How to visit Mont Saint Michel in France, practical guide.

How to visit Mont Saint Michel?

A magical place if there is one, a spectacle of nature and at the same time the overcoming of man by building an impressive abbey on its peak in the Middle Ages.

Today we discover one of the places that I have no doubt is one of the most impressive in France, today we will see how to visit the Mont Saint Michel.

Located in Normandy but only a few kilometers from Brittany, in the Middle Ages a group of monks chose this place to settle and build what was to become one of the most extraordinary buildings of religious architecture.

Indice:

VISIT THE MONT SAINT MICHEL, HOW TO GET THERE AND WHERE TO STAY?

When talking about how to visit Mont Saint Michel, we have at least four different options and I will list them with their pros and cons.

1-Day visit

On the web you will find several different tours from Paris, the prices are around € 150/200, you arrive at noon and leave in the late afternoon.

You can also visit it on your own by train and then by bus, from Montparnasse station to Villedieu les Poeles station, where you will take a bus to the mountain. It costs around €27 each way.

You can also arrive by train to Portonson/Mont Saint Michel station and from there take a bus to the mountain. Here are the bus schedules

The other option is by car, but from Paris you have 360 km approximately, so spending only the day is practically unfeasible.

A FAVOR: it’s a great getaway if you have a day to spare in Paris.

AGAINST: you will visit it for only a few hours and with a lot of people (think that it is the second most visited place in France after Paris).

Find here your excursion from Paris to Mont Saint Michel

Mont Saint Michel as seen from the footbridge — Mont Saint Michel

2-Stay in a nearby town

The second option is to spend at least one night, but in order not to make the trip too expensive, stay in a nearby village, for example DinanSaint Malo, Beauvoir or Pontorson.

A FAVOR: You will be able to dedicate more hours to the mountain. You will be able to find good prices on accommodation. And at the same time you will enjoy other charming cities such as Dinan, (56 km from Mont Saint Michel).

AGAINST: you will have to move, which means arriving later to the mountain without being able to avoid the crowds.

► If you are planning a route through more points of this wonderful country, you may also be interested in.: What to see in Northern France

Dinan,France. Half-timbered houses. — DINAN, a beautiful city only 56 km from the bush.

► Do you plan to upload many photos on your social networks during your trip and stay connected, we use a data SIM designed for travelers ►. Holafly

3-Staying at the foot of the mountains

The third option, and it is very attractive, is to stay, not inside the ramparts, but outside, in the Caserne.

La Caserne is the place where you arrive with the car, there you will find several hotels and restaurants, the prices are not cheap, but lower than inside the intramural area. You have a free shuttle bus, which makes the journey from the footbridge and leaves you at the foot of the mountain.

A FAVOR: here you will have the freedom to make the visits you want and at the times you want, and you can also schedule to see the rise of the tide.

AGAINST: you may not save as much on lodging.

Mont Saint Michel seen from the shuttle bus — View of Mont Saint Michel

4-Spending a night inside the walls

This last option is the one we chose, which is to stay inside the mountain itself, within the area of the wall.

The hotels are quite expensive, there are not so many options, and they are not luxurious, but the magic of the night and the magic of the very early morning, when there is absolutely no one, is incredible.

View of the abbey at night — Night at Mont Saint Michel

Streets in the bush — Deserted streets in the morning on the mountain and El Mouton Blanc (lodging)

We chose to stay at the Mouton Blancsimple, but it was what we expected, with a good breakfast.

SEARCH FOR ACCOMMODATION IN MONT SAINT MICHEL AND SURROUNDINGS

Mont Saint Michel at night inside the ramparts — Night at Mont Saint Michel

A FAVOR: you will have the opportunity to see the high and low tide from the inside, and the possibility of enjoying long walks with practically no one in sight and listening to the birds.

AGAINST: Prices are very high.

Now you’ve probably already chosen how to get there, and if you’re staying, where to stay. You have already decided the main thing. Shall we continue?

How to visit Mont Saint Michel. INFORMATION IF YOU TRAVEL BY CAR

Let’s go to the second point of how to visit Mont Saint Michel, if you have decided to go by car.

