Visit Mont-Saint-Michel, Normandy

Mont Saint Michel is one of the most photographed, and easily recognised, landmarks in France. It is in Normandy close to the border with Brittany.

For a long time ownership of Mont Saint Michel alternated between Normandy and Brittany. Because it lies at the mouth of the river that separates the two departments, and the river kept silting up and changing direction, Mont Saint Michel also moved between the two departments.Brittany still make a (perhaps reasonable) claim that since the island was theirs, it is hardly their fault if the river has moved, so it should still be theirs.

Ever in danger of becoming part of the mainland, due to silting in the river, the French government has recently agreed to a large scale 'de-silting' programme that will ensure Mont Saint Michel remains an island.


Mont Saint Michel is now one of the leading tourist destinations in France, with 3 million visitors each year. An interesting fact: only one in three of these visitors make it as far as the Abbey that is on top of the Mount.

Just to deal with one common misunderstanding - Mont Saint Michel is currently never inaccessible due to high tides.

The sight of Mont St Michel from across the water is really amazing but once I got there I must admit to a tinge of disappointment. I was expecting a kind of Carcassone on an island but in fact the Abbey takes up most of the island and the short path to the abbey is full of attractive buildings but these in turn are full of tourist rubbish and absolutely heaving with people. It really is not worth going unless you are going to enter the abbey (cost 8euros50). But the Abbey is superb, it is vast and some of the rooms such as the ‘Great pillared crypt’ are fantastic. The cloister too is very beautiful. The views from the top are splendid too.

The abbey which is gothic in style is known as 'La Merveille' or 'the Marvel‘. It was built over the course of many years, from the 11th to the 16th centuries. Some of the buildings around the Abbey are reserved for the Monastic Brotherhood of Jerusalem who ensure that prayers are continually being said in the abbey.

For a spell of its history Mont St Michel was a prison but by 1836 a campaign was launched to restore it as a national treasure. Victor Hugo was one of the campaigners. The prison was closed in 1863 and Mont St Michel was declared a national monument in 1874. See the abbey opening hours and prices at Mont-Saint-Michel visitor information

Mont Saint Michel is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. See also Saint Michael's Mount, Cornwall for the Cornish counterpart to the island just off the coast from Marazion (south-west England).