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Let me start by saying that most folks do not realise the beautiful coastal area of my lovely Bretagne , and go to the cities, not too bad either but the best here is by the sea, I grew up on a beach, and harbor in old Puerto Esperanza ,and lived very near 150 meters as a young adult in Florida. Now enjoying the coast in my Brittany on a beautiful town to visit too, Saint Malo, in dept 35 of Ille et Vilaine in my lovely Bretagne, and belle France, Took the need to bring out these pictures in a separate post to show you more of it, the real one. Therefore, let me tell you my take on the harbors of Saint Malo !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The City of Saint-Malo is the main port on the north coast of Bretagne. It is 18 km from Dinan, 75 km from Rennes and 404 km from Paris as well as 160 km from my house. It constitutes the north-western part of Clos Poulet, a wide peninsula bounded by the Rance, the Manche and the Châteauneuf depression. At the northeast end of Clos-Poulet is Cancale, which closes the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel to the west. The Clos-Poulet coastline is part of the côte d’Émeraude or Emerald Coast, which stretches from Cancale to Cape Fréhel.   The neighboring towns of Saint-Malo are, Saint-Coulomb, Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes, Saint-Jouan-des-Guérets, on the left bank of the Rance, Dinard, La Richardais and Pleurtuit.

Saint-Malo is an active trading port, the second largest trading port in Bretagne. It is made up of four basins, the Vauban basin, the Duguay-Trouin basin, the Jacques-Cartier basin and the Bouvet basin. There are two pleasure boat marinas. One is the Port de Plaisance des Sablons , Port des Sablons, Terre plein sud. Open in high season 7h – 21h. Low season 8h15 – 12h15 and 13h45 – 17h30.  And the Port de Plaisance Vauban, in the Vauban basin handle by the chamber of commerce and industry of Sain Malo-Fougéres. Port Vauban marina: 225 berths on 3 wharfs and neighboring wharves 50 visitor berths All distances allowed.

Two nice quant rides you can take in the bay fun for the whole family and use as a boat touristic tour (we love it) are: 

Captain taxi : All year round, From Dinard or from Saint Malo, embark with family and friends to discover the history and maritime landscapes of the Emerald Cost and Rance Valley. For a quick trip, the water taxi operates fast cruise services between Dinard, Saint-Malo, Cézembre Island and Ebihens Island. The official Captain Taxi: https://www.captain-taxi.fr/en/

Taxi Boat : Join Dinard, Saint-Malo or Saint-Servan safely and without congestion!   Shuttle to the island of Cézembre. Discover its beaches, its beautiful promenade and stop at the corsair restaurant . The official Bateaux Rouges on the Taxi boat : https://bateauxrouges.com/traversees-saint-malo-dinard/

The tides in the bay of Saint-Malo are among the highest in Europe. They are caused by the concentration of water in the heart of a triangular bay between Bretagne and Cotentin peninsula. At most, the tidal range (amplitude between low tide and high tide) can reach 14 meters, more than double the ordinary tidal range in the Atlantic ocean. It is for this reason that the dam of the tidal power plant was built on the Rance estuary, upstream of the intramural of Saint-Malo in the early 1960s. Here, the sea offers you a different landscape at all times, swept twice a day by the back and forth of the tide. During the full moon or the new moon, the attraction is at its peak. The tidal coefficients generally exceed 100. Every six months, near each equinox (March-April and September-October), the tides are even stronger. These are the famous tides of equinox long awaited by fishermen on foot, because the sea recedes particularly far. But they are also very much feared by the residents of the seaside because the risks of flooding at the time of the high sea are frequent.

The most famous events in the city of Saint-Malo are associated with nautical races: the start of the Route du Rhum, a solo transatlantic sailboat race, takes place every four years, and the arrival of the Transat Quebec -Saint-Malo with crew which also takes place every 4 years. Saint-Malo also hosts occasional nautical events such as the start of the Course des Grands Voiliers (formerly the Cutty Sark) in 2012 or smaller ones such as the Raid des Corsaires in the bay of Saint-Malo. In the area, there is also a second-hand nautical fair, Saint-Malo à la Hune.

There will be a nice museum worth waiting for and visit. The Musée d’Histoire Maritime de Saint-Malo or maritime history museum. Many delays due to funding and enviromental issues of today are holding it back, However, the process is ongoing and approved, Before the closure of its permanent exhibition sequences to the public in November 2019, it was organized on several sites: the castle, the Solidor tower, and the temporary reserves, The old program then planned to build the museum in a new building located on the quai de Terre-Neuve, on the edge at Quay, in the Rocabey district. This location is unfortunately impossible today, The City hired the Kantara agency, in order to offer an optimal location choice. 3 sites were then evaluated: La Briantais, the castle and the old site of the École Nationale Supérieure Maritime or National Maritime School of Saint-Malo (ENSM) released during the summer of 2023. After several months of study and looking at the new cultural cap of the future museum, it will come to life on the emblematic site of the former National Maritime Higher School (ENSM) of Saint-Malo! It’s time now for the City to organize the launch of technical studies on building it , this one having to be subject to profound developments in terms of accessibility and upgrading, and the launch of the architecture competition scheduled for January 2024. The scientific and cultural project (PSC), a real roadmap in the development of the museum defining intention and prefiguring the content of the future museum, has been deeply renewed. The future Saint-Malo museum will be the expression, on the one hand, of the strong and constitutive history of Saint-Malo and, on the other hand, issues relating to the sea today and tomorrow. Three new principles to remember. A bridge between the past and the present, a space for reflection on our relationship to the sea open in our time, and an open and decompartmentalized place, First step, the construction of reserves, place of conservation, preservation and research on some 13,000 objects of the Malouin maritime history. Located on the ZAC des Fougerais, (commercial zone at 7 Rue du Dr Alain Lefort about 6 km from the castle) , the new building, the useful area of which amounts to around 1,000 m2 on one level for 658 m2 of conservation spaces, was designed to meet the current environmental issues.

The City of Saint Malo on the ports/harbors : https://www.saint-malo.fr/accueil/sortir/les-ports/

The Saint Malo tourist office on its sea history : https://www.saint-malo-tourisme.co.uk/our-8-preserved-treasures/saint-malo-le-bijou-corsaire/

The Ille et Vilaine dept 35 tourist office on Saint Malo : https://www.ille-et-vilaine-tourism.com/discover-ille-et-vilaine/the-loveliest-places/saint-malo/

The Brittany region tourist office on Saint Malo : https://www.brittanytourism.com/destinations/the-10-destinations/cap-frehel-saint-malo-mont-saint-michel-bay/saint-malo/

There you go folks , a wonderful time in sublime Saint Malo, The city has a lot to show and the harbors are an integral part of the City of Corsairs ! Again, hope you enjoy this post on the harbors of Saint Malo as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!