France Cruise: Brest and Quimper

In this fifth post of a multi-part series, Bethany explores Brest and Quimper, France on her France Intensive Cruise on Azamara.

Today was another dreary but fun day on the cruise. The ship docked in the city of Brest, France for the day. It is situated at the most northwestern tip of France in Brittany. With a population of roughly 140,000, Brest is the third-largest city in all of Brittany (and the largest in Western Brittany). However, I did not see much of Brest itself, as my day was spent in the quaint neighboring town of Quimper.

France Intensive Cruise Full Itinerary

Below is the full itinerary for the trip. This post includes details about Brest and Quimper, France. Looking for info on other stops? Check out the ‘Links’ section at the end of this post!

• June 9 through June 11: Bordeaux, France
• June 12: La Rochelle and Île de Ré, France
• June 13: Belle-Île-en-Mer, France
• June 14: Nantes, France
• June 15: Brest and Quimper, France
• June 16: St. Peter Port, Guernsey
• June 17: Saint-Malo and Mont-Saint-Michel, France
• June 18: Cherbourg, Omaha Beach, and Sainte-Mère-Église, France
• June 19 & 20: Honfleur, Rouen, and Fécamp, France
• June 21: Oostende and Bruges, Belgium

Morning at Sea

We were not scheduled to arrive at Brest until early afternoon, so it was a morning at sea. The prior night and this morning were both fairly rough, as the high seas and winds were knocking our ship around quite a bit! I managed to survive, with a little help with some ginger chews and ginger ale.

The highlight of the morning on the ship was the scrumptious brunch! I love the Azamara brunches on the ships. It is an overwhelming assortment of delicious food…typical breakfast fare such as eggs, omelets, pancakes, and waffles, plus some delicious lunch fare such as meats, cheeses, fish, and pasta. Topping everything off is a bountiful assortment of desserts. I chose to have breakfast early in the morning in Windows Cafe, so I could focus on a lunchtime meal at the brunch before setting off on the afternoon excursion.

The ship docked in Brest under some very threatening skies. The dark clouds looked very ominous! However, I lucked out and did not have much rain at all on the afternoon excursion to Quimper.

Quimper

My afternoon excursion was to a city called Quimper, about 45 miles southeast of Brest. A pleasant drive through Brest and some of the surrounding countryside got us to Quimper in about an hour.

Local Market

Once in Quimper, our wonderful guide gave us a walking tour of the city’s main old town center. We first walked through the local market.

Because it was mid-afternoon, the local market was fairly quiet. It is busiest in the morning, when the locals come to shop for fresh produce, meats, cheeses, fish, flowers, and other items. Scroll through the slideshow below to see pictures of some of the wonderful wares available in the market:

Cathédrale Saint-Corentin de Quimper

Next up was the gorgeous Cathédrale Saint-Corentin de Quimper (Quimper Cathedral of Saint Corentin). We first admired the exterior…we were a bit delayed getting inside because there was a wedding taking place! After the wedding was complete, the wedding party spilled out of the church and we made our way inside.

This Roman Catholic cathedral is notable because it slightly bends in the middle! When standing inside the front door and looking in, you can see the slight bend to the left. This bend is to avoid disturbing an older chapel that was there and that contained important tombs. It is also said that the bend was to avoid a swampy area that was there at the time of construction in the 13th century. Our guide also explained that many like to see the inclination to the left as suggesting Christ’s head leaning to the left when he hung on the cross.

Click through the slideshow below to see some pictures of the stunning cathedral:

Old Town Center

After the cathedral we continued walking through the old town center. There are many medieval fortifications and houses here. Many of the building are half-timbered and painted in colorful patterns. The buildings often have upper floors that are larger than those below, creating a sort of reverse stair-step illusion.

The slideshow below includes some pictures from around Quimper:

As with the other wonderful towns and cities I visited along the way, Quimper is full of charm and character. The River Odet runs through the center of the area, making for more gorgeous scenery. After the walking tour we had plenty of free time to explore on our own. I enjoyed wandering through the cobblestone streets and doing some shopping in the small boutiques. Aside from a few very light sprinkles, the rain held off!

The below slideshow includes more photos of quaint Quimper:

Delicious Dinner

Once back on the ship, I got ready for another delicious dinner in Discoveries. Tonight’s menu included:

• Starter: French onion soup
• Main Course: Slow roasted beef strip loin, crispy garlic butter potatoes, asparagus (it’s hiding under the beef!), sherry mushroom cream sauce
• Dessert: Strawberry kiwi Pavlova (meringue)

I was eating dinner when we set sail, so I missed the opportunity to snap some photos of Brest as we left. But I did manage to get one from a distance before heading into the show!

Conclusion

My day in Quimper was wonderful! After a relaxing (albeit a bit bumpy!) morning on the ship, including a bountiful brunch, it was a lot of fun to explore the quaint town of Quimper in the afternoon. The dreary weather did not stop me from thoroughly enjoying myself while seeing a bit more in Brittany.

Links

Check the main page for this cruise to read more about my adventures:

Click the button below for more information about Azamara:

Note: I fully funded this trip on my own and received no compensation or any other benefits from any service providers I used along the way. The opinions expressed here are my own and I am not being compensated by any service providers.