La Chapelle aux Filtzméens in Brittany
A welcome return to our favourite French site, in the I’lle de Villaines area of Brittany, provided plenty of relaxation and days out.
July 2025 | 10 minutes read time
The journey by car and ferry
Portsmouth is relatively easy for us to get to – as long as we allow plenty of time for navigating the M25! We always add extra time for towing and for some reason I thought we were leaving late – so we left early and arrived with too much time on our hands! Fortunately the port has a cafe so we settled in for a long wait with coffee and something to read.
We travelled on the Saint-Malo – the first Hybrid-LNG ferry of Brittany Ferries. The previous year we travelled on the much-beloved Bretagne – the previous flagship of Brittany Ferries. It was touching to see that the Bretagne was still much loved by the company as they moved the wonderful artworks over to the new boat. They even have an art exhibition dedicated to the Bretagne and Breton art and crafts on board!
On site at Domain du Logis
It’s strange that when booking a site we spend a huge amount of time deciding where to book based on how good it is. We then arrive and spend the majority of our waking hours elsewhere!
We stayed Domain du Logis last year for four nights and loved its great facilities, excellent staff and location. This time we decided to make it our sole base for the holiday, take time to relax and actually use the facilities on site!
We arrived at 9.30 and were given a warm welcome, despite our early arrival. We had been allocated a pitch but were allowed to choose an alternative – we wanted some shade due to the upcoming heatwave!
Our pitch was serviced with electricity, water and drainage – pitch sizes are quite variable but we picked one with plenty of space. This was just as well as I decided that having just an awning wouldn’t be enough.
I added a sun canopy to the front of the awning and a canopy awning to the other side of the caravan. This meant we had a shaded walled garden at the back, a sunny front terrace and a covered utility area!
The site has a lovely pool area with a children’s pool and splash area. There are always plenty of sunbeds, although the shade is limited. I worked around this by taking a parasol that clips onto things, so I could position the shade exactly where needed.
Unfortunately someone decided that their size 7 feet would fit my size 4 Haivanas perfectly and took mine by mistake. Lesson learned – if leaving shoes in pool areas, take ones that are easy to identify!
There is also a bar, small play area, snack bar and restaurant. We were slightly disappointed that the restaurant menu has now become more international (to cater for the predominantly British guests it would seem), but the service was friendly and the creme brûlée was still excellent!
The reception sells ice creams and basic essentials and you can also order bread for the following day. This turned out to be a bit hit and miss at times but we usually ended up with roughly what we ordered!
Must-sees!
Saint-Malo
Impressive granite ramparts and tales of pirates and explorers, are part of the fabric of the walled port of Saint-Malo.
The Old Town (Intra-Muros) contains cobbled streets, lined with boutiques, creperies, and old stone buildings – most of which were carefully rebuilt after the second World War.
I suggested that we follow a walk around the Old Town in my guidebook. This turned out to be a mistake. The map was an illustration with quite a bit of artistic licence, making it difficult to navigate. Spencer and Harrison also got distracted as soon as they spotted something that looked vaguely interesting. This resulted in us getting lost in the back streets and alleyways.
Fortunately it’s not a very big area and we were able to navigate back towards civilisation eventually. Whilst wandering around, we did manage to walk along part of the 2 km ramparts walk with views of the sea, beach, harbour and many islands close to shore.
Saint-Malo boasts plenty of places to eat but we had difficulties with dietary requirements (I don’t eat meat and Harrison is gluten-free). We ended up in a busy café and were served massive portions of moules frites. Unfortunately the service was reminiscent of Fawlty Towers and I ended up with a portion of chips (fortunately not mussels) cascading down my back!
Dinan
Winding cobbled streets, timber-framed houses rise up from the River Rance in this beautiful medieval town. Dinan is also a cultural centre – when we visited last year we were treated to a Breton harp festival combined with an art exhibition. We stopped for the mandatory crêpes and cider in a cup and enjoyed meandering through he cobbled streets.
This year we visited Port de Dinan instead – a cluster of buildings and boats nestled along the river. We had a pleasant walk along the river and then wished we had brought Harrison with us so we could stop for dinner at one of the riverside restaurants. Maybe next time!
Other places to explore
There are plenty of other places to visit – well-known and off the beaten track. You can choose from traditional and authentically French little towns with bustling markets, or the laid-back glamour of historic coastal resorts.
Bécherel
Known as the city of books, this tiny town consists of a quaint town square (Place des Halles) surrounded by bookshops, cafés and a combination of the two. We parked by the cemetery just outside the centre of Bécheral and experienced multiple friendly greetings of ‘Bonjour’ from passing locals as we walked in.