Thinking about renting a car for the tour?Search for the best option

We have to be clear that if we go by car we will NOT be able to access inside the mountain itself, even if we have the hotel there.

Only authorized vehicles pass over the footbridge built to access the mountain.

Outside, before starting this walkway, and the Caserne, you have parking lots to leave vehicles. The costs are per hour or per day, for 24 hs from €9,80 to €15 for cars, depending on the season, they are all very well signposted, and for motorhomes from €12,90 to €18,70. For price updates see here►TariffsMont Saint Michel

If you are staying either inside or outside, ask the hotel for the code to leave it in the parking lot free of charge.

From the parking lot you have three options to get into the mountain.

From the parking lot if you want you can admire the Mont Saint Michel, walk along the footbridge, it seems to me the most beautiful option.

Mont Saint Michel arriving with suitcases — On the footbridge leading to the mountain

You can also do the walkway tour by shuttle bus, it is free and they leave very frequently.

The other option is to cross the footbridge by horse-drawn carriage, La Maringote, a Breton horse-drawn carriage that links the mainland with Mont Saint Michel, is the type of transport used by the ancient pilgrims. It costs €6.70 each way.

the Maringote crossing to the mount — The Maringote

THE LUGGAGE to visit Mont Saint Michel

The other point is the suitcases. If you come from a long trip like us, and you have all kinds of suitcases and sizes, don’t put them down if it’s just for one night.

Arm yourself with a small suitcase, carry on or a bag and arrive with it. Inside the walls of the mountain, the access roads to the hotels, are cobblestone and uphill, impossible to make the journey with weight and dragging it.

ASCENT TO THE ABBEY

Although many will scare you with all that you have to climb, and will tell you the number of steps up to it, the truth is that, at least to us, the climb was very bearable, in a while we were up.

But once you get there, take your time, it’s big, beautiful and interesting, and the hours will fly by. It has a lot to see, it is really worth it.

Hours: from January 2 to April 30, every day from 9:30 am to 6 pm. From May 2 to August 31, every day from 9:00 am to 7:00 pm. From September 1 to December 31, daily from 9:30 am to 6 pm. In all cases, access is one hour before closing time.

You can buy your tickets online on the monuments of France website www.abbaye-mont-saint-michel.fr. Cost of the ticket €11. The tickets are not dated, they are valid for use for one year from the date of purchase, what you can not get online are the audio guides, which you can buy there for €3 euros. Check also on the website the days and dates of free access.

Or you can also get your tickets here below and skip the line.

Inside the Abbey Mont Saint Michel — Interior of the abbey of Mont Saint-Michel

Inside the abbey of Mont Saint Michel — At the Abbey

THE TIDES

Whether you are one of those who want to be at the very moment of the rise of the tide, or you are one of those who want to know if you will have access at the moment of arrival, you will have to check the tide calendar. There you will see each day with the exact time of rise and fall and its coefficient, that is the intensity of the same, to help you distinguish are marked in colors.

Six or seven times a year Mont Saint Michel becomes an island. To observe the phenomenon of high tide you should be 2 hours before the indicated time, and for safety, do not stay alone in the bay or surroundings. Walking through the bay is only allowed in the company of certified guides.

Tides Mont Saint Michel mountain view — Tide seen from the mountain

Sunset and low tide at Mont Saint Michel — Low tide

WHAT TO SEE INSIDE THE WALLS?

All the mountain and its wall for which it is not necessary to get any entrance ticket.

Intramural at Mont Saint Michel — Inside the bush

The abbey, which does cost €11.

The main street, with lots of shops selling souvenirs, restaurants and hotels.

Inside we also find the medieval church Saint Pierre, and at its feet a cemetery.

Saint Pierre Medieval Chapel — Interior of Saint Pierre Church

WHERE TO EAT?

You have quite a variety of restaurants both inside and outside the walls, what you can not miss is to try their omelet Mere Poulard, honestly it is nothing special but as it is typical of the bush, it is always good to try the traditional.

The visit to Mont Saint Michel is highly recommended, but if you manage to do it on dates and times where there are not many people, we hope to have helped you to put together that long-awaited visit, we leave here a couple of videos, one with recommendations and another with images of that dreamed place.