Quimper
France
The capital of Cornouaille, at the meeting of two rivers, with a cathedral whose nave bends off the line of its choir
Photo by Evgeni Tcherkasski on Unsplash
Photos by Pascal Bernardon, Pascal Bernardon, Pascal Bernardon and Pascal Bernardon on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of France
May to September
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 150mm in Jan
Where it is
48.00°N, 4.10°W Open in Google Maps
Things to do
Several days- Go into the cathedral and stand at the west door to see how far the choir bends
- Take the boat down the Odet and the bus back
- Eat a galette and a crêpe at a crêperie at lunch, which is the right time
- Drive to the Pointe du Raz early, before the car park fills
- Walk Locronan in the evening, after the coaches have gone
Quimper travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget France
Mid-rangeEuros, and cards everywhere, including the crêperies and the faïence shops.
ATMs & cards
Bank machines in the old town round the cathedral and at the station. Use a bank’s own machine and refuse the offer to convert into your own currency.
Avoid these
- independent machines that offer to charge you in your own currency
Use these instead
- Crédit Agricole
- Crédit Mutuel de Bretagne
- BNP Paribas
- La Banque Postale
Cards are taken everywhere. Refuse any offer to convert.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of France
Very safeA very safe town. The risks are on the coast: the cliffs at the Pointe du Raz and along the coastal path have no railings and the wind can knock you sideways, and the surf beaches of the Baie d’Audierne have strong rips — swim where there are lifeguards. It rains a great deal in the cold half of the year, and the old town’s cobbles are slippery.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (7 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
- the old town — round the cathedral
- the quays of the Odet
- Locmaria — the old potters’ quarter downriver
- Mont Frugy — the wooded hill over the river
Worth more attention
- the Pointe du Raz — unfenced cliffs and strong wind; keep to the marked paths
- the Baie d’Audierne beaches — surf and rip currents; swim between the flags where there are lifeguards
- The coastal path in wet weather, when the edges are muddy and the drops are sheer
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa France visa rules
No visa needed
Freedom of movement — no time limit, and no visa. Bring a passport or national ID card.
Other passports
No visa neededup to 90 days
90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not per country. ETIAS, a paid online authorisation, is being introduced for these passports — check the official link for whether it applies to your travel dates.
Visa required in advance€90 (Schengen short-stay visa)
A Schengen short-stay visa is applied for before travel, at the consulate of your main destination.
How to get it: Apply at the consulate or visa centre of the country you will spend most time in, typically 15 working days ahead and no more than six months before travel.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of France
Excellent and cheapRequired to enter
No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Routine vaccinations up to date
Getting treated
EU/EEA and Swiss visitors are treated on the same terms as residents with an EHIC or GHIC card; UK visitors use a GHIC. Everyone else pays, and travel insurance is worth having for the repatriation cover rather than the treatment.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
Very goodCrêperies are the local restaurant, and the order is a galette — buckwheat, savoury, with egg, ham and cheese for a first one — then a sweet crêpe, with dry cider in a bowl. Kouign-amann comes from Douarnenez, half an hour away. Breton butter is salted, and asking for unsalted gets a look.
Travel tipsGetting around
Workable- UberWorks here
- BoltWorks here
- G7Works here
- FREE NOWWorks here
G7 the taxi fleet, by app
- Against a taxi
- Much the same. The flat airport rate is a taxi rule and the apps price against it.
Time zone and your working day
Europe/Paris — 6 hours ahead of you
2 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–11:00 your time, 15:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 03:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 03:00–11:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for France, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolutIn the app
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
French
- HelloBonjourbon-ZHOOR
- PleaseS'il vous plaîtseel voo PLEH
- Thank youMercimer-SEE
- Yes / NoOui / Nonwee / non
4 more phrases
- Excuse meExcusez-moiex-koo-zay MWA
- How much is it?C'est combien ?say com-BYEN
- The bill, pleaseL'addition, s'il vous plaîtla-dee-SYON
- Cheers!Santé !son-TAY
Open with bonjour before anything else. Launching straight into a question without it reads as rude, and explains a lot of reputed French coldness.
Travel tipsReligion
Catholic, and strictly secular
Laïcité is a constitutional principle: religion is kept out of public institutions, and conspicuous religious symbols are banned in state schools. Cover shoulders in cathedrals.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Say bonjour before anything else, every single time you enter a shop
- Keep your voice down in restaurants and on public transport
- Keep both hands visible on the table while eating, wrists on the edge
- Dress a notch smarter than you would at home — it changes how you are treated
Don't
- Do not ask for a doggy bag or substitutions; the dish arrives as the kitchen intends
- Do not start with English without at least attempting bonjour, parlez-vous anglais
- Do not tip more than rounding up — service is included by law
- Do not eat while walking; it reads as slightly uncivilised
Where to stay in Quimper
No Holistay rentals in Quimper yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Quimper on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Brest BES
1h 5mfrom the airport· 55 km as the crow flies
About an hour by hire car; by public transport, into Brest and the train on, nearer two hours.
Also worth pricing: Nantes NTE — about two and a half hours by road, with many more routes.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
