NORMANDY - France 2014 - page 463

Internet and Groceries: The industrious Hôtel Vert, located in La Caserne, has a guest
computer, Wi-Fi, a 24-hour grocery store, and rooms for rent (hotel described under
“Sleeping in Mont St-Michel,” later).
Taxi: Call 02 33 60 33 23, 02 33 60 26 89, or 06 07 96 50 36.
Guided Tours: Several top-notch guides can lead you through the abbey's complex his-
tory. The best are found in Bayeux, a good base for a day trip to Mont St-Michel.
Westcapades provides transportation from St-Malo with minimal commentary (tel.
02 96 39 79 52, www.westcapades.com , [e-mail] ; see here ) .
Guided Walks: The TI mayofferguidedwalksofthevillagebelowtheabbey(askahead).
They also have information on inexpensive guided walks across the bay (with some
English). La Traversée Traditionelle traces the footsteps of pilgrims, starting across
the bay at Le Bec d'Andaine and walking over the mudflat to Mont St-Michel (veri-
fy that the guide speaks some English, daily April-Oct, fewer off-season, times de-
pend on tides; €6.50, reservations recommended, 4 miles—or 1.75 hours—each way,
round-trip takes 4.5 hours, including one hour on Mont St-Michel; ask at TI or call 02
33 89 80 88, www.cheminsdelabaie.com ) . For a tour within the abbey itself, see my
self-guided tour on here .
Crowd-Beating Tips: If you're staying overnight, arrive after 16:00 and leave by 11:00
to avoid the worst crowds. The island's main drag is wall-to-wall people from 11:00
to 16:00. Bypass this mess by following this topic's suggested walking routes (under
“Sights in Mont St-Michel”); the gendarmerie shortcut works best if you want to
avoid both crowds and stairs.
Best Light: Because Mont St-Michel faces southwest, morning light from the causeway
is eye-popping. Take a memorable walk before breakfast. And don't miss the illumin-
ated island after dark (also best from the causeway).
Sights in Mont St-Michel
These sights are listed in the order by which you approach them from the mainland.
Surrounding the Island
The Bay of Mont St-Michel
The vast Bay of Mont St-Michel has long played a key role. Since the sixth century,
hermit-monks in search of solitude lived here. The word “hermit” comes from an ancient
Greekwordmeaning“desert.”ThenextbestthingtoadesertinthispartofEuropewasthe
sea. Imagine the desert this bay provided as the first monk climbed the rock to get close to