
Style : Gothic manor house.
Characteristics : built on an L-shaped plan with two towers. A formal garden was created in 1690 by André Le Nôtre.
Trivia : famous letter writer Madame de Sévigné (1626-1696) discovered this medieval Gothic-style house the same year she married in 1644. She fell under its spell and stayed here 16 times until 1690, writing 297 letters, including 262 to her daughter, the Countess of Grignan - a quarter of her surviving work.
Current purpose : it houses a museum dedicated to the history of Madame de Sévigné, which has been open to the public since 1884.
Listed as : Historical Monument in 1995.
Km 94.2
Argentré-du-Plessis (Pop: 4,590)
The presence of several archaeological sites in the commune bears witness to its ancient occupation. This is particularly true of the Bois du Pinel site, a former 11th-century feudal motte-and-bailey castle, listed as a Historical Monument in 1995.
Château du Plessis
Construction : 15th to 19th centuries.
Style : neo-Gothic and Renaissance.
History and characteristics : the castle underwent a long evolution from the 15th to the 19th century. The facades were completely rebuilt during the 19th century (addition of circular turrets at the corners to the west, circular brick end turrets to the east). A return wing was added in the 19th century, ending in the east with the construction of a neo-Gothic chapel with turrets. The interior features a series of rooms decorated with 18th-century wood panelling, and a ballroom with moulded panelling and a painted coffered vault. The ensemble bears witness to the taste in vogue at the end of the 19th century, combining Neo-Gothic style (chapel) with Renaissance style (dwelling).
Current use : private property.
Listed as : Historical Monument in 2000.
Pays de la Loire Region
Departments : Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne, Sarthe, Vendée.
Population : 3.88 million.
Prefecture : Nantes
Surface area : 32,082 km²
Specialities : biscuits (BN, Lefèvre-Utile), gâteau nantais, seafood, muscadet, gros plant, fiefs vendéens (wines), rillettes of Le Mans, Guérande salt, Vendée brioches, curé nantais, fouace (cheeses), cul de veau à l'angevine (veal), roast pork with Le Mans reinettes (apples), calf's liver à la baugeoise, poularde à l'angevine (grouse Angers-style), pike with white butter, sea bass in a Guérande salt crust, eel stew, bardatte, chouée, rillauds.
Sports clubs : FC Nantes, Stade Lavallois, Le Mans FC (football). Le Mans Sarthe Basket. Automobile Club de l'Ouest.
Competitions : Le Mans 24 Hours motor-racing. French Motorcycle Grand Prix. Circuit de la Sarthe, Tour de Vendée, Trophée Madiot (cycling). La Baule International showjumping. Vendée Globe sailing race.
Festivals : La Folle Journée (Nantes and region) / Nantes International Floralies / Hellfest in Clisson / Utopiales in Nantes / Laval Virtual / Europajazz Festival / Anjou Festival in Angers / Carnaval of Cholet / Poupet Festival.
Economy : the region's main strength is its food industry. This sector employed almost 50,000 people (2nd largest region in France), with sales of 13 billion euros (3rd largest region in France). The region also ranks 3rd in meat production (51 pc), milk production (19 pc) and grain processing (20 pc), with 67 pc of its territory occupied by agriculture. Pays de la Loire is France's leading region for the production of beef, poultry (red label), rabbit and duck, and 2nd for milk, poultry (single), pork and potatoes. Horticulture.
Tourist attractions : Unesco World Heritage Loire Valley, Le Puy du Fou, Anne de Bretagne castle in Nantes, Machines en l'île (Nantes). Castles of Angers, Terre-Neuve in Fontenay-le-Comte, Montsoreau, Saumur, Montreuil-Bellay, Plessis-Bourré. Towns of Nantes, Laval, Guérande and Saumur have been listed as towns of art and history. The villages of Montsoreau, Sainte-Suzanne and Vouvant. David d'Angers Museum in Angers / Museum of Science in Laval / Jules Verne Museum in Nantes.
Websites and social networks : www.paysdelaloire.fr
MAYENNE (53)
Region : Pays de la Loire
Population : 307,437
Surface area : 5,175.2 km²
Prefecture : Laval
Sub-prefectures : Mayenne, Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne
Specialities : cheeses (Port-Salut, Chaussée aux Moines, Chamois d'Or, Fol épi, Président and Bons Mayennais camemberts, Babybel)
Personalities : Henri Rousseau, known as Le Douanier Rousseau (painting), Ambroise Paré (French anatomist, father of modern surgery), Alfred Jarry (poet, writer and playwright), Marc and Yvon Madiot, Jacky Durand, André Foucher, Alain Meslet, François Pervis (cycling).
Sport : Stade Lavallois Mayenne FC (football, National), equine industry (nearly 10,000 horses on farms, 10 racecourses, including 3 top-class). Events : Boucles de la Mayenne (cycling). Bonchamp has twice been voted the most sporting town in the Pays de la Loire region.
Economy : high density of SMEs, food companies (Lactalis, Bel, Perreault, Vaubernier, Monbana, Réauté, Les Gorronnaises).
Heritage : the medieval town of Sainte-Suzanne is listed as one of the "Most Beautiful Villages in France"; the ancient town of Jublains; Mont des Avaloirs (highest point in the Grand Ouest, 417 m); Refuge de l'Arche in Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne (animal shelter); Pontmain Basilica; Robert Tatin Museum (creator of Maison des Champs).
