Roscoff France
3
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Frequently Asked Questions
At the port of Bloscon, a deep-water basin about two kilometres east of the old town. So it is not at the foot of the old village, contrary to what you might expect.
By shuttle, or on foot in about half an hour along the coast, with the Île de Batz in view. The walk is pleasant in good weather but exposed to wind. Once in the village, everything is within a very short walk.
You have to choose. Either the old town: granite lanes, the old port quays, the Notre-Dame de Croaz-Batz church and the Johnnies house. Or the Île de Batz, which needs a solid half day. Both in a short call is too tight.
The village church, with an openwork Renaissance bell tower among the most elegant in Brittany. Stone caravels carved on its walls show who paid for it: the shipowners enriched by the 16th-century linen trade.
Farmers who, from the 19th century, sailed to England each summer with strings of pink onions and sold them door to door, on foot and later by bicycle. The British called them Onion Johnnies. The Maison des Johnnies tells the story; the Roscoff pink onion now holds a protected designation of origin.
By a short boat crossing, about fifteen minutes from the old port quays. The island is explored on foot or by bicycle among pale sand beaches, coastal paths and market garden fields.
The Georges Delaselle garden, an exotic garden created over a century ago where palms and southern hemisphere plants thrive thanks to the Gulf Stream, and the lighthouse at the island's high point, which rewards the climb with a full panorama over the Bay of Morlaix.
The village crêperies serve buckwheat galettes and salted butter crêpes with farmhouse cider. Strings of pink onions are sold in every good shop and travel well.
The euro and French. Cards are accepted everywhere. Because of the ferry links with England, English is more widely spoken here than in most Breton towns.
May to September, but be ready for anything: the Channel wind drives fast clouds and the light changes minute by minute. A windbreaker is essential in every season, even when fine weather is forecast.
