Even on an overcast day, Rochefort-en-Terre is spectacular. The Brittany village located in the Morbihan department was voted “Le Village Préféré Des Francais 2016” (French people’s favorite village) and I saw it with my own eyes last month.
Click to see the pics!
Rochefort-en-Terre is a favorite for a reason
France has a little bit of everything and the diversity is one of the things I love most about the country. You can find castles, wineries and beautiful seaside towns without much effort, but what makes a village so special? The feeling you get from it.
It was drizzling out when we got to Rochefort-en-Terre on our way home from our Brittany weekend but the village was beautiful. Still decorated for Christmas, the cobblestone streets, artisan shops, and buildings full of character helped earn the town its honor of France’s favorite village. A quick walk around showed me why it deserves this honor and is worthy of a visit if you’re ever in the area.
How could you not love a place that looks like this?
From the minute we got there, I felt like I was a character in a fairy tale just walking through something that wasn’t real life. There were barely any cars in the village’s well-maintained center and the 16th-century half-timbered houses and storefronts looked too perfect to be real! If you picture what a “charming French town” would look like, Rochefort-en-Terre would be it.
Rochefort-en-terre is a stunning Petite Cité de Caractére and also boasts a medieval chateau that was once home to American painter Alfred Klotz. He bought it in 1907 and tourists can visit from May-September. You’ll notice the plentiful flower boxes as you walk around town. Klotz encouraged the locals to decorate their homes with geraniums and this tradition is still in practice today.
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***Have you visited Rochefort-en-Terre or a similarly charming French village? There’s no shortage of them!
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Thanks for this! There are so many beautiful French towns and villages, it’s hard to keep track. Rochefort-sur-Terre certainly did a good job of preserving the historic center while keeping it lively. Too often those goals are at odds. Also, towns back then just didn’t have decorative vegetation–people may have had small garden courtyards but since most went out to the fields they didn’t appreciate greenery along the streets. Rochefort-sur-Terre did a good job of working in vegetation with planters.
On my list to visit.
Thanks for taking the time to read it 😉 It really does look like something out of a fairy tale.
How delightful! Thank you for sharing.
You’re very welcome!
Nice, oh so nice
It really is a beautiful place!
What a stunning village it just oozes Gallic charm. You picked a good time to visit, I imagine it is swarming with tourists in August. I have visited two petites cités de caractére, both in Vendée. Aprémont and Vouvant, you should check them out, they are not too far from you.
Oh yes, I’m sure August is super crowded, so always best to visit places like this in the off season if at all possible. I haven’t been to either of the two places you mentioned, so heading over to Google now to check them out on a map! Thank you for the recommendations!
Thank you very much for your nice pictures and your testimony. I work for the tourist office and am very glad you enjoyed every minute of your time in Rochefort. We hop we’ll see you again!
Thanks for taking a look at my post, Veronique! What a beautiful village! 😉
Is this also the site of a big truffle festival?
This is a darling place, so full of life and history and beauty. These are the sorts of places that keep our imagination full and our dream list long!
Thanks for sharing these lovely photos. Cheers!
Hmm, not too sure about a truffle festival, Jill. There might be a festival like that but there are also a bunch of Rochefort-something-or-other in France so it may be in another town in the south somewhere. Not too sure. But yes, if you’re ever in the area, do try to visit!
I just love villages like this one! Thanks for posting the photos. This reminds me how much I need to get out of Paris once in a while! 😀 <3
Hope you can make a road trip west soon, Tammy! So many fun places to see!
Thanks Diane, me too! 😀
Yes, thank you for sharing! Appears to be the very definition of charming!
I haven’t been to French villages so can’t add much. Only European “village” I was ever at was Weissenbach Austria. Very “alpine”.
The US doesn’t really have the exact equivalent of this sort of thing although there are charming places.
Todd V
You’re very welcome! Very true that the US doesn’t have the same kind of charm. The history just isn’t the same, but there are beautiful places in both countries. If you feel like a road trip out to Brittany, this place is worth a stop.
what fabulously shaped roofs! I too love how diverse France is, each region is so different. Thanks for sharing this with #AllAboutFrance
I love that photo of the rooftops!
Oh my goodness, what an adorable looking place! We stayed close by over the summer. I wish I’d known about Rochefort then – we’d definitely have paid it a visit. #AllAboutFrance
My husband and I visited in August a few years ago. It was middayish and the cafés were full but we had the streets to ourselves. Around 2pm the streets were bustling. There was a market stall selling the usual sort of brocante items – mostly expensive and we were far from home (the Alps) so had no place for big purchases, but we did find a candleholder that looked old (it had no ‘Made in China’ anywhere!) and is a lovely reminder of a beautiful place and day.
Hi Diane. Its Joe from cape may. Rochfort en Terre is the pretty town I passed on my train from Saint Malo to Angers, another beautiful French town. I didn’t know anything about it otherwise I would have planned on a stopover. Thank you and Tom for spending time with me when I arrived and for the excellent job you do with your news letter and YouTube channel. All best. Joe.
You’re very welcome Joe!! So glad you had a nice trip and that we were able to meet you. Enjoy the last couple of days!