Europe > France > Rennes: Weather, Climate and Travel Guide

Located in western France, inland, Rennes has just over 210 000 inhabitants and lies at the confluence of the Ille et Vilaine. Access is via the A84 from Caen, and the RN 137 from Paris, but also by train from Paris or Le Mans. The city has an airport located 7 km from the city center that serves major French and European cities. To get around the city, bus and metro are available, and a bike system to map and bike paths (still insufficient in number). Rennes offers many green spaces walkers, with 868 hectares, as Oberthür Park with its beautiful lake or the leisure Gayeulles northeast of the city. But its cultural appeal is not less important: a little less than a hundred buildings are historical monuments and religious heritage of the city is particularly rich, especially with St. Peter Cathedral, its classical facade and neoclassical interior, convent of the Jacobins on the Place Sainte-Anne, or the Saint-Germain church of Gothic style. You can also admire the many halls built in the 19th century, several mills, especially the beautiful houses with wood sides in the district center, or others with their colored or sculpted facades. Rennes also offers several sites devoted to culture, like the National Theatre of Brittany or the Opera, and hosts parallel festivals like Rock Road in February, the Fallen of the Night (street arts festival) in July or Yaouank festival (Brittany contemporary music) in November. Several museums are sure to fascinate the curious: for example visit the Ecomuseum of the Rennes, the Museum of Fine Arts and the Dance Museum.