The Castle in the Sea. The Fairytale Castle. UNESCO World Heritage Site. If this is your first time ever seeing this incredible château (the word for castle in French is château but, to be clear, it’s an abbey and not a château), it probably took your breath away. You may not even have believed the photo was real – but it definitely is! And while there are many famous castles and palaces across France, Versailles and Fontainebleau being two of the most notable, Mont-Saint-Michel surely stands alone.   

Located on the northwest coast of France between Normandy and Brittany and about 3-1/2 hours from Paris, the story of Mont-Saint-Michel stretches back to 708 when Aubert, the Bishop of Avranches, built the first monastic sanctuary on the island after being visited by the Archangel Saint Michel in three successive visions. The surrounding sea, which provided a natural form of almost impregnable defenses in the Middle Ages, along with the ongoing financial and spiritual support of generations of French royalty, drove the construction of this extraordinary Benedictine abbey to become one of the most astonishing examples of religious architecture in the world.

Theatre of the Sea

Depending on the tides, Mont-Saint-Michel is either an island encircled by the Couesnon (bay), surrounded by water but connected to the French mainland by a walkable and drivable causeway, or an island when the causeway is completely submerged under water. A visit should definitely be planned in advance so that you arrive at least two hours prior to high tide to enjoy the view of the sea as the waters rise and fall. Also, be aware that at high tide on most days the abbey, while surrounded by water, is still accessible via the causeway.

How do you figure out when the water will be low or high? Look at the tidal coefficient tables of course! No worries, to see the tables all you have to do is just click on this link (the French use a 24-hour clock so high and low tide times are fairly easy to decipher so 6:00 PM would be 18:00 on the tidal table).

• Times that are not highlighted show when the waters of the Couesnon will not reach Mont-Saint-Michel.
• Times that are highlighted in yellow show when Mont-Saint-Michel is surrounded by water but still accessible via the causeway.
• Times that are highlighted in red show when the causeway will be submerged under water and Mont-Saint-Michel becomes an island.

Click on the image below to view the short YouTube video “Mont-Saint-Michel Again Becomes an Island” and see the phenomenal effect of the tides on this marvelous castle.

An interesting note here. The French drive on the right-side of the road, just like in the United States, and with a normal everyday American driver’s license you can both rent a car and drive anywhere in France. I particularly recommend this because 80% of the country is rural and you can stop in all the little villages along the way. So if you’re a bit adventurous, drive out to the coast of Normandy and Brittany and cap off your visit with a day at Mont-Saint-Michel. Plan ahead and you can even drive across the causeway, park close to the abbey, and stay overnight in one of several welcoming hotels – a truly incredible way to enjoy the plethora of restaurants and shops on the Mount as well as the museum and numerous spectacular views!

Links for Mont-Saint-Michel

Here is the link to the official French website of Mont-Saint-Michel. Be sure to click on the “EN” button (for English) on the right side of the site (you may see an “FR” for French – just click on that and change it to “EN”).

Of course, you absolutely must eat some delicious French food from one of the 14 restaurants found on Mont-Saint-Michel during your visit:

• La Terrasse du Mouton Blanc
• Auberge Saint-Pierre
• Le Duguesclin
• La Terrasse Mère Poulard
• Le Chapeau Rouge
• La Belle Normande
• Au Pèlerin
• Crêperie La Sirène
• Auberge Le Mouton Blanc
• Le Tripot
• Les Terrasses De La Baie
• La Confiance
• Le Saint-Michel
• La Mère Poulard

You can see all of the restaurants in the area, to include those located across the causeway from Mont-Saint-Michel by clicking here.

And if you’d like to add an overnight stay to your trip, there are 7 hotels located directly on Mont-Saint-Michel:

• Hôtel Auberge Saint-Pierre êêê
• Hôtel La Croix Blanche êêê
• Hôtel Duguesclin êê
• Hôtel Les Terrasses Poulardêêê
• Hôtel Le Mouton Blancêêê
• Hôtel La Vieille Aubergeêêê
• Hôtel La Mère Poulardêêê

Four- and five-star hotels are a short drive (or walk) across the causeway. You can see all of the hotels in the area by clicking here.

Bonne chance!