France, southern Brittany and the Atlantic coast
Port du Crouesty in Arzon is the French Atlantic base: the Gulf of Morbihan behind it, Houat, Hoëdic and Belle-Île 10 to 20 NM ahead, tides of 4 to 5 metres and currents that make this a sailor's week rather than a beach one; La Rochelle and the islands of Ré, Oléron and Aix are the gentler Charente alternative to the south.
YACHT TYPES
Monohulls 32 to 45 ft dominate at Crouesty, many of them fast cruisers built locally; a few catamarans; classic boats and day sailers; La Rochelle adds the largest Atlantic fleet of monohulls.
A typical week from Port du Crouesty
Saturday to Saturday, with every leg timed on the tide: leave the gulf on the ebb, enter on the flood, and read the chart for the rocks that show at low water.
Day 1, Crouesty to Houat (12 NM). Out past the Teignouse passage to the great beach of Treac'h er Gourhed on the east of Houat: anchor in sand, dinghy ashore, dinner in the village.
Day 2, to Belle-Île (12 NM). Sauzon's harbour dries, so take a fore-and-aft mooring in the outer harbour, or berth at Le Palais under the Vauban citadel; bikes to the Aiguilles de Port-Coton.
Day 3, to Ster-Wenn and Hoëdic (18 NM). The rock creek of Ster-Wenn on the west coast, lines ashore and no swell, entered at slack water; then across to Hoëdic's Port Argol or the anchorage north of the island.
Day 4, to Port-Haliguen or La Trinité-sur-Mer (10 to 14 NM). The Quiberon peninsula: Port-Haliguen's marina, or La Trinité, the racing harbour, with the Carnac stones a bike ride away.
Day 5, into the Gulf of Morbihan (14 NM). Through the entrance at Port-Navalo on the flood, 4 to 8 knots of current at springs, to the anchorage off Île aux Moines or the buoys at Île d'Arz.
Day 6, Vannes or Le Bono (8 NM). Vannes' lock and town basin at high water for the old town, or the river to Le Bono and Auray for the oysters.
Day 7, to Crouesty (8 NM). Out with the ebb and round the point to the marina for the afternoon check-in.
Two weeks reach Groix and Lorient, the Glénan archipelago, or south to the Loire, Pornic and Noirmoutier. From La Rochelle the week is Ré, Aix, Oléron and the Charente estuary. Both are in our Brittany itineraries.
Practical points for a Brittany charter
Licences and experience
France requires no licence to sail a yacht, but operators want a sailing CV with tidal experience and a VHF certificate (CRR or foreign equivalent); foreign crews with a national licence or ICC are accepted. Crouesty has a chandlery and a chart shop: buy the SHOM tide tables for the week.
Tides, wind and sea
Tidal range 4 to 5 m at springs, 2 to 3 m at neaps; the Morbihan entrance runs 4 to 8 knots and the Teignouse passage has overfalls with wind against tide. Prevailing winds are west to south-west, 10 to 20 knots in summer with a north-westerly sea breeze on fine afternoons; Atlantic lows bring a day of 25 to 35 knots even in July. Fog is common in June with a warm land and a cold sea. Harbours that dry: Sauzon, Le Bono, Auray, parts of Houat; check depths against the tide before every entry.
Moorings and fees
Marinas 35 to 70 euros a night for a 40 ft yacht in summer; buoys at Houat, Hoëdic, Sauzon and in the gulf 15 to 30 euros; anchorages free. Belle-Île's Le Palais rafts four deep in August. Fuel at Crouesty, La Trinité and Le Palais.
Getting there
Nantes airport to Arzon is 1 h 15 by car; the TGV from Paris reaches Vannes in 2 h 30, then 40 minutes by taxi or bus to Crouesty. Lorient and Rennes airports are alternatives. Provisioning: supermarket at Crouesty, oysters and fish at the Arzon market.
Do we need tidal experience?
Yes, or a skipper. The gulf entrance and the drying harbours are not the place to learn, and operators will refuse a crew without it.
Is a week enough for Belle-Île and the gulf?
Yes: the islands are 10 to 15 NM apart and the gulf is on the way home. The Glénan and Groix need the second week.
La Rochelle instead of Brittany?
Ré, Oléron and Aix are warmer and flatter with more harbours that dry; the sailing is shorter and the towns bigger. Brittany has the anchorages and the scenery.
What does Seeksail need to advise us?
Dates, cabins, the skipper's tidal experience, skipper or not, Morbihan or Charente, and we shortlist three yachts from Crouesty or La Rochelle with a recommendation.
PLAN WITH CONFIDENCE
More destination-specific guides are being prepared.
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