This grand coast-to-coast route crosses Brittany on the towpath of the Ille & Rance canal and its connecting rivers.

It’s a long-time favourite for cycle holidays, partly due to the forgiving terrain, but also because of the interesting towns en route: the port of Dinard (just across from Saint Malo), the walled town of Dinan, Brittany’s capital city of Rennes, and the ancient abbey town of Redon. The many villages along the way are keen to get in on the act, of course, and you’ll see frequent signs enticing you off the towpath to a local café or campsite.

Most of the route is firm, packed gravel, but on occasion a tarmac lane takes over towpath duty. There are several bike holiday operators based on the route.

It’s particularly easy to reach from Britain, of course, with regular ferries across the channel to Saint Malo. At just 240km (150 miles), this could make a superb ‘long weekend’ holiday. You can easily return from Redon to Saint Malo on local TER trains, changing at Rennes.

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