www.ot-montsaintmichel.com DISCOVER THE SURROUNDING AREA OF HOW TO ACCESS AROUND THE MOUNT MONT SAINT-MICHEL MONT SAINT-MICHEL THE “CASERNE” & CAR PARKS I arrive by car 5 Brioche Dorée With my car, I access the vast compulsory car parks. Nu- THE “CASERNE” Le Mont Saint-Michel mbered from P2 to P13. I am situated near the shuttles that take me to the Mount from 7:30 am to midnight Distance of Mount – car parks 1 Food, Take away every day. or on foot: 2.7 km 4 Supermarket At the entrance of the car park, I take my ticket; I pay be- Departure and arrival of “Maringote” fore leaving at the automatic terminals. The price of the Bar, Restaurant, Creperie car park includes the shuttle as well as the free services Hotel Departure and arrival of the bus line 3 of the CIT (toilets, baby area, information). Pontorson – Mont Saint-Michel Hotel/Restaurant Campsite Departure and arrival of the passeur: 350 m on foot 2 I go to the Mount on foot 1 Le Relais St-Michel**** 1 • Around 45 min 2 Hôtel La Digue*** et From the parking lot, I reach Mont-Saint-Michel on foot I visit Avranches, the Scriptorial restaurant panoramique in about 50 minutes. and the treasure of Saint Gervais 3 Le Relais du Roy*** 3 itineraries are proposed to me: 4 Hôtel Gabriel*** e > The footpath, “La Lisière”, an incredible view of the 20 kilometres from the mount, I can discover the city of g SAINT-MICHEL d Mount via a well-kept pedestrian path, accessible to all. Avranches nestled at the top of a hill. The relics of Bishop Au- 5 Brioche Dorée ri b bert, who received the divine visions of Archangel Michael, > The central footpath “Mount Saint-Michel” leads me 6 y are on display at the Treasury of St. Gervais Church. The Les Galeries du Mont Saint-Michel a MONT w through “the caserne”, an area of activities where we Scriptorial, museum of manuscripts of Mont Saint-Michel, 7 Le Pré Salé lk find hotels, restaurants and a supermarket. a unveils the history of scrolls, calligraphy and illuminated, 8 Mercure**** W > The footpath, “The river banks of the Couesnon”, take unique treasures of the medieval library of the abbey of VISIT TO GUIDE MY Mont-Saint-Michel. 9 La Rôtisserie advantage of the dam, this major hydraulic work in the restoration of the maritime character of Mont Saint-Mi- 10 Hôtel Vert** chel. 11 Camping du Mont Saint-Michel Crossing the bay with 12 Le Saint-Aubert*** a certified guide 13 La Bergerie I access the Mount with The crossing of the bay, hiking across the seashore, is ins- 14 La Ferme Saint-Michel the free Passeur pired by the thousand-year-old tradition of pilgrims on their Mont Saint-Michel 2 • Around 12 min FREE ACCESS way to Mont Saint-Michel. Henceforth this nature excursion is accessible to all people wishing to live an unforgettable ex- Every day, from 7:30 to midnight, a regular shuttle takes Tourism Office - Normandy perience. The suggested formulas, by the certified guides, me to Mont-Saint-Michel in about 12 minutes. GR34 are numerous, from the simple discovery of the quicksand This links the «Place des Navettes» (next to the Tourist In- (1h30), the tour of the Mount (2h), the Mont Saint-Michel to GR223 formation Centre and car parks) to the terminus located TOURIST INFORMATION the islet of Tombelaine (3h) to the return crossing of 13 km 350 meters before the Mount. (6h). The Dam Depending on the crowds and the season, the frequen- OFFICE INTRAMURAL cies of the shuttles vary between 5 and 20 min. 2 in- 1 termediate stops are proposed: «Route du Mont» (mini The Tourist Information Office of Mont Saint- market, restaurants and hotels) and «Place du barrage» 2 Michel is located on the mount, on the left of the NO before arriving at the Mount. I get to know the salt marsh sheep N main entrance, and welcomes you every day *, Outside of these hours, a shuttle bus transports on re- quest. Contact: +33 (0) 2 14 13 20 15. The salt marshes are the meadows covered by the sea during throughout the year. O NE 2 the big tidal coefficients. This characteristic salt marsh allows (* except 25/12 and 01/01) the pastoral rearing of sheep and gives their flesh an inimi- table taste. It is thanks to the vegetation called halophyte, SO 3 I reach the Mount with the bus line E it can adapt to the salinity of the ground, which the sheep Boulevard de l’Avancée feed upon, hence this special character taste. This meat does 50170 Mont-Saint-Michel Pontorson – the Mount not have a very pronounced salty taste, but its flavour is reco- SE GPS coordinates: S PAID SERVICE gnised finer than a