We went for a short stroll around the centre, perusing second hand books and a coffee on the square. We ended up exploring the Jardin du Thabor park – stone walls, lawns and steps in the grounds of the castle ruins, with views over the town.
Combourg
Combourg is most famous for its castle ,which was home to politician and romantic writer François René de Chateaubriand. The town itself has plenty of atmosphere, with its half-timbered buildings surrounding the impressive castle. The castle overlooks a beautiful lake (Lac Tranquille) – a great place for a picnic!
Dinard
Nestled on Brittany’s Emerald Coast, Dinard is a seaside resort with vintage glamour. At times it feels like you’re in the South of France – as long as the weather is playing ball!
Dinard’s main beach is Plage de l’Écluse – perfect for sunbathing, people-watching and swimming. Of course we didn’t stop there as I was with two men who hate sand! I can imagine that it would make a wonderful place to lounge about for the day though.
We took a walk along Promenade du Clair de Lune instead. This is a gentle coastal walk with subtropical plants and sea views. Apparently they play classical music along it in the evening for a touch of romance!
Over 400 grand 19th-century villas perch above the sea, showing Dinard’s past as a resort for British aristocrats and the Parisian elite. You can see some of these villas along the Promenade and they are huge!
Travelling west from Dinard, we stopped at the restaurant at Pointe du Décolleté (for crêpes course!) and then wandered around Saint-Briac – inspiration for many artists including Renoir.
Dol-de-Bretagne
Dol was the religious capital of the Breton king Nomenoë in the 9th century and according to legend was founded by a Welsh man named Samson!
We struggled with roadside parking on market day, only to find as we left town later that there was a huge car park in the next street!
The town has a typical French market along Grande Rue des Stuarts, with lots of interesting stalls and friendly stallholders.
We could see that the restaurants and cafes were starting to fill up with shoppers stopping for a drink and early lunch, so decided to join them. We had delicious galettes and cider in a busy cafe in the middle of the market. The owner’s young children were helping out which gave it a lovely family feel and the place was full of locals.
We decided to walk around the gothic St Samson’s Cathedral to allow lunch to digest. By the time we got back to Grande Rue des Stuarts the market had been packed away. Everything was immaculately clean and you would never guess a market had ever been there. The removal of the clutter did mean that it was now possible to see the beautiful medieval buildings lining the sides of the main road. These include the Maison des Petits Palets, one of the oldest houses in Brittany.
A few miles from the city is Mont-Dol – a 65 metre hill where St Michael fought the devil according to local legend. It has great views of the surrounding area which is mainly flat and we spotted Mont-Saint-Michel in the distance.
A few miles from the city is Mont-Dol – a 65 metre hill where St Michael fought the devil according to local legend. It has great views of the surrounding area which is mainly flat and we spotted Mont-Saint-Michel in the distance.
Saint-Suliac
Saint-Suliac is a beautiful Breton village with narrow cobbled lanes, fishermen’s cottages and river views.
We wandered around the picturesque village centre and along the river, before stopping for crêpes and cider at a bar overlooking the river.
Afterwards we drove up to the Oratorie – a shrine with stunning views across the Rance Valley, built to honour and protect the lives of the village fishermen.
Walking and cycling
The nearby Canal d’Ille-et-Rance is a peaceful place for walking and cycling. The canal is only 400 metres from the site entrance and offers easy access to nearby Saint-Domineuc if you prefer pedal power.
There are plenty of local cycling routes and I attempted to follow one in a tourist map. It was a Sunday lunchtime and as I passed isolated houses I enviously listened to families enjoying their lunch together. I wished I was having a glass of wine with them.
My map was confusing and not very accurate. I ended up on a road which became a farm track and then a narrow footpath – I think I may have taken a wrong turn! Next time I’ll consider buying a specialist map or using an App. It’s illegal to use a mobile phone on a bike in France though, so I’m not sure how French cyclists navigate their way around!
Parting thoughts
This site is a great place to relax – you can be quite happy just chilling out here for a while. There are plenty of places to explore locally – we’ve still got a to-do list and I’d love to revisit Dinan and have dinner by the port. We’ll definitely be coming back – whether for a short visit on the return home or as a destination as we did this time.
Our ratings
Site: Well-deserving of its official five stars!
Things to do nearby: Good variety of activities and places to visit nearby.
How we started out
If you want to find out how we bought our first caravan, click the button below.
Claire's Caravan 