Chris Newens - Moon Normandy & Brittany: With Mont-Saint-Michel (Travel Guide)

a beach in Dinard.

Seldom have two regions had more in common, yet more that divides them, than Normandy and Brittany.

On the one hand, theres their northern climate, their proximity to the sea, and the essentials of their cuisineapples, dairy, and seafoodwhich they share. On the other, theres how both are so fiercely proud of their regional heritage, whether for the horse-riding exploits of Norman conquerors or the music and legends of the mysterious Celts.

And yet

Normandy is a land of towering Gothic cathedrals, sedate farmland, and bourgeois seaside resorts, while Brittany has squat, almost pagan chapels, primordial woodland, and wind-lashed harbors that seem to exist in another time.

As one of the closest regions to Paris, Normandy has long been a weekend retreat for stylish urbanites looking for country air and exceptional rustic cooking. Its history is inextricably linked to that of the rest of France: It is long, deep, and known, and still feels like it can be touched. Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in Rouen; Impressionist painters roamed the cliffs of the Alabaster Coast; and D-Day, the largest land invasion of all time, with implications not just for France but for the whole world, took place in living memory, at the base of the Cherbourg Peninsula.

the door to glise Saint-Maclou in Rouen

Celtic monuments dot the landscape in Brittany

amusement park Les Machines de lle de Nantes

Brittany, meanwhile, is otherworldly and distinct. Here are mysterious Neolithic monuments, legends of giants, and the forests where King Arthur and Merlin are said to have trod. Its coastline is salty and wild, spangled by hardy lighthouses and wondrous islands, a water-sports paradise crenelated with grand natural harbors and hidden coves. Then there are the Bretons themselves, whose culture swings to its own rhythm, drinking cider from earthenware bowls, telling folktales of the hinterland, and partying with Celtic dancing and song.

Bringing the two regions back together is that both offer remarkable rewards for the independent traveler. And whether your tastes run to the luxury and sophistication of the casinos and elegant promenades of Deauville, or dancing into the night to the wail of bagpipes at a traditional fest-noz (night festival) in some little-known Breton village, theres more than a lifetimes worth of things to explore.

panoramic view over Cap Frhel, Brittany

a caf near the glise Saint-Maclou in Rouen.

Monets Water Garden in Giverny

Getting lost in the half-timber labyrinth of Rouens

Feeling like youre inside an Impressionist painting in , where the natural world has been tended into a living masterpiece.

at Mont-Saint-Michel, the Gothic monument that towers high above a tidal plain and seems like it belongs more to fantasy fiction rather than the real world.

, a concrete-and-glass kaleidoscope that evokes how the city of Le Havre conceived of the future as it was in the past.

, one of the most fascinating artifacts in Northern Europe that also tells the compelling story of the Norman conquest.

Pretending youre a French corsair as you tour the granite ramparts of , which look like theyve been carved from the ocean itself.

Swilling cider and watching the dancing to bagpipes at a . These Celtic night festivals take place in villages across Brittany and pulse with traditional food, dance, and song.