An Afternoon in Vitré

Imagine spending an afternoon visiting not one, but two castles, both under 30 km of each other. Such an opportunity exists in this magnificent region, as Brittany is home to well over a dozen magnificent châteaux.

Last July, we spent a lovely afternoon visiting Vitré and Fougères, two communes that lie in the Ille-et-Vilaine department of central Brittany. While we visited both towns in one afternoon, I would recommend spending at least a few hours in each, allowing for long, leisurely strolls and taking in every bit of the charm that they have to offer. Today, I will highlight our visit to Vitré with an additional post coming soon about Fougères as they both are deserving of equal time.

Vitré, home to about 18,000 inhabitants, is simply charming, with fascinating architecture, narrow cobbled streets, and a fairy tale chateau. The castle, sitting high above the River Vilaine, dates back to the 11th century, with expansions made in the 14th and 15th centuries. When the plague hit Rennes back in the 1600’s, the Parlement de Bretagne took refuge inside the castle.

Approaching the entrance, one is immediately transported back in time, and imagines men walking about in their tunics and woolen stockings and women in their long dresses and fine cloaks. We could even imagine the smell of fresh bread and stews being cooked over hot flames, and pork, chicken, or other fowl being cooked in large vats to keep it fresh.

The city hall and museum lie just within the castle walls, beautifully furnished and with impressive paintings. While there are not many rooms to explore, the views of the town below are well worth the visit. The castle is currently closed due to Covid-19, but is usually open Mondays from 10-12:30 and 2:00 – 5:30, Wednesday through Friday from 10-12:30 and 2-5:30, and Saturday and Sunday from 2-5:30. Closed Tuesdays.

Two of the most interesting streets in Vitré are Rue de la Baudriere and Rue de la Poterie. Here, you will find magnificent half-timbered houses owned by merchants who made their wealth in the cloth trade during the 14^th century. If you look closely, you can see the intricate carvings in the the wooden frames, and the ledges that merchants used as counters when selling their goods. You can also see the elaborate and exposed staircase on the right (of this photo). How lovely these homes are, especially given their age.

When we were there, flags were hung about the town, giving it a festive atmosphere.  We could easily imagine the merchants and their customers here, centuries ago, haggling over the price of an item and could almost hear the chattering of townsfolk, huddled together, catching up on the news of the day.

The sky was a shade of blue that I call “Brittany Blue” and the sun shone on the walls giving them a spotless appearance, as if they had just been built a short time ago. Bright wooden shudders contrast with the old cobbled streets and the stone walls that stand tall and erect. This contrast, and the grey roofs, so common in this area, are some of the things that I like most about the dwellings in this region.

I was especially fascinated by the many little doors, maybe 4 feet in height. I assumed this was because people were much shorter, but I have since learned that the doors were made this way to preserve the integrity of the structures, making them more stable. Either way, they certainly added to the town’s charm.

There are many restaurants in town, all of which looked appealing, making it difficult to decide. We finally settled on Creperie Mrs. Teapot, and were happy we did. The owner and staff were kind and attentive and the food was fresh and delicious. While we like to try different restaurants when we revisit towns, we thoroughly enjoyed our experience here and might just have to go back to this one. We can always try a different dish, after all.

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Vitré is about 25 km northeast from Rennes and easily accessible by car. This quaint town would fascinate young and old alike, especially those, like me, who are intrigued by anything and everything about the medieval and renaissance periods. This will always stay on my “must-see” list of places to visit in Brittany.

There were a number of restaurants and shops open while we were there. I do so hope that they will be able to reopen in the future. I will update this page with listings once we are passed the confinement.

Vitre general information https://www.brittanytourism.com/destinations/the-10-destinations/rennes-and-brittanys-historic-gateways/vitre/

Top things to see and do https://www.lonelyplanet.com/france/vitre/top-things-to-do/a/poi/1304139

Vitre castle https://chateau.vitre.bzh/

Restaurants in Vitre https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g660464-zfp58-Vitre_Ille_et_Vilaine_Brittany.html

Creperie Mrs. Teapot (mentioned above) https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g660464-d2530904-Reviews-Creperie_Mrs_Teapot-Vitre_Ille_et_Vilaine_Brittany.html

Thank you, as always, for reading and subscribing to my blog. I hope you enjoyed this post.

Stay safe and well.

Amy, at Tales from Brittany