Rennes tourist information
Rennes is the capital of Brittany, and is loaded with history. The Great Fire of 1720 missed many little streets, thankfully, so the town centre is extremely pretty. The oldest houses in Rennes seem to stand proudly proclaiming their age: over 4 centuries. Inside, you’ll find little shops and cafés, or maybe private apartments. The best thing to do is to meander through the streets, and find little passageways, courtyards, and gardens, often filled with flowers. The heart of the town, from La Place de la Mairie to La Place Sainte Anne, from the Cathedral to la rue Saint Georges, will also reveal architectural treasures from the 18th and 19th centuries.
The white buildings in la Place du Parlement make for a very light scene, full of sunshine and space. In this same square, the Parliament itself (today the Palais de Justice) was severely damaged by fire in 1994, an event which saddened the whole of Brittany. It has been restored since then, and it’s a fine sight to see the fine slate roof and the golden statues. The parliament was re-opened at the beginning of the year 2000 and is open to the public. A little more recent is the Hotel de Ville (town hall), which dates from the end of the 19th century. It’s opposite the Opera, on La Place de la Mairie.
Both buildings have facades which resemble a jigsaw puzzle, fitting perfectly together if we pushed the two towards one another. The Thabor Garden is a little further north, where you’ll see rare trees, and fine fountains. There is a greenhouse which contains rarer species in the winter.
Rennes is a university town with over 45000 students in a total population of 250000. This makes the town particularly animated, above all with regard to new musical styles. The town fills with visitors the night of the “Transmusicales”, which is an internationally renowned event for new musical tendencies. New talent is always discovered here. There are also theatre festivals (“Les Tombées de la Nuit” in the summer and “Mettre en Scene” in the autumn), A Fable Festival (“En faim de Contes”) and a cinema festival (“Travelling”) in the winter.
For several years now, Rennes has been the number one town in many national magazine surveys of the best quality of life in France.
Between tradition and modernism, cultural identity and an open spirit, Rennes is a “must visit” destination before heading for rural Brittany.
Rennes aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Rennes aerial tourist map, to find close by places, offering hotels and tourist information. You can zoom in and zoom out our touristical map as well as switch between satelite and map view of Rennes.
Rennes weather forecast
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