classic country lamb. 4 3 • Around 20 min 48.615914 (48 ° 36’57.29 «N) / -1.465602 The “Caserne” From Pontorson train station, a regular bus, correspon- Tel.: +33 (0) 233 601 430 ding to the arrival times (and departure) of the trains, 5 [email protected] takes me to the foot of the Mount. An intermediate stop I discover the polders Le Couesnon 6 at the area of the Mount. www.ot-montsaintmichel.com 2/3 When I face Mont Saint-Michel, I see on the left, the polders, a characteristic landscape of the bay. During the nineteenth 7 10 9 11 century, these lands are taken from the sea thanks to the 8 I reach the Mount with construction of irrigation dikes, allowing to develop the culti- SERVICES : vation activity: Carrots, potatoes, salads or pink shallots are MAP available in 14 Languages the horse-drawn carriage grown in these very fertile areas. Ticket sales (Abbey skip the line ticket) 4 • Around 25 min PAID SERVICE Souvenir shop Pulled by two horses, this carriage, called «Maringote» takes Wi-Fi me near to the entrance of Mont-Saint-Michel naturally 12 13 and effortlessly, via the bridge, in about 25 minutes. The fre- Photocopying quency of departures varies according to the season. A diploma “Miquelot” for those who have I understand the tides and finished the paths of Saint Michael Do not litter Arrival / departure Public bus lines the tidal bore 5 Every day, the level of the sea varies according to the phe- (SNCF) nomenon of the tides. Greater or weaker depending on the Information centre position of the moon and the sun in relation to the Earth. At Arrival and departure of public transport lines SECOND 5 the full moon, the sun and the moon are in alignment with Manche, Ille-et-Vilaine and SNCF bus. ENTRANCE the Earth: it’s time for high tides and here I can see the hi- Access is reserved 14 4 ghest tides in Europe! only for guests P9 I fly over Mont Saint-Michel A natural and magical phenomenon, the tidal bore is a wave of the hotels and P2 2 Good to know: P10 that can reach several tens of centimetres during high tides restaurants (code Like a bird, I can fly over Mont Saint-Michel and its bay aboard P3 Hotel guests stay Problems getting around: (spring tides). The rising tide runs upstream to the mouth access) ing on the mount, a microlight or plane. In this infinite sky with harmonious co- access with a code- I can consult on the website “Tourisme pour tous.” Wheel- of the river and suddenly forms a rise in water. In the bay lours, I discover the beauty of the sea, the meanders of the Parking P3, disabled P11 chairs available at CIT. of Mont Saint-Michel, the tidal bore rises upstream of three permit holders and rivers, the ripples on the sand, the dunes, the polders and the Avranches I am a cycle tourist: coastal rivers: Sée, Sélune and Couesnon. coaches Caen Mont Saint-Michel, which sits in the middle of this immen- CIT AND SERVICES Limit the access to the mount. sity: an unforgettable spectacle! P12 Bicycle parking available at the car parks, caserne & dam. In the immediate vicinity of the car parks, the P3 P5 No bicycle parks at the mount. Tourist Information Centre (CIT) welcomes you all year* to answer your tourist requests. P6 D275 I visit with a pushchair: (* except 25/12 and 01/01) P13 The Passeur is accessible with a pushchair but the Mont Saint-Michel, because of its many steps, is difficult to pass. P7 I favour the baby carrier. BABY CHANGING AREA D776 Open 7/7 and 24/24 P7 bis is available for your comfort and that of your baby. MAIN P8 ENTRANCE Beauvoir TOILETS Open 7/7 and 24/24 cars, motorbikes Pontorson accessible for disabled users. Saint-Malo and camping cars Parking and access to the Mount from “the Caserne” KENNELS Opening hours of the CIT I hike on the footpaths of Mont I stroll on the dam and the bridge Our pets are not allowed in the shuttle buses PARKING SPACE (near caserne) Saint-Michel The dam and the bridge are two masterpieces that contri- (except small dogs transported in a bag or basket bute to the restoration of the maritime character of Mont adapted and guide dogs or assistance) nor the The great European sites dedicated to St. Michael such as Saint-Michel. Since the dam, daily water has been released abbey. I entrust my pet to the kennel for more Toilets View point No animals allowed (except small dogs transported in a bag or basket) Disabled car park (vehicle -5m) Car park motorbikes Monte Gargano or the Sacra di San Michele in Italy, Aachen (varying times depending on the tides) allowing to naturally serenity.