Festivals : Les 3 Eléphants (contemporary music, Laval, end May), Au Foin de la Rue (contemporary music, Saint-Denis-de-Gastines), Laval Virtual (international virtual and augmented reality events).
Websites and social networks : www.lamayenne.fr / Facebook @departement.lamayenne / Instagram @departement53 / Twitter @lamayenne / www.m-mayenne.fr / Facebook @McommeMayenne / Instagram @mcommemayenne / Twitter @mcommemayenne / www.mayenne-tourisme.com / Facebook @mayennetourisme / Instagram @MayenneTourisme / Twitter @MayenneTourisme
Km 104.7
Cuillé (Pop: 850)
This village in the Upper-Anjou region is the birthplace of André Foucher, French independent champion in 1959 and two-time winner of the Grand Prix du Midi Libre in 1964 and 1965. A team-mate of Henry Anglade, Jan Janssen and Raymond Poulidor, he competed in the Tour de France eight times, finishing 6th in 1964. He showed exceptional longevity, contesting his first amateur race in 1948 and his last in 1998, fifty years later! Dubbed Le Vieux (The Old one), he didn't hesitate to train with other riders from Mayenne, such as the Madiot brothers, who were a quarter of a century younger than him. In the 1966 Tour, Antoine Blondin devoted a column to him, Foucher dans le coin (the pun is untranslatable), which did much for his reputation.
Km 114.9
Ballots (Pop: 1,300)
This is Jacky Durand's village, where his parents ran a farm. Although he didn't win much in the amateur category, being neither a climber nor a sprinter, he turned this handicap into a strength by becoming a formidable attacker, specialising in long-distance breakaways. His greatest feat is undoubtedly the 1992 Tour of Flanders, in which he won after a 217km breakaway, first with Swiss rider Thomas Wegmüller and then solo. But the rider from Mayenne has also left his mark on the Tour de France, winning the prize for fighting spirit in 1998 and 1999, a year in which he also finished last in the race. He won two stages of the Tour in 1994, but above all in 1995, when his victory in the prologue, due to a change in the weather, enabled him to wear the Yellow Jersey for two days. He also held the leader's jersey in the Vuelta in 1999. He won Paris-Tours (1998), Grand Prix d'Isbergues (1991) and stages of Paris-Nice (1999) and the Dauphiné (2002). After his career, he became one of cycling's most relevant and respected consultants. The village has two buildings listed as Historical Monuments, Château de Roseray (17th century) and the Bonshommes Priory (12th century).
Km 123.6
Craon (Pop: 4,415)
In the Middle Ages, Craon was a formidable medieval fortress with 27 towers and 1,600 metres of walls, used to guard the Anjou border with Brittany. It was a major trading town (famous for its bleached linen yarn), with market halls founded in the 12th century and reputed to be among the largest in France. Craon, which was the seat of the first barony of Anjou, was an important political, judicial and religious force, managing some forty parishes. Its power declined after the French Revolution. Craon has preserved an interesting heritage from its heyday, including its timber-framed covered market hall dating from 1850 (listed as a World Heritage site in 1984), several salt stores and, of course, its château. The cheese known as Chaussée aux Moines was produced in a former priory in Craon.
Craon has hosted stages of the Boucles de la Mayenne and the Tour du Haut Anjou, as well as the Tour de l'Avenir in 2001.
Craon Castle
Built : 1770
Style : classical, neo-classical.
History : built to the designs of architect Pierre Pommeyrol (1744-1801) by masons from Limousin and Anjou for Marquis Pierre-Ambroise de La Forest d'Armaillé. Having become one of the largest landowners in Anjou, he divided his time between hunting in Craon and Parisian society life, frequenting the salon of Comtesse du Barry and owning a box at the Comédie-Française. In January 1790, the Marquis abandoned his château to revolutionary troops and took refuge in his Parisian hotel. Fighting took place at the château between Chouans and Republicans.
Characteristics : built in white stone from Saumur, the château's façade features a curvilinear pediment and bays adorned with Louis XVI garlands. The courtyard elevation is neo-classical in style.
Current use : the château is open to visitors and offers bed and breakfast and self-catering accommodation, as well as function rooms for weddings and seminars.
Listed as : Historical Monument in 1971.
Km 135.1
Prée-d'Anjou (Pop: 1,390)
Since 2018, Prée-d'Anjou has included the former communes of Ampoigné and Laigné. Château d'Ampoigné (17th century) has been a listed building since 1987. The commune also boasts a seigniorial barn known as Chéripeau, listed in the same year. In Laigné are two small châteaux, the 17th-century manor house of Fontenelle, listed in 1964, and the 18th-century logis de la Teillais, listed in 1990.
Km 157.9
L'Huisserie (Pop: 4,550)
A Chouan stronghold during the Revolution, the town prospered in the 19th century thanks to the coal mines that operated until 1923. This is the village where Gabon international striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang grew up and was trained. He played for Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea, before spending a remarkable season at Olympique de Marseille. Since 2024, he has been playing in Saudi Arabia for Al-Qadisiyah FC.
Km 167.5
Changé (Pop: 6,300)
In 2021, Changé was the starting town for a 27.2km individual time trial to Laval, won by Tadej Pogacar ahead of Stefan Küng and Jonas Vingegaard. Mathieu Van der Poel managed to hold on to his Yellow Jersey for 8 seconds